Best Place to complete Divemaster Training

[Toff86]

Hay Guys

Best place to do your Divemaster training? Next year me and my girlfriend will be taking 4 – 5 weeks to go away somewhere in the world and complete our Divemaster training we are currently rescue divers and have done around 70 dives each. We are looking for somewhere AMAZING to complete our training, my thoughts are either Raja Ampat in Indonesia, Palau islands in the pacific or Belize in central America. We have already dived Thailand, Borneo, Malaysia, The Philippines, Australia and the Gili Islands in Bali. Any thoughts or suggestions will be very welcome.

 

[gunter.bernert]

Back to the Philippines, try the wrecks of Busuanga Island, a great place to get your DM training and real challenging dives to guide.

 

[robint]

My suggestion for the Caribbean is Bay Islands, Honduras -either Utila or Roatan. Both islands have big DM programs offered at several dive shops, plus the living is very inexpensive.

Palau is not a cheap place to get to, not sure how expensive it is to live there. Diving is amazing though. I really don't know how the DM programs are there. Most visitors to Palau are from Asia so most dive shops are geared to them.

just my 2psi.
robin

 

[DeputyDan]

If you plan to work as a DM in England then you should train to be a DM in England.

The conditions there are more difficult that many other places and you need to be trained as a DM to be able to care for your students (or other divers under your care) in conditions found in England.

Go ahead and take your trip - enjoy it - do alot of great diving - but train in and for the conditions in which you will be working

just my 2 cents!

 

[jlevine]

DeputyDan raises a good point. I think another thing worth considering is where you can legally work if you want to hang around past the conclusion of your internship. In the case of a DM internship that is voluntary, you may not have to be concerned as much with immigration issues. If you are able to find a place where you can earn some money after your internship is over, it helps to be in a place where you can do it without skirting immigration laws. If you are able to work in the EU, you may have some interesting options.

 

[Crush]

If you plan to work as a DM in England then you should train to be a DM in England.

The conditions there are more difficult that many other places and you need to be trained as a DM to be able to care for your students (or other divers under your care) in conditions found in England.

Go ahead and take your trip - enjoy it - do alot of great diving - but train in and for the conditions in which you will be working

just my 2 cents!

+1

Accidents and incidents is full of stories where divers are trained in warm, crystal-clear water and find themselves in trouble in cold, murky water. Go somewhere warm for a vacation. Train in the area where you will be assuming responsibility for the safety of others - seriously.

Is your primary consideration fun, or training?

If I were to trust my kids to a DM, I might recommend that that DM have:

25 dives in a drysuit in cold water
25 dives in a drysuit in warm water
25 dives in a wetsuit in cold water
25 dives in a wetsuit in warm water

In conjunction with the above, I would recommend:
25 dives in crystal-clear, warm water
25 dives in crystal-clear, cold water
25 dives in very murky, warm water
25 dives in very murky, cold water

Also, add 25 current dives, 25 drift dives, and 25 dives in overhead environments and confined spaces (if properly certified).

 

[xjeslesx]

I would also recommend to take your divemaster class where you will primarily be diving. If you live in the tropics then take the class in warm clear water, but if you are primarily diving up North then you should take the class in cold/dark water.
Also, by taking the class at home you will be free to enjoy every dive while on vacation not watch OW students do their skills.

Just my two cents.

 

[johnllewellyndavies]

I agree with the above posts regarding what you want from the course: fun or work?

I did mine for fun on Utila, Honduras and it was great, good diving, cheap living and a good diver community.

Just after I finnished my DM course, the centre where I did it, Alton's Dive Centre, started offering a dual certification PADI/NAUI DM course, which could be great value, check it out?