Newbie & seeking advice Hi!

[iggiecat]

Hello - I'm looking forward to chatting about diving with everyone -

My husband and I have been researching scuba certifications and see there are the PADI certs and SSI, and we're wondering which is the better one to go through. We've seen a few pros and cons with each - but we'd like to get more 'professional' opinions before we invest in one. Any advice or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated! Happy New Year to you and thanks for any replies!

:balloons:

 

[floridanewbe]

welcome aboard. I went with PADI and it worked for me .The most important thing do decide is who will certify (teach) you. By that I mean the person . Do you both like, trust and feel comfortable with them. If the answer is no the cert company is unimportant.
Also think about what you want to get out of diving. Do you just want to be able to dive and see cool things (sounds good to me) or to want to tech dive or teach. ? Give us a bit more information.

 

[nereas]

This question gets asked a lot.

Then thousands of divers that have done each chime in with their rave reviews.

And that does not tell you anything.

I believe that whichever one requires you to do the most dives for the class will be the best one.

So ask each one in your neighborhood how many dives they give you in the ocean?

Then choose.

 

[Mike Harvey]

I found that PADI is more reconized worldwide , but you want to find a shop that treats you like family. They should make sure that you understand the information thoroughly and that you are completly comfortable with all of the equipment. They should be encouraging not pushy & not treat you like a number. The more pool & open water dive's they give you to cert. you the better.

 

[markkelsey]

I agree with Mike. Alot of it depends on the dive shop you go to. How do they teach? Do they follow the guidelines set by PADI, SSI etc. Safety should always be used. Become a DAN member and have a great time

 

[M.HARDY]

I agree with both Mike and Mark...I went to a LDC..about a mile away from me and they v'e treated me like family right from the start..found me dive buddys..anything I need and they tell me when i don't need somrthing I think I want I'm lucky and glad I walked in the door that day..they are "PADI.'' I don't know about any other ones..my LDC is the 1st one I contacted..check around...ask lots of questions..joining DAN is good advice. DIVE SAFE & ENJOY!!

 

[thanksforallthefish]

I agree with the previous posters, the flavour of the C Card is unimportant, most OW courses seem to be similar, what is important is you have a good instructor and dive shop.

I am not sure if there are any agencies that aren't recognised all over the world these days or not.

The only thing I will say about the C Card is hopefully it will be an internationally recognised agency ... even if you have no intention at the moment of doing any diving other than local, you never know what the future may bring.

 

[farsidefan1]

Welcome! Either one of the agencies you are looking at will get you "in the door". The most important thing to keep in mind is that your certification is only a ticket to start diving and really developing the skills you have been exposed to. Often you will hear folks in here bashing the agencies for not sufficiently preparing divers but the reality is that they set you on a course but you have to take the initiative to develop the needed skills to be a competent diver. Just understand that you don't know much, even after your "advanced open water certification". It is a matter of practicing and observing others with more experience and , well you are here so you can ask questions without fear of being made to feel like an idiot, well except for sting and although he is a bit prickly he is very knowledgeable

 

[greenshinigami]

when iggie and i were looking at these shops the PADI one had a better selection of equipment and their staff was very friendly. with the SSI shop they only carried seaquest and aqualung, and she seemed overly nice almost to the point of being creepy.

i personally would like to get to the instructor level not for the money but for the fun of helping others.

 

[rsilva708]

Welcome to the board