Discover the thrill of diving and unlock a world of underwater wonders with our PADI Open Water Course. Whether you're an adventurous soul seeking new experiences or simply fascinated by the mysteries beneath the waves, this course is your gateway to becoming a certified diver.
Master theory, practice skills, and explore stunning underwater landscapes. Gain confidence as you progress from pool training to awe-inspiring open water dives. Earn an internationally recognized certification to dive independently.
Enroll in the PADI Open Water Course today and embark on a lifetime of underwater adventures.
See more course information and start dates below.
If you’ve always wanted to learn to scuba dive the PADI Open Water Diver Course course is for you.
With a PADI Open Water Diver Certification, you will be qualified to dive with a buddy, independent of an instructor to 18 metres. You will be able to buy scuba equipment, book on trips, explore wrecks, reefs and underwater kelp forests in over 183 countries worldwide.
This qualification is for life and it will certainly change yours. Most people have diving on their bucket lists, so why not be one of the lucky few who experiences the other 70% of this earth - the underwater!
Scuba Diving Equipment
Scuba Diving Skills
Underwater Compass Skills
Dive Planning, Dive Tables and Dive Computers
Buddy System Procedures
The Open Water Environment
Aquatic Life
Safe Diving Practices
Age The minimum age is 14 years old for the PADI Open Water Diver Course
Medical History All student divers complete an RSTC Medical Form that asks about medical conditions that could be a problem while diving. If none of these applies, sign the form and you’re ready to start. If you answer YES to any question on your RSTC Medical Form your doctor must, as a safety precaution, assess the condition as it relates to diving and sign the medical form that confirms you’re fit to dive.
Swimming You will need to demonstrate basic water skills to be sure you’re comfortable in the water. This is a 200-metre/yard swim or 300-metre/yard swim using a mask, fins and snorkel without stopping. There is no time limit for this and you may use any swimming stroke you want.
Language Requirements We are able to give you the theory portion of this course in a number of different languages but it is important that you also have good conversational english skills. Our instructors need to give you very important safety instructions verbally in the pool and at the dive site and they need to know that you fully comprehend what they are saying. If we are not confident that you will understand us please don’t be offended it is for the safety of our instructors as well as the other divers you will be diving with.
As a minimum when you start your course you are required to have your own mask, and snorkel. While we provide wetsuits, fins, boots, gloves and a knife, these items do have a very personal fit and you will be more comfortable in your own equipment. For the duration of the course, we provide all of the SCUBA equipment you need, but you can, of course, choose to provide your own. Dive Otago has a wide range of scuba equipment for sale and your instructor can help you choose the best gear for your diving needs.
We will provide for you:
Wetsuit (7mm)
Scuba Diving Fins
Weight belt
Gloves
Boots
Dive knife
Signal tube (Safety Sausage)
You will need to provide:
Mask & snorkel
Theory
eLearning Option – 12 to 15 hours of independent online study prior to the course in our digital classroom. You will be presented with videos and slides to teach you all you need to know before moving on to the practical stuff.
Book and DVD Option – You will read The PADI Open Water Diver Manual prior to the course as well as watching the PADI Open Water Diver DVD. You complete an exam at Dive Otago before moving on to the practical stuff.
Confined Water Dives (Pool)
Two days practising in our heated dive pool. You will practise and complete all the skills you will use in the ocean under the guidance of one of our experienced instructors. Learning is fun and you have plenty of time to perfect your skills.
Open Water Dives (Ocean)
Now for the real fun and excitement! 4 Open Water Dives over 2 days at one of our amazing training sites. Aramoana has shipwrecks and beautiful kelp forests and is an easy site for all abilities. Weller's Rock on the other side of the harbour is complete with sponges, fish life and the very rare New Zealand Hooker Sea Lions.
Option 1 - 2 Weekends
Saturday 9am to 5pm - Confined Water Dives (Pool) Sunday 9am to 5pm - Confined Water Dives (Pool) Saturday 9am to 5pm - Open Water Dives (Ocean) Sunday 9am to 5pm - Open Water Dives (Ocean)
Option 2 - 1 Week
Monday 6pm to 9pm - Welcome & Theory Quiz Tuesday 6pm to 9pm - Confined Water Dives (Pool) Wednesday 6om to 9pm - Confined Water Dives (Pool) Thursday 6pm to 9pm - Confined Water Dives (Pool) Saturday 9am to 5pm - Open Water Dives (Ocean) Sunday - 9am - 5pm Open Water Dives (Ocean)
Option 3 - Private For private courses we can customise your schedule to suit. Call 0800 DIVE OTAGO to organise this today
Schedule Notes Check out our Short Course Calendar to see when our next course starts. Weekdays are generally from 6:00pm - 9:00pm and weekend days 8:30am - 5:00pm. Please note, this is only a guide and may slightly change due to weather or class size. If your course is a STAR course, group course or private course your timetable may be different from the options above.
When you're certified as an Open Water diver you'll be able to dive to 18 metres whenever you're accompanied by a certified buddy of the same or higher certification level (the other diver must be 18+). You don't have to be accompanied by a divemaster or instructor but you can be if you'd prefer. You're also eligible to do the Advanced Open Water Course and many Specialty courses.
The open water certification is forever and never needs to be renewed. However, it is recommended that if you haven't dived for a while (usually a year or more) or feel the need to brush up on your skills to refresh with a ReActivate Course. This review is a short refresher course with a professional that can be integrated into your first regular dive.
Dive Otago is also one of New Zealand’s leading providers of tertiary diving career programmes.
Diploma in Professional Scuba Instruction Our most popular career programme is the 36-week full-time tertiary Diploma course. It will take you from beginner right through to specialty Instructor.
The National Certificate in Diving This part-time (1 year approx) or full-time (16 week) programme will take you from beginner through to Rescue Diver and leads on to the Leadership/Divemaster programme.
If you are interested in one of these courses, please talk to your instructor at the beginning of your course or email one of our tertiary team directly: careercourses@diveotago.co.nz
