The certification you need depends entirely on what you want to do. To simply try scuba diving for the first time you need no certification at all, because an instructor stays with you the whole dive. To dive independently on the reef you need at least a PADI Open Water certification. And for our deeper, open-water sites like the Bushnell wreck you need real experience plus a skills check. Here is how to know exactly where you stand and which service fits you.
No certification: Discover Scuba
If you have never dived, you do not need any certification to start. Our Discover Scuba minicourse lets you breathe underwater and explore the reef with a PADI instructor at your side for the entire dive, controlling depth and pace for you.
It is the safest possible introduction to the sport, and it counts. If you later decide to do the full Open Water course, the skills you learn here carry over and shorten your path to becoming a certified diver.
Open Water: dive independently
To dive as a certified diver, planning your own dives with a buddy rather than under direct instructor control, you need a PADI Open Water Diver certification or its equivalent from another recognized agency. This is the global entry-level standard and qualifies you to dive to 18 metres.
With Open Water in hand you can join our fun dives across most of Isla Fuerte's 29 sites, from calm coral gardens to the submerged Zenú museum at Bajo Bonito. If you do not have it yet, we teach the full course on the island.
Deeper sites and advanced diving
Some of our most spectacular dives, above all the Bushnell wreck, sit deeper and in more open water. For these we look for divers with an Advanced Open Water certification, or Open Water divers with solid recent experience who pass a skills check with our team first.
This is not bureaucracy, it is safety: deeper dives leave less margin for error, so we confirm your comfort with buoyancy, air management and depth before we take you there. Tell us honestly where you are and we match you to the right site.
Not sure where you fit?
If you are unsure, do not worry about picking the right label yourself. Tell us your certification level, when you last dived and what you are hoping to see, and our team will recommend the right service, site or course.
Whatever your starting point, there is a path for you here. Explore our courses and dives, or open the interactive dive map to see which sites match your level.
