Taking the PADI Advanced Open Water course is a relatively simple yet essential step with scuba divers developing skills to compliment their diving and achieving a new depth rating. You cover areas like better buoyancy control with the Peak Performance Buoyancy dive, maybe a Wreck dive to get familiar with popular and safe wreck diving techniques. Advanced Open Water is about getting a better start in diving rather than putting you through your paces. For the most part, the dives are quite relaxing as you are simulating real diving adventures with the guidance of a PADI Scuba Instructor. Even PADI Open Water Divers with many logged dives get great value from taking the Advanced Open Water course.
Getting a taste of 5 different types or areas in scuba diving including the Underwater Navigation and Deep dives makes you a much better diver with greater confidence and the ability to carry out dives with greater finesse. You earn a new depth rating of 30m for divers 15yrs and over (21m for 12-14yrs), plus recognition and respect from fellow divers. Dive operators allow you to participate in a greater range of dives plus you can register for more Specialty Diver ratings and the PADI Rescue Diver course.
With a PADI Advanced Open Water certification from your Wellington dive store (NZ Sea Adventures), you become something more. Having the ability to participate in Dive Crew Trips, spending time with divers who will share your interests and experiences, also greatly contribute to the enjoyment you can take from each and every dive. Each dive you do as part of your Advanced Open Water course counts as the first dive of the Specialty rating.
Specialty ratings are like the “High School” or “College” equivalent to your “Secondary” Open Water certification (PADI Advanced Open Water). Giving you knowledge and experience to dive inside of underwater Ship Wrecks, Navigate the most challenging environments or even dive with EANx /Nitrox gases. Taking the PADI Rescue Diver course requires your Advanced Open Water or a minimum PADI Adventure Diver (3 dives instead of the 5) These all put together become the PADI Master Scuba Diver rating, the elite Recreational Scuba diver award.
Making your next step following your Open Water course makes a lot of sense when you realise how much more there is that you can do while scuba diving. From exploring ship wrecks to identifying marine life and executing scuba dives like an experienced diver. Diving offers the Advanced Open Water diver more range, greater understanding and a foot in the door towards a wealth of underwater adventures PADI Open Water Divers sometimes didn’t realise existed!
