Learn to Dive in the Dominican Republic

Start with a try dive

If you are not sure diving is for you, start with a try dive, sold under names such as Discover Scuba Diving or Try Scuba. An instructor explains the basics, you practice a few skills in a pool or standing-depth water, and then you swim along a shallow reef, usually no deeper than about 12 metres, with the instructor beside you the whole time. It takes half a day, needs no previous experience and is offered by almost every resort dive center in the country.

A try dive is not a certification. If you enjoy it, many centers will count it toward the first part of an Open Water course if you continue soon after.

The Open Water course

The Open Water Diver course is the first full certification, recognized worldwide. It is offered by several training agencies; PADI and SSI are the most common in the Dominican Republic, and their courses follow international standards. The course has three parts:

1. Theory: how pressure, breathing and equipment work, and how to plan a safe dive. You can do this online at home before your holiday, which saves time on the trip.
2. Confined water: skills practice in a pool or calm, shallow water, such as clearing your mask and sharing air.
3. Open water dives: four dives in the sea, to a maximum of 18 metres, where you repeat the skills and start to enjoy the reef.

With the theory done in advance, the in-water part usually takes three to four days. After that you can dive with a buddy anywhere in the world, to 18 metres.

Before you book: the medical form

Every student fills in a medical questionnaire before entering the water. If you answer yes to any question, such as asthma, heart conditions, recent surgery or some medications, you will need a doctor to sign that you are fit to dive before training can start. It is much easier to get that signature at home before you fly than to find a doctor on holiday, so download the form from your chosen agency's website and check it early.

Where to learn in the Dominican Republic

• Bayahibe: calm Caribbean water, shallow sandy bays and many dive centers, with Catalina Island's easy coral garden for your first open-water dives. See Bayahibe scuba diving.
• Punta Cana and Bávaro: the easiest choice if you are already at a resort, with lagoons and pools for training. See Punta Cana scuba diving.
• Sosúa: a protected bay on the north coast; check the winter swell season. See Sosúa scuba diving.
• Boca Chica and La Caleta: handy from Santo Domingo, with the Hickory wreck as a great first wreck after you qualify. See La Caleta scuba diving.

Choosing an instructor

A good instructor matters more than the location. Ask how many students there are per instructor (four or fewer in the water is ideal), whether you will train in a pool or the sea, and whether the price includes eLearning, equipment, boat fees and the certification card. Read recent reviews, and do not be shy about asking to meet your instructor first. If anything feels rushed, choose another center.

After Open Water

The next step for most people is an Advanced Open Water course: five adventure dives, usually including a deep dive and navigation, which certifies you to 30 metres. That opens up deeper sites such as the St. George wreck off Bayahibe. A Peak Performance Buoyancy or similar specialty is excellent preparation if you dream of the cavern dives described in cave diving in the Dominican Republic. To choose when to come, read the best time to dive in the Dominican Republic.