PADI Advanced Open Water Diver
ADVANCED OPEN WATER
More Diving. New Skills. Bigger Adventures.
Ready to take your diving to the next level? The PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course is all about gaining experience, building confidence and discovering new ways to enjoy the underwater world.
Rather than spending lots of time in a classroom, you'll complete five Adventure Dives, each introducing you to different skills and types of diving. Deep and Underwater Navigation are required, then you'll complete three additional Adventure Dives to broaden your experience.
With an experienced PADI Instructor alongside you, it's a great opportunity to develop as a diver, try something new and extend your adventures to depths of up to 30 metres / 100 feet once fully certified.
WHAT'S INCLUDED IN YOUR ADVANCED OPEN WATER COURSE?
PADI Advanced Open Water Diver eLearning
Five Adventure Dives
Required Underwater Navigation Adventure Dive
Required Deep Adventure Dive
Three additional Adventure Dives
Full scuba equipment provided
Training and guidance from experienced PADI Instructors
PADI Advanced Open Water Diver certification on successful completion
WHAT HAPPENS DURING YOUR COURSE?
The Advanced Open Water Diver course is designed to be about diving and gaining experience.
Before your dives, you'll complete the relevant sections of your PADI eLearning, giving you the knowledge you need for each Adventure Dive without spending unnecessary time in a classroom.
You'll then complete five different Adventure Dives with your instructor.
Two are required:
Deep Adventure Dive – introducing you to the planning, procedures and considerations involved in diving deeper.
Underwater Navigation Adventure Dive – developing your compass skills and helping you navigate more confidently underwater using headings and natural references.
You'll then complete three additional Adventure Dives, giving you the opportunity to experience different areas of diving and develop new skills.
There's no final exam. The emphasis is on getting underwater, learning through experience and becoming a more confident and capable diver.
CHOOSE YOUR ADVENTURE
One of the best things about Advanced Open Water is that not every diver has to follow exactly the same journey.
Alongside the required Deep and Underwater Navigation dives, your three additional Adventure Dives allow you to explore other areas of diving.
Depending on the course, conditions and available dive sites, options can include experiences such as:
Peak Performance Buoyancy
Wreck Diving
Dry Suit Diving
Search & Recovery
Delayed Surface Marker Buoy (DSMB)
and other suitable PADI Adventure Dives.
It's a chance to discover the types of diving that interest you while developing skills that will make you a better diver.
And if one particular Adventure Dive really captures your interest, it may also count towards the corresponding PADI Specialty Diver course.
Questions You May Have
DO I NEED LOTS OF DIVING EXPERIENCE?
No.
You don't need dozens of logged dives before starting. If you're a PADI Open Water Diver or hold a qualifying entry-level certification, you can progress to Advanced Open Water when you're ready.
Some divers continue shortly after completing Open Water, while others build up some diving experience first.
HOW MANY DIVES WILL I COMPLETE?
You'll complete five Adventure Dives.
Two are required – Deep and Underwater Navigation – and the other three introduce you to additional areas of diving.
HOW DEEP CAN I DIVE AFTER THE COURSE?
A PADI Advanced Open Water Diver aged 15 or over is trained to dive to a maximum depth of 30 metres / 100 feet, within the limits of their training and experience.
Junior divers have age-specific depth limits.
DO I GET TO CHOOSE MY THREE ADVENTURE DIVES?
We'll discuss the available options with you and help put together a course that gives you a useful and enjoyable range of diving experiences.
Adventure Dive choices can depend on factors such as your interests, age, dive site, conditions and equipment requirements.
IS ALL THE EQUIPMENT PROVIDED?
Yes. Full scuba equipment is provided for your Advanced Open Water training.
If you already own your own equipment, you're welcome to discuss using it during your course. As you progress as a diver, becoming familiar with your own equipment can be extremely beneficial.
DO I NEED A DRY SUIT FOR UK DIVING?
For much of the year, a dry suit can make UK diving significantly more comfortable.
If Dry Suit is one of your Adventure Dives and you've never used one before, additional confined-water training may be required before completing the open-water dive.
Speak to us when booking and we'll help you choose the most appropriate options.
CAN JUNIOR DIVERS TAKE ADVANCED OPEN WATER?
Yes, but PADI applies age-specific requirements.
Divers aged 12–14 can earn the PADI Junior Advanced Open Water Diver certification and have a maximum training depth of 21 metres / 70 feet.
Divers aged 10–11 can work towards the Junior Adventure Diver rating but cannot complete the Deep Adventure Dive required for Junior Advanced Open Water until they reach the appropriate age.
WHAT COMES AFTER ADVANCED OPEN WATER?
For many divers, the next major step is PADI Rescue Diver, where the focus changes from developing your own diving to increasing your awareness and learning how to prevent and respond to problems involving other divers.
You can also continue developing the areas you enjoyed during Advanced Open Water by completing individual PADI Specialty Diver courses.
ADVANCED OPEN WATER HIGHLIGHTS
Ready for your next adventure?
Whether you've just completed your Open Water course or you've already got some dives under your belt, Advanced Open Water is about getting underwater, trying new things and becoming a better diver.
Get in touch and we'll help you plan your next step.