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Beginner

Discover Scuba Diving

About the Course

Want to find out what scuba diving is like before deciding to get your PADI Open Water Diver scuba diving certification? During a Discover Scuba® Diving experience, you can try scuba diving for the first time in a pool or calm water environment.  

A highly-trained PADI® Professional will provide scuba gear, explain basic scuba diving skills and answer any questions you may have.

Available Languages
Take This Course If You Want to
  • Find out if you like scuba diving
  • Connect with the underwater world
  • Take your first breaths underwater
  • Decide if you want to be a certified diver
Learn How to
  • Use scuba gear
  • Use hand signs to communicate
  • Perform basic scuba skills

Try Scuba Diving

If you’re interested in scuba diving, but unsure if you want to enroll in a scuba certification class, Discover Scuba Diving is the perfect way to test the waters. In a very short time, you’ll learn basic scuba skills and take your first breaths underwater.
Instructor with students at a table in a thatch hut.
Independent Study
1
PADI eLearning®

Prepare for your Discover Scuba Diving experience with PADI DSD eLearning™. Use your computer or mobile device to learn diving safety fundamentals before you get in the water.

Contact a PADI Dive Shop or PADI Professional for access to DSD eLearning and to schedule your first scuba diving experience.

  • eLearning time commitment: 20-30 min
Student and instructor sitting at a desk reviewing.
At The Dive Shop
2
With Your Instructor
A PADI Professional will fit you with scuba gear and explain how to use it. In a pool or calm water environment. You’ll practice basic diving skills followed by free time to play underwater or go on a guided open water dive.
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Total time commitment: 2-3 hours
  • Minimum age: 10

The PADI Difference

For over 50 years, PADI has undeniably been the Way the World Learns to Dive®, setting the standard for the highest quality dive training, underwater safety and conservation initiatives while evolving the sport of diving into a passionate lifestyle.

30,000,000+

(and counting) PADI certified divers to date!

6,600

PADI dive centers and resorts across the globe

128,000

PADI Professional members worldwide

More Info

 
Gifting and Sharing Courses

Want to share the experience or give the gift of endless adventure? You can now purchase PADI eLearning® and share it with a recipient of your choice! Whether you are purchasing the course as a gift or need to assign it to family members – it’s super easy.

  1. Purchase an eLearning course.
  2. Follow the link in your confirmation email or sign into your account to go to your Dashboard.
  3. From your Dashboard go to 'Manage Your Courses' section.
  4. Select the course you'd like to gift and enter the email of the gift recipient.
  5. The recipient will receive an email to start the eLearning course.
 
Medical Requirements

Scuba diving requires a minimum level of health and fitness. Chronic health conditions, certain medications and/or recent surgery may require you to get written approval from a physician before diving.

Avoid disappointment, download and review the Diver Medical form to ensure you won’t need a physician’s approval to dive before enrolling in a scuba course. Instructors, divemasters and dive shop staff are not physicians and should not be asked for medical advice; only medical professionals can give medical clearance to dive.

If you (or your physician) have questions about medical fitness to dive, contact the experts at Divers Alert Network (DAN).

 
Prerequisites & Minimum Age

Minimum Age: 10

Course prerequisites: None

 
Choosing a Dive Shop

You can try scuba diving at a local dive shop or while traveling. 

Choose a dive shop close to home to:

  • Support a local business
  • Meet dive buddies in your local area
  • Learn about your local ecosystem

Choose a dive shop away from home if you:

  • Plan to travel to a dive destination on holiday
  • Like to meet new people when traveling
 
Other Costs & Equipment

The dive shop or PADI Professional will likely provide all the equipment you'll need. Just bring a swimsuit and a towel. 

The total cost depends on class size (private versus group) and whether your Discover Scuba DIving experience includes an open water dive. Contact a PADI Dive Center or Resort for more information and pricing. 

 
Time Commitment

PADI eLearning: 20-30 min

Entire program: 2-3 hours

 
System Requirements

DSD eLearning is designed to work on Android™ and Apple® iOS devices and on the computer browsers listed below:

  • Chrome
  • Safari
  • Edge
  • Firefox

For the best laptop or desktop computer experience, make sure your browser is up-to-date.

For the ideal mobile experience, devices should be no more than three models old and running with the most current OS (operating system).

 
After this course

Discover Scuba Diving isn’t a certification, but you can apply what you learned toward a PADI Open Water Diver certification. Ask the dive shop or your PADI Professional for more information.

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Discover Scuba Diving FAQs

 
What is a Discover Scuba Dive?

PADI Discover Scuba Diving (DSD) program is a one day, try-diving experience for anyone aged 10+. It is not a full dive certification, but a great way to connect with the underwater world and discover if scuba diving is for you. In this experience, you will learn about diving safety, how to use scuba gear, perform basic scuba diving skills in shallow water, and take your first breaths underwater. An optional open water dive is also available.

 
How long is a Discover Scuba Dive?

The experience varies from person to person depending on how quickly (or slowly) you breathe the air in your scuba tank. Most recreational dives last between 30 and 50 minutes.

 
How much is Discover Scuba Diving?

The price of Discover Scuba Diving varies depending on where you do the experience. Contact your Dive Shop for pricing.

 
How deep can Discover Scuba Diving go?

First of all, it’s important to know that you will not go any deeper than you feel comfortable with. The maximum depth for a Discover Scuba Diving experience is 6 meters (20 feet) for the initial pool session and 12 meters (40 feet) if you do the optional open water dive, but that does not mean you have to go that deep.

 
Is Discover Scuba safe?

Discover Scuba Diving experiences are conducted by PADI Instructors. PADI Pros undergo rigorous training and exams to ensure that they can safely accompany and teach those who are new to scuba diving.

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