You want to dive but you have a lot of questions?
That’s normal. Breathing underwater is not something natural for humans! Here are a few points to reassure you and encourage you to take the plunge, to discover a new world and new sensations.
What are the physical requirements ?
Being healthy, being able to swim. These are the only two conditions to get started.
Is this possible at any age?
Trying scuba in the pool is possible from the age of 8 years old. Practice at sea can start from 10 years old. There is no maximum age limit if you are healthy.
What is the equipment like?
We wear exposure suits called wetsuits to protect us from the cold (even if the water temperature in Nusa Penida varies between 18 and 28 degrees, depending on the site and season) fins to help us swim, and a mask to see underwater. The vest (BCD) inflates and deflates to ensure your buoyancy is comfortable. The air in the vest comes from the bottle, which of course also sends air into your regulator to breathe. A belt with weights will help you to get below the surface of the water.
How does a first dive work?
The theory
You complete a medical questionnaire to ensure that you are fit to dive. We choose together your equipment, adapted to your size.
Outside the water, using simple diagrams, our instructor explains the basic principles: breathing, buoyancy, skills, etc… This theory lasts about half an hour.
The practice
Then, equipped with your BCD, tank, fins, mask and weight belt, we practice in our onsite pool. Empty the air in the vest to get down into the water, we practice breathing underwater, and a few other skills such as how to clear our dive mask…
This step lasts thirty to forty minutes, depending on your comfort level. We are always ready to stay longer if you wish.
At Sea
You make 2 dives in the sea, with a maximum depth of 12 meters. It is ideal to do the theory the day before during the afternoon, to dive the next morning, but if you are on a tight schedule, we may be able to arrange the timings for you. We begin our dive trip in the morning and return in the afternoon. Between the 2 dives, an hour break (called a surface interval) allows you to have lunch on the boat in one of the many magical coves of Nusa Penida.
And then after ?
Baptism is not a certification. It will not allow you to dive again without going through the “theory” box again. You may find that you’ve fallen in love with diving, in which case we encourage you to get your PADI Open Water diving license. With this, you can dive deeper and are not required to do the theory and pool test every time that you wish to dive.
The 3-day PADI Open Water Course will be your certification to dive anywhere in the world. Note: doing the Open Water Course is possible without previously trying diving.
