Hedo scuba

[victoriaalbert]

Hi All

We are returning to Hedo for our second trip in 2014 in late October and early November.

When we were there earlier this year we had so much fun that we didn't even think to try out the watersports. I heard that some of the activities are included but I wasn't sure if this extended to scuba diving. Neither of us is certified but we have done resort dives in the past (guess those other places didn't offer quite so many distractions)

If anyone has any info on the scuba situation and prices it would be greatly appreciated.

(Halloween cosutme suggestions would be cool too!)

[cynwagon]

Resort classes are fours days weekly – Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 8:00am to 1:00pm.

PADI certification diving courses are offered daily at an additional cost of $350 US dollars. Discover Scuba Course $70 US dollars. Books and other studying modular are loaned for study.

This is pulled straight from the website. The scuba once certified is free and it's awesome! They have a great team at watersports.

[CopNkitten]

And the late dive is perfect to sleep in, get some breakfast and then hit the dive.
Cop..

[fun4all]

I would suggest getting certified prior to your arrival. You mentioned the distractions - well it gets even more difficult to complete sitting in a hot classroom while your friends are busy partying. Then there's study to get done and homework to complete too. The diving is included in the amenities and if you want to just get resort certified it'll cost extra. Much more sensible to get it in advance and be able to use it anytime you wish. Especially if you've already experienced it at other resorts and know you're going to enjoy the activity.

[cynwagon]

I would suggest getting certified prior to your arrival. You mentioned the distractions - well it gets even more difficult to complete sitting in a hot classroom while your friends are busy partying. Then there's study to get done and homework to complete too. The diving is included in the amenities and if you want to just get resort certified it'll cost extra. Much more sensible to get it in advance and be able to use it anytime you wish. Especially if you've already experienced it at other resorts and know you're going to enjoy the activity.

Exactly what I did. Classroom in boring cold Canada, certification dives in beautiful Jamaica!
I did end up taking my advanced at hedo but it was way less homework and could be done on the beach. No videos in a hot classroom.

The 9:30 dive is only if you have advanced since it's the deep dive. 11:30 is the shallow dive.

[n21774]

Exactly what I did. Classroom in boring cold Canada, certification dives in beautiful Jamaica!
I did end up taking my advanced at hedo but it was way less homework and could be done on the beach. No videos in a hot classroom.

The 9:30 dive is only if you have advanced since it's the deep dive. 11:30 is the shallow dive.

Ditto the dive class near home. Lets u know if u like it. Also they will give you a letter to complete your dives at hedo. Approx 225-250 for the five dives with the instructor. Gear rental is free! Also does not take away from beach time. Win win. My 2cts. Andy

[whatevva]

Years ago I did the basic bookwork, prior to arriving for our trip. Classroom, and pool were done in a day, and 2 shallow dives for each of the next 2 days. So you CAN be certified in 3 days if planned properly, AND they have the time to do it, which usually isn't an issue unless there are weather concerns. Since that basic certification, I've gotten my advanced, rescue, and several specialty certs at the resort. Clifton Richie is the absolute BEST, but I'm not sure if he's doing it personally any more ,since he's become water sports manager. I will say though, no matter how busy he gets, he will set aside time to be my buddy on a single deep dive. I respect and trust the man completely and I'm proud to call him a close friend.

[Newfie Screech]

I am PADI certified, while my wife is ACUC certified. I believe both are about 8 hours of in class instruction (normally spread over a number of weeks) with in-pool sessions and open water dives, so if the resorts are doing an intensive session there's no reason, as what've a says, you couldn't earn your certification in a few days.

A lot of it is common sense, with the formulas for calculating nitrogen build up being the most critical things to understand (and if you're a sport diver staying at depths less than 60 feet, and often much shallower, it's not a really big concern anyway).

That all being said, I'd recommend getting certified before going to Hedo so you can just go and do the dives and spend the rest of your time enjoying the resort.

Doing the certification at the resort is best saved for vanilla vacations. . Although, you may meet some folks during the dive course too.

[jamming]

thanks to the posts today I signed up for theory lessions at home in september to be more prepared for october when I plan to do some shallow dives again. I was OW certified 18 years ago and did some dives at that time. on my last visit I did a refresh hour at the pool which was really needed. after that I did my first dives after 15 years and liked it a lot. the dive masters/guides are very good and I always felt very safe. I was offered to do my advanced certification but I prefer doing it at home, because I don't want to loose "precious" vacation time and I never know what happens the evening/night before.

[L&I]

My daughter just got certified & the instructor mentioned something about doing the courses online via PADI. May be worth a few minutes checking that option out to speed up the actual certification process.