Look, I'm not a big fan of Agency-bashing for the sake of it, but this is deserved. Let me know below what scuba services you think deserves ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!
James, good video. The PADI 5 Star Rating system has always annoyed me. Years ago I owned a dive shop and we became a 5* Centre. I remember that we mainly had to self-certify ourselves by filling out a form and sending it off. After that it was simply a matter of paying the *annual* fee to keep the rating. It's a marketing scam pure and simple. Not sure if you included it in your suggestions but I would want to see: - Potential for a variety of ratings from 1* to 5* - Maybe a breakdown of the rating into different areas (facilities, services, environmental, etc) - Checks on emergency procedures and plans. (problem is this might create potential liabilities for the certifying org). - Scuba instructors being re-examined every X years. (ok, this last one is more of an agency requirement) - A better quality control, investigation and complaints process. For example what happens when a diver dies at a PADI 5* Centre whilst on a fun dive? My understanding is that this has nothing to do with PADI, there is no investigation by PADI, and the 5* status is not affected. I'd love for someone from PADI to correct me with evidence that this is not the case.
Business is business and that’s what 5star means to dive centres. This rating should really stay between the agency and the dive centre for the perks of a discount on training packs, not branded as you say for the benefit of the public. Misrepresentation.
Today you gained a new subscriber!! I was a PADI instructor and the deeper I got into the professional side of the organization the more I felt like a salesman. I spoke with my Course Director and told him my passion is scuba NOT sales. I was quickly told that's what PADI centers everything around $$$$$. I left them a couple of years ago and went to SDI and am world's happier!! Love your channel! I'd really like to see a shop that had a variety of trial regulators and BCDs, try it before you buy it type program. Take a deposit, 2 dive maximum or dive it in the pool, 24 hr test period. It would be super nice!!
Thanks Roy! Welcome to Divers Ready! Great idea with the rental fleet... easier to do with regulators (although they would need regular tuning to keep performing their best, as any rental regs do!) BCDs would be challenging because they'd need to stock every make and model in their range in EVERY size! Could be expensive to set up, but undoubtably would be an amazing customer experience! Thanks again! James
@@DiversReady I thought about the BCDs after the fact and it would have to be narrowed down to a popular jacket style, a popular hybrid and then a wing maybe??
Yes!!! During the IDC you lern how to sell everything but not how to be a good OWSI. After IE i wasn't proud to become a PADI Instructor I was frustrated.
SDI have followed in PADI's footsteps by introducing their Course Director certification. GUE is similar to PADI's marketing strategy. As for your equipment and regulator trials. The answer is already there. Ask a specialist who performs wreck, cave and deep dives.
I don't know about BCDs and regulators but my local dive shop in Utah lets you come in the evening and spend as much time as you want in the pool trying out different masks, fins, and other diving equipment they sell before you buy it. I always thought that was really cool. They also let us practice our skills (i.e. doing your own personal refresher course) in the pool with their gear for free for an evening, as long as there are no OW or AOW classes in the pool that night.
Very good and relevant clip. I became a certified diver under FAUI in 1988. Even then I could see a difference in standards between my fellow FAUI open water divers and PADI divers that had the same level of experience. My course was 30% cheaper than PADI's and there was much less hype. I could never truly comprehend why some PADI 5 star dive centers could deliver such low standard yet the dive shop down the road (non 5 star) was a class operation. This clip has helped me understand what I already knew. Put Another Dollar In. Thanks James. You just got a new subscriber.
Great video. PADI has always been more about money than quality. The dive center I learned at sadly closed, but I would drive over an hour to get there for advice, service, and equipment purchases, even with another center only minutes from my house. They offered PADI, NAUI, SSI, and back in the day even YMCA classes. They could service almost any gear and most of it was done in-house my trained and certified staff. Sadly there seem to be fewer and fewer dive shops in my area every year. And the remaining ones are also basically PADI because there is more profit to be made selling classes for more money, then only covering the bare minimum so you can pressure students into more specialty classes. Admittedly I don't live in an area where there is great year round diving (dry suit is needed for several months of the year), but hear in New England, we do have a great dive community. Class quality definitely depends more on the instructor than the agency, but having audited or taken classes from all three agencies on multiple occasions I have seen some of the scariest gaps in training from the PADI courses. When getting an ex of mine certified while we were dating I checked a PADI shop and some of the information they were telling me made me question the safety of their course. The classroom and pool work requirements are minimal at best, and understanding of the material seems to be optional, especially with online training with tests that are nearly impossible to fail. Auditing a class with a friend I was amazed by the differences from my own training a couple decades ago. There were fast practically bullet point lists of things not to do and the significantly less hours of class room than I had for my basic open water, when I learned it just felt more helpful as to... here is what you shouldn't do, this is why, and here is how you survive it if you do. PADI dive centers are the only place I have ever seen a Discover Diving experience consisting of 15-20 mins of "instruction", verifying each student can perform a mask clear, followed by an 80ft max depth dive to explore (including a brief swim through) of a wreck. (I have several stories of shops doing the bare minimum but I won't go into them now). Well that and over there years on dive trips I have run into several divers to whom I was genuinely concerned about diving with, often though conversation they would demonstration a complete lack of knowledge of basic diving concepts like atmospheric pressure, safety stops, ascent velocity, dive tables and why planning is important, the importance of being able to remove/dump your weights, and even being 100% dependent on a computer they don't know how to use. The one common thing between all of these people is every single one of them was a PADI (Basic) Open Water certified diver. I have heard from dive shops many things such as "we don't teach dive tables or anything about decompression, we just tell you to buy a computer" and "why would we teach buddy breathing, when you should have an octopus". I think the thing that gets me the most about PADI is their profit over quality/safety mentality. This is not the first time I have heard about the shady money driven Five Star status for PADI. There are even many examples of larger chains not evening meeting the minimal qualifications you listed in the video but still reach Five Star and it is all because they do more volume. These are large chains or even a specific cruise line, that not only don't offer the specialty diving certifications, but don't participate in any environmental or informational programs. The sad thing is though, diving is a relatively small community and because of that, most companies associated with it need to make as much money as possible per diver to stay in business, leading to a profit over quality model. And due to the small community size, there is less call for any type of safety or quality regulation in government as companies hate regulation and fight it with money, and there frankly aren't enough of us out there to be statistically significant to justify most politicians time. (Rant over.) Thanks for the video. Keep them coming!
As a sailor in the Navy, I’ve been stationed at different locations. In each of those locations I usually brought my business to one particular dive shop over all the rest. My favorite dive shop in Pensacola was little more than a hole in the wall business. The owner openly admitted that his shop wasn’t much, but he could get me just about anything I wanted. He finished by saying that after I hit up all the other shops, that I’d be back. He was right. Because as a young sailor, money wasn’t there to be wasted. Gear through his shop was far , FAR cheaper than anywhere else. His overhead cost were practically nonexistent, so there was practically no markup on dive equipment. I purchased my first set of gear through that shop. Was it 5 star??? HARDLY, but if it was still around, I’d still be a customer. He knew how to treat people right. Fast forward 35 years and now I’m using a shop that’s entirely different. It’s just the opposite of that long ago place. This is absolutely a 5 Star shop. Their rental gear is like new, they’ve got excellent service, they teach every level of scuba including many specialty courses, they’ve got private classes, and the shop has it’s own indoor pool facility specifically built to accommodate scuba divers. What’s even better, if you get certified through their shop, they’ll include free use of their pool at anytime that there’s not a class going on. Additionally, anytime that they’re going to any of the Florida Springs with another class, you’re allowed to go with the group for another dive in the freshwater springs. Incidentally, THEY PICK UP YOUR ENTRANCE FEES. Five Stars? MOST DEFINITELY. As a disabled diver, they also fully customized my entire rig so that it would accommodate my disability. It made all the difference, literally, between being able to dive or not being able to dive. They certainly didn’t have to do that, but they’re more interested in getting their customers diving than just making money. And again, it’s basically the only shop I use. Sure, I’ve spent a lot of money there, but those perks certainly make my equipment investment a really good one.
Incidentally, when I asked “5 STARS?”, I was referring to the quality of the shop AND service, NOT PADI. Frankly, I have no clue if either of these two ships are PADI 5 STAR, and to be honest, I really don’t care either way. I loved both shops, because BOTH were able to provide me with exactly what I needed when I needed it.
Interesting... Sounds like Dive Pros on hy98 Pcola LOL They are PADI and have 4.5 to 5 star customer reviews. Some people don't care about PADI rating but customer reviews.
To me the things that make a dive Center 5 star are attitude and the interest the instructor shows in you. My two teenage sons and I completed our OW with Steve and Bruce at Herts dive club in the UK. It was using a public pool and cold murky conditions at Stoney Cove. However attention to detail, after dive feedback, coaching and support plus all other instructors and Dive Masters coming over after the dives to check and see how it went. Now that deserved the PADI 5 star award the centre has.
True. I figured this out along the way... I had a 5-star experience with Mexico Divers in Isla Mujeres - professionalism, safety, quality gear, etc. Then I dove with another "5-star PADI" outfit in Bahamas recently and it was sketchy. Suffice to say I've decided to buy my own reg and carry a SAD kit.
I started diving in 1992, I was an Instructor and I worked in a few different diving associations. But I was with PADI. I also supported teaching with NAUI and BSAC. But over the years, I was out of a job and the cost to maintain my membership teaching status as an instructor was just too expansive. So 6 years ago I just gave up. Bye bye, to my passion in diving days and bye bye to expansive membership fees.
Pretty much everything you said in this video resonates with me. For true 5-Star service, liveaboards and dive resorts in Asia take the cake in my opinion. Here are examples on liveaboards: helping you on and off with your gear, fresh water or juice as you are gearing up, fresh water or juice as you come back from the dive, hot chocolate as you come back from a night dive, your choice of a cold or hot wash cloth as you board the boat, special handling for cameras, rinsing your gear, washing your wetsuit and hanging it up ready for the next dive. Similar examples from dive resorts but specifically, carrying all of your gear from the resort to the boat so all you have to do is walk on, carrying your camera if you would like to and from the camera room to the boat. I've even seen people get carried from the boat to shore!!! There are so many more extra services you get in Asia that the rest of the world just doesn't provide.
James, I have been very reluctant in following your videos, because of all the "diving experts" we see online, but anyway I still follow you... and I have to say, as an intructor and a former PADI instructor, that this is a GREAT perspective! Great video, great arguments! Congratulations!
Thanks Carlos, that means a lot. I would never self-profess expertise. I have a decent amount of experience, but not more than most of my friends. What I do have is complete autonomy... I don't work for a Dive Center, or an Agency, I work for myself, so I can say what I really think. Honesty is important to me. I appreciate your support, buddy! James
Outstanding James... thank you for just speaking the truth. Hard to come by and very appreciated! Looking forward to seeing more, love the channel and congratulations to Karina on her recovery! Great to hear your Dive Buddy is back in the water! Keep up the fantastic work and keep speaking truth!
the best diving was with a little dive boat in key largo. he was a 6pack capt & divemaster they were a great bunch during the dive but after we got in we were invited to sit down have a beverage and some BBQ with them we had a great time. i dove with them for the next 12 yrs until he closed and moved back north to take care of his parents. their personal service & their personality always made for a great time.
I don't need five-star training, but this is what it takes to provide elite service. A five star center has- immediate access to water is available almost all the time. (pool, lake or ocean on site rather than, "we're renting a pool next week"). enough showers available so half the class can clean up at a time. (this might be an outside concrete pad with four show heads for a class of eight.) enough storage and changing room so clothes and gear don't have to lie on the wet floor as you peal yourself out of your 7 mm suit. dry, environmentally controlled, and secure, storage available for gear. The restrooms and training facilities are free from trip, fall, and slip hazards. (Slick and slimy floors are dangerous.) At least half of the planned trips are completed as scheduled. ( Yeah, there are weather cancellations, but don't advertise trips that never have enough customers to make the trip happen.) environmental cover from the sun and rain is available at all times. (don't cook or drench your customers) Water and towels are provided by staff rather than by the guests. A year without injuries requiring medical treatment to the students or staff.
Having a pool specifically built for scuba diving training is a big one. Such pools are much deeper than the typical pool. My local Dive-Shop’ s pool is about 18 feet deep. That’s important because the human body goes from positive buoyancy to negative within the first 8 - 12 feet of depth (depending upon body composition...fatties take longer to get to a depth where they’ll naturally start to sink) so that’s where the largest change occurs. Unfortunately, most shops that use other’s pools are teaching right where this change takes place
Hello , I am a NAUI Instructor , since Jan 2002, in SW Florida and I absolutely love Key Largo for certifying new students / sight-seeing. We also have awesome diving off the coast here all along the west coast of Florida ; equally for sight-seeing, training for advanced / deeper certifications, spearfishing etc. And I could not agree more with you regarding PADI's dollar-driven approach / motivation over quality and variety. Just as most divers , regardless of certification level or years of experience , will have a blended mix of brands / types of equipment. It's all about what works best for them during their individual styles / types of dives they enjoy, the locations / water-temps,depths etc , etc they consistently enjoy / pursue.
I was diving with Sea Explorer on Reethi Faru in the Maldives, and I think it would tick all the boxes of your description of a 5star DC. The dry room especially was a massive 300 square meter ventilated area with ceiling fans and hangers for aal the gear, 2 basins for rinsing the gear, looking like small swimming pools with subsections for Regulator and Masks, and the other for wetsuits and BCD's, showers, guest bathrooms, House Reef tank service, and the boats where just massive. I guess that is why people pay a bit more in the Maldives, but also the diving was breathtaking, with Sharks, Whale Sharks, Manta Rays, Dolphins and and and.
When I was doing underwater recovery we also did dive accident investigations for DAN and local law enforcement. We had one investigation where the divers involved where all divers were PADI rescue diver certified. Reading their affidavit they did everything wrong and they themselves almost ended up in chambers. I do not put much faith in that organization.
I had an accident on a dive boat In 2019 in Belize. I was pushed off the boat by a dive master and nearly lost my foot. The crew on a 55' boat didnt know basic first aid. Thankfully there was and EMT diving with us. Long story short 7 surgeries with more to go. Chronic pain and other issues. The dive shop is now being given a 5 star rating. They have been fighting the lawsuit for 4 years. They lost don't want to pay. Knowing this PADI certification nothing to rely on. The shop had lost it's certification ability due to sexual harrassment by a dive master to a tourist on the boat.
my local dive center is a 5star and very pleased to say they do everything u mention in the positive part of this video , they have a big retail shop selling everything from fin strap to drysuits and wetsuits , they are very clean and give a good service and there rental equipment is fully working and replaced if needed ect
As a recreational diver, this was a perspective I had not thought about. Thanks for the info. Love your channel. Congrats on Scuba Diver Magazine. I will now give them a follow.
For professionals, Padi is something of a pyramid scheme to begin with. It’s nothing against the courses or content or (most of) the materials, it’s just the way the whole thing is structured at the business level. The individual operators take the risk, the more they buy into the system and the more people they enroll, the more discounts they get on materials etc, and the more competetive they can be. Meanwhile the padi operation stands back and develops and sells the materials and methods and the framework to the people willing to take a risk on building a dive operation … again - it’s all well worked through, but it is what it is … from an operational point of view - the courses, as sales items, are just window dressing, and really are not all that much of a source of income - the real sale is course materials, equipment, dive holidays, accommodation and of course the dives themselves, and the annual fees for being “renewed dive masters and instructors” … This is nothing that should make a person not want to take the Padi diving education, it’s something mostly pertaining to diving professionals.
Thank you so much James for what 5 star really means PADI mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm you are the very first person that really has explained PADI. Thank you!!! I am really happy your wife is able to rejoin you in that water God bless you!!!!
Excellent video! Very informative. After hearing all that makes me glad my dive center offers SSI. Definitely sounds like PADI is more worried about numbers and money that safety.
My first dive center traveling was awesome and really got me into the sport, I was hooked like a fish. My second, now local, dive center was trash. The owner was pretentious, condescending, and definitely seemed like the cattle herder-she was nice to my wife but despised me. In fact, we were 'fired as a client' because I wanted to finish our certs with my long hose (our gear configuration to this day) after having so much trouble with their rental equipment which nearly caused me to drown (among other things). Our third and current dive shop is where we found home-we still dive more abroad than near home but they take care of us and our gear (and they refill my O2 when I need it). That place takes care of what we need and helps us when we need it-shame we need to drive over an hour for decent service instead of 15m down the road. They are all PADI 5 star. --- If there's anything I'd ever recommend in a dive center is having every employee, manager, and owner care about the people who walk in. They're there for a service or product, help them; if you can't do that, you shouldn't be there. If your dive center doesn't care about you, find a new dive center.
She was nice to my wife but despised me, so she was nice but not nice, I wonder bud sounds like maybe the 2/3 majority is on the ladies side....... just wondering?
One thing i always look for in a store, no matter what im buying, i expect the seller to know their product. If i ask questions about a product and all i get is vague answers, it makes not want to buy it. If a seller doesnt have faith in their product, why would a buyer. Thanks James.
hilarious! love it! SSI also gives awards (mainly based on... yes. number of certifications). we don't have one, we don't want one. we prefer to stay small with service recommended by personal reviews from guest than having an award for mass-production which doesn't mean anything...
It's like... "And I'd like to give the 'Divers Ready! Award For Best Scuba Channel On RUclips' to... Divers Ready!" Hehehe! Thanks for watching Irina! James
Excellent content. Here the joke used to be, "how many PADI instructors does it take to change a light bulb?" Answer, "How much cash do you have?" I trained with NAUI and have always liked the solid training. Our instructor did fail some students who couldn't get the skills and didn't want to work on them. He felt they were too risky as divers to themselves and to others to certify them. I realize I'm late to the Divers Ready party, but keep up the good work.
When I was certified by padi in 1973 (Gawd, I'm old) there were two choices in Orlando: Padi and Naui. Padi was seen as the thinking man's dive shop (Plan your dive and your plan) while Naui was seen as the muscle it through shop. Easy choice at the time. No regrets since.
Binging your videos and appreciative of how generous the knowledge is but have to comment that the shout out to your wife returning to diving and her recovery is the best.
Seaxplore in Sodwana South Africa - Their focus is on small groups and personalized service, you choose where you want to dive, how long and how deep you want to dive. That is 5star!
As you went through YOUR list for 5 star rating, I immediately thought of Dive Wederfoort in Curacao. It has been the only center I have been too that matches your list. The rest, well you wonder why they even bother to be in business. Thanks for all you do. As new divers we always learn new things on your channel!
Great Video, as a new Rec diver from PADI I was starting to look into this. When your E-Card cost $$$, it is more to do online training than the book. Its all about the $$$$. If they were truly wanted to help the industry and environment they would change the way training is done. I am truly looking to do Advanced open and look to SSI.
while ssi is better regarding e-learning/e-card it's still the same overall, you might want to consider RAID(everything online) or SDI as well as they have a tech diving background which should also show in their recreational courses
Great video. The dive center I learned at fits all your requirements for a 5 star center but also an instructor training center for SSI so no 5 stars. I was a PADI divemaster and agree that they just want more $$$$$ in the box regardless.
That's great to hear! And a great example to my point! I find that most dive centers I visit that I would consider to be 5-Star worthy, are not PADI 5 Stars at all! Thanks for watching Neil! James
PADI always meant to us “old timers” Put Another Dollar In. You’ve said nothing to alter that. My OW was issued by PADI when dinosaurs roamed the planet and dirt was still young, but I did not chose the shop because it was PADI: I chose it because we (my wife and I) thought the instructor would be great-and he was!
Great video! Thanks for the eye opener! I've been diving on my holidays for years, and for me the quality of equipment is most important. I had an incident where a piece of rental equipment broke mid dive and things could've gone very wrong. So I'm usually looking for a 5 star PADI center in hope they have well maintained quality gear. Good to know 5 stars don't guarantee anything..
I think that should also have a dive pool, offer a variety of of instructor's PADI/SDI/SSI etc. Be a hotel, or resort. Offer another dive if the visibility is lower than 5 meters. That would be a 5 star dive center worth extra money!
Once again James an amazing video that for a new Diver on his way to dive master this I amazing to know what a 5 star means. Looking forward to the next video
I'm late to this video, but I'll share my comments. First, great video. I absolutely love your list for what should make a 5-star dive center. I'll share my experience from years ago. I live in Minnesota. My wife and another couple were traveling to Key West via car. My wife was a non-driver, but our friends and I were relatively new, inexperienced divers. We're all experienced swimmer -- in Minnesota lakes. Keep that in mind. We decided we wanted to go diving, so we I did my homework, but clearly not enough homework. We found a dive center in Key West. "PADI 5-star." Oh, they should be good. Ah, you see where this story is going. I called them. I explained, "three inexperienced divers from Minnesota, we could use a little care." And the response was, "Don't worry, we'll take good care of you." Now, what does that mean to you? Well, I'll come to what it means to me, after I explain the Key Largo experience. We got there. They had gear and a cattle car. What they did NOT have was anyone who actually went into the water with us. We got to our first dive site, and the entire dive briefing was, "There's some current. The dive site is there." That was it. That was fucking it. They tossed 30 divers into the water, and the entire support they gave those divers was this: they had to let out a drift line off the back of the boat as countless divers drifted away, never finding the small reef we were supposed to visit. They did eventually send a divemaster back to help round up all the lost divers. Ug. So we got to Key West. The dive center there picked us up the next morning from our B&B and drove us to the dive center. They listened to our Key West experience, not saying too much. But their boat had a dive master (AKA: the owner), who was one of the nicest guys you could ever meet, and his aide, who stayed on the boat. The three of us and 3 other people. That's it. And then the OWNER of the site baby-sat the three of us. Before we went into the water, he talked about the current. He talked about following the mooring line down. "Hand over hand." What a concept. Pretty obvious in hindsight, isn't it? We went diving with them for three or four days, and it was absolutely wonderful. We did wrecks and reefs. He didn't have to babysit for the reefs. They were shallow and little current. But the wrecks. Wow. Beautiful, beautiful dives. It was a tiny place with one boat. But the difference was when we said, "Three divers with little ocean experience," he took care of us, calmly and professional. And then laughed at themselves as they were in full wetsuits while I was in my shorty. Minnesota blood and all that. (Note: The water temperature on my own water dives was 42 degrees.) So, in my mind, the difference between a shit-ass dive center and a 5-star dive center might be your list, or it might just be this. The 5-star dive center, when they hear, "three fairly new divers from an inland state", they take care of you. They go in the water with you. They get you to the site. They act like an actual divemaster, not just a freaking bus driver.
Another excellent video! I’ve only ever followed the PADI route and got to DM and then backed off as all I want to do is dive. So, now, I dive with my Rescue cert and decline any other trainings.
I just finished my open water course with a dive center that offered Raid witch can also offer a Padi course ...yes i paid more for the Raid course however my son and I got individual attention witch was great and it has no 5 star rating. I found that the instructor and training we got should have been a 6 star rating so for me offer an professional service and all the referrals you will get will be better than any rating we found this dive center by all the good things people had to say about them....South Africa.
Nice one James! I have just subscribed yesterday, because from the very first video I've seen the passion and no BS selling from your side. You are doing this for us and that is obvious from todays video again, as you are going against your self as dive instructor by saying what you did. About the 5* diving center, I had just experience like that in my last vacation this july, when @Subaquatic SSI diving center in Croatia was happy to fulfill our request for a night dive on a site, where they never did it before (only during the day), were super helpful with finding shop where I could by my gopro diving case and more. So 5* to them and this would be my point to add, willingness going over the standard already tried sites / time of the day dives.
What a great video, when I first started diving I would always look for 5 star dive centers. Now I have to say the best ones I use are not PADI 5 star. A special mention to Blue Bottom Diving in Tenerife who are about the best I have dived with world wide. Thanks, new subscriber today for you and Dive Mag.
I just signed up for my open water courses a few days ago. In the paperwork, textbook and videos it constantly mentions other courses and reminds you to start thinking about how you want to continue after this one. It makes me feel like it's a marketing scheme. Most people will not need to take more than the open water course because most people are just wanting to scuba dive in light conditions during family vacations and that sort of thing. I would say very few people are interested in actually becoming that diehard in scuba but boy do they make you feel like you NEED all these other classes.
My home dive shop is a PADI 5 star. Quality is definitely hit and miss some days. Others it’s amazing. The owner is...woof. I’ll leave it at that. A plus is that they have their own boat. However, I will likely be venturing to other shops/training agency in the future.
I don't blame you. The quality of the training always comes down to the Instructor in the water with you, but the PADI Tech system just has too many hoops to jump through. Thanks for watching! James
West Bay Divers in Roatan Honduras was simply outstanding. After every dive we were offered fresh cut fruit, water. Our boat captain Anthony was always near us when we surfaced unlike other dive companies we saw where their boat was several yards 200+ away. Our Dive Master Joe’l was simply amazing, the amount of unique creatures he was able to point out to us was incredible.
I am a newly certified PADI open water diver. Let me start by saying I have learned a lot from your videos and will and have recommend friends to subscribe. Now about this video. I had a great experience with my dive instructor. I think it comes down to the dive center rather then the organization that you got certified under. I get it, your frustrated with the business end of PADI, but at the end of the day aren’t we all trying to make money as business owners? Keep the videos coming!
I always have had the feeling that this video describes about Patty and especially this five star phenomenon, thank you so much for clarifying what to not expect from a five-star facility!
Enjoyed that. I recently dived for a week in Amed, Bali. I would say the dive centre was close to 5 stars against your criteria. From memory they were teaching SSI. Clearly quality and comittment of the centre itself is more important than the agency behind it. I'm a Divemaster trained through a different agency again.
I am actually narrowing down my choices to do my divemaster and IDC when i saw this. Looks like i can throw all my research on 5 star down the toilet.. Eerr... Help? Also, i am definitely a subscriber now. Awesome content :)
Thanks Daing! It's all about the Instructor who will be guiding you through your DM. Find an Instructor you really like and can trust and you will be guided well. Thanks for being part of this channel! James
(Pity I only saw your post now) Hi, no research is without value, I am sure James would agree, however 5 star does have some qualities separating dive operators. Anyone can nitpick all the details, we were a NAUI Platinum Pro dive Center in 2001 and never even saw our NAUI rep on the premises ever or received a call to pay the subs for the next year so???? (Still NAUI for us however most of us carry multiple certs having worked sport and commercial all over the world) Here is the basic issue, if nothing else it already it sets apart the dive operators who have none of the 5 star requirements from those who do, so that already thins the herd. I have seen many operators who are great online but operate from a cargo container. Most of the time people who are serious about diving put their money where their mouth is and there is a start. Although I agree with James to some extent most of what he mentioned are items you should be doing anyway without a mandate from any agency. Agency mandates are always a shell for operating your business you should be having that business plan regardless of the agency and the reality is that you already used the 5 star label to separate some stores for possible selection for your training so in the dive industry all marketing helps since the industry is a fickle one and allegiance to a dive shop is up for grabs if the other guy has the same mask for 10 dollars more. NO divers mostly do not compare favourably and easily move off to another store due to price without much consideration case in point a diver dived with a store off their own boat and got grumpy due to the 50 dollar price difference in the dive package from the other store in the general area so they wanted a refund of the 50 dollars since they believed they were being ripped off........ the owner said no. They went to the other guy who booked them but surprise surprise he did not own his own boat and sold space on the original guys boat. When asked why they moved it was clear that the 50 dollars was an issue and they never even considered the fact that the 1st guy owned the boat and would be liable for any cost to service, insurance or liability and yes to even have purchased the boat in the first place so 50 dollars on a 3 dive package including gear would have been no problem considering the commitment to the business. I say all this to say EACH person is responsible for their research of which most do not do any at all and just go with what is most common in that area or closest. Even an instructor you like can be a useless instructor just because he is a nice guy means very little, be informed on issue you are enquiring about and ask the necessary questions to understand who the instructor is and what the process will all be. BY THE WAY I HAVE BEEN IN MANY 5 STAR HOTELS AND RESORTS THAT WERE WAY WORSE THAN ADVERTISED. BUT MORE NO NAME BRAND NON 5 STAR DIVE SHOPS THAT SCARED THE DAYLIGHTS OUT OF ME as said before at least it thins the herd.
I know this comment is super late (just came across this video, although I am a long time subscriber) and it's eye opening and excellent. I would absolutely second the small group requirement for "5 star" service. I was just in Costa Rica and on two separate days there were only two divers on my boat, along with the divemaster and two shop trainees enjoying a day off. It's crazy that the shop (Rich Coast Diving) was happy to run a dive boat for just the two of us. Kudos!
PADI is about $$, volume and promotion only. Quality hardly comes into it. That's why I switched from BSAC to SDI under recommendation of the instructor I was under at the time of my conversion when I moved away from the UK. BSAC didn't at the time provide much international certification support when I moved back to Australia, so had to change. My partner certified under PADI just to get quickly certified and it was terrible. SDI availability was limited at the time where we are. PADI always trained multiple students and had poor student to instructor ratios. When I trained in BSAC it was one on one guidance, but that was back in the 90's.
What's blown me away? Dive centre staff carry all the gear, help the divers put the gear on and help checking for safety e.g. valves open. Safety checks prevent having one diver hold everyone else up e.g. by jumping off the boat with a closed valve / losing their mask while they jump in etc
I have yet to find a place that carries all of my gear. They'll put it on the boat but they certainly don't shlep it around for me. That'd be some VIP treatment right there.
@@YuriyDel Did a dive trip at Southern Cross Club in Little Cayman. Arrived, they grabbed our luggage to put in our bungalow, and took our dive gear to the boat/storage area on arrival. Didn't touch it again except to dive in it for the next 6 days. They took small groups out to the wall, changed tanks for you on the surface intervals, etc. You sit down, put on your kit and walk 5 feet off the boat all week! :)
WOW!!! I mean WOW!!! What an awesome perspective on this subject. I totally agree on what you are saying is 5 Star. Quality, service, and cleanliness! I've been to some really nice places and some rat holes so I totally get it. Now with that being said, I don't feel that because a dive center or shop is in a rat hole it can't be a 5 Star as long as the have those 3 qualities. I also don't believe the dive association should be the ones that designate themselves 5 Stars. I feel the recreational and professional DIVERS should do the nominations as to who is 5 Star based on the standards you laid out plus conservation dives and clean up dive and beach trips. The best dive center I've been to is in The Palms Resort in Kuwait City, Kuwait. The staff and instructors there go way above and beyond! They have a nice boat fleet for a variety of dives and number of divers. The shop is immaculate and has a variety of scuba equipment (oh that's another thing! I hate the places that cater to just one brand - at least have two different brands and not just in wet suits - ALL the gear!) Oh, and they have the towel and shower service! VERY NICE!!! Now on the subject of ELITE instructors, not based on PADI's criteria but my personal opinion and experience, the instructors at The Palms dive center ARE ELITE! They were just great! It wasn't like your typical "let's hurry up and get you certified" environment. They take the time to make sure you understand what you are learning and can proficiently perform the tasks. They even went the extra mile by letting me try different types of BCD from wings to jackets. I remember spending numerous hours getting my weight right with my instructor and if I didn't get the task right the first time, we did it until I got it right like it was second nature. Thanks for the great videos! I could keep going but I feel this is running long and you might not read it all. I would love to come to south Florida and dive with you and pick your brain.
Roatan Divers employs Felix, the Mares ambassador to Roatan, who will personally lead you to the local Mares retail shop where he will assist with equipment selection and get the best possible price. This was a great benefit to me when my old BCD failed. This is only one of the exceptional services offered by Roatan Divers. They don't earn 5 stars, they earn 6.
Bambu Divers in Bali is my favorite dive center, very personal and fun experience. In the US, even though they're huge Rainbow Reef in Florida has always been super professional.
Right on point. Never been interested to get the PADI 5 Star DC / Resort. I'm just running a whatever star DC with a better quality than the PADI way... You deserve to be subscribe. Will keep on watching your videos.
I hate to say it, but I learned more in the SDI OW book and RUclips than I did from my first weekend's instructor. Nice guy, but he was more about telling stories than training. Our 2nd weekend on the lake however, we had an excellent instructor, and a decent DM.
I did dive at Camayan divers in the Philippines on vacation, and that thought was 5 Star, and I don't know if they have a 5 star rating or not. They carried your tanks and gear to and from the boat. Every dive was a boat dive and relatively inexpensive. Dive groups were small, the shop was immaculate. They always asked you what wrecks you wanted to see that day, and only went out when the divers wanted to, and as much as they wanted to (they fit your schedule instead of the other way around). It is also at a very nice beach resort with all the resort amenities.
PADI Put Another Dollar In Back in 1986 there was a lawsuit between Naui and Padi. Basically there was a falling out among upper management, those that left formed what is known as PADI. Well Naui sued, so since PADI survived, there must have been a settlement of some kind. My instructor at the time was also a Naui instructor, not knowing if Padi would survive a lawsuit, he would teach open water as a Naui course, and all advanced courses as PADI. His thought was that if Padi folded a diver wasn't totally shut out of being able to go diving
The dive shop owner opening his shop on a day he is closed. So we could rent some equipment Then on top of that when my personal BCD had a failure. He brought a rental BCD all the way to the marina. And didnt even charge me for its use. That is the kind of service you get from Gene's Aqua Pro Dive shop in Gore Ok on lake Tenkiller. After my wife and I got done with our diving that day. We went back to his shop and he was still there doing house keeping. We gladly bought almost $5000.00 worth of gear that day from him. Service means everything and when you go the extra mile. It can definitely pay off.
I attended a 5-star PADI Dive Center in Mexico in February. They fell down on almost every point you mention as representing 5-star service...except their dive masters were competent and friendly. Their advertising led me to believe they operated at a far higher standard than I found...I was actually rather put off by the whole operation. In a way, I'm glad I didn't see this particular video because it would have made me even more irked that I already was. OTOH I have to say that almost every dive operator in Hawaii I've gone out with pretty much met your 5-star criteria or at least came close.
As a dive master and working on my open water instructor. I do not agree with the pay to play business model. There are courses you don't need. You can study and practice on your own. If the course is required for the education/certification glide path, then you'll need it. But if not? You don't have to spend the money. I was working with a dive shop in Germany when I was stationed there. They would push sell all of the time to new divers. Courses, equipment, and dives. But the one thing that would burn my ass is they would over schedule courses or not follow through with course dates. Example when I was stationed in Germany: Dive guide course was being offered with the outdoor recreation center. Enrolled a few that met the requirements. They paid for the course in July and didn't get a call until October 1. Two months later the dive shop decided to start the course. So one had to get a refund due to he couldn't complete the course because of Military reasons, when he was ready to take it when he paid back in July. Also they would only train two people minimum per course, but would train local Germans even if it was only one 🤔?
I was a trainee DM on an open water course cold pond dive in the uk. I was paired with this teenager, he didn't have a clue on buoyancy. I had to save him on an uncontrolled descent. I gad a word with the instructor saying he wasn't safe. He asked the kid if he was alright, the kid said yes so he let him carry on. I said I wanted someone else, which he did. It was like he was going for his Elite rating and it didn't matter what quality of divers were, he just passed them.
Interesting side note - also a spinal surgery recoverer (microdiscectomy) - was a major concern to me when I started diving, especially as a lot of information out there suggests that spinal injuries are hot spots for DCS problems? No one will commit to whether it's an increased risk or not and DAN suggests it might be an issue but might not (as I read it).
Allowing people with no diving experience into the open water course is a major issue right from the start, doesn’t matter who you dive with as they all allow this, which imo creates quality & safety concerns as well as increasing unsatisfied participants having time wasted from instructors having to waste time focusing attention to individuals with zero experience that cannot pick up a basic skill. It should be compulsory to have at least completed 2-3 introductory dives before taking open water. The current system allows anyone to take open water, so once the dive shop takes the money for a 3 day course, the poor instructors have pressure to pass every student that gets dumped on them so the shop makes money. Ive witnessed more than once how this current framework can go horribly wrong, i know when i get to instructor ill have no hesitation in removing a student from the course if they cannot meet criteria. In most cases, a thorough introductory course would have weeded out those unsuitable for open water.
James- love the channel. As a newly certified diver I loved this piece. One suggestion for a future piece would be how to choose a dive center when traveling out of the country and you are unable to get recommendations from fellow divers. BTW- any recommendations for dive shops in Aruba? I’m going there in March and am having trouble determining which one based upon websites.
Thomas Weismantel Thanks for watching! Already made that video, Matey! Here it is: ruclips.net/video/hkFIv_YcPCc/видео.html I’ve only dived Aruba once. I used Red Sail Sports. They are a multi-island chain of dive centres, but they do an ok job. The diving isn’t as great as the neighbouring islands of Bonaire and Curacao.
Divers Ready thanks for the info. Yes I know the diving isn’t as good but I will be there for my nieces wedding and since I live in the northeast, I need to get into water. At this point anything is better than just wishing I could go siving
You have just described Ocean Spirit in Perebere Mauritius. They trained me to CMAS 1star and got my wife diving with a very gentle course which we both took. We gained our Advanced PADI a little later in St Lucia with another good dive centre. Scuba Steve. Ocean Spirit now have PADI 5 star but sttill have CMAS courses. Don't tell PADI LOL.
5-Star Service: Our favorite destination in Indonesia is Blue Corner Dive on Nusa Lembongan (Bali). Their community involvement is outstanding, they’ve set up a system where the boat captains lease to own their boats, offer instruction in several languages including an IDC in Indonesian, the house Marine biologist has set up a massive coral restoration program and was home to MMF’s local office until they out grew the space. Surface intervals on the boat include home made local cuisine lunch (amazing), coffee, tea and water. They offer well serviced, quality rental gear suitable to the wide variety of sites available. The accommodations range from private traditional bungalows to an un-airconditioned hostel style dorm. The restaurant is excellent, and the beach bar is always packed. The staff will happily arrange all your transport from pickup at the Airport (DPS) all the way to the resort and back. While they meet the criteria for a PADI 5-Star IDC, their services are what really makes it 5-Star.
Thank you, this is very valuable information. I'm shocked that the five star criteria doesn't include any reference to the quality and experience of the instructors and dive masters.
Waauu - Best video about Padi.. I just ask about waht 5 stars means in a dive shool here in Denmark - and the did not explain it - i just got at email to padi and they told me to ask them.. ,, Great video.. gave me somthing to think about.. until now i spend almost 6000usd to become a Master scubadiver - and just startet the Divemaster .. .. But thanks for giving us all at choice .. and your fantastic channal..
There's a RAID dive center in my city that's truly first class. They don't really go into crazy numbers of courses or students during the courses. The instructors are ACTUALLY elite - CCR divers who do exploration dives on deep wrecks and yet they teach OC courses or basic open water and let me tell you the bang you get for your buck is crazy, these guys go way above and beyond what you would expect from a dive center. All the divers who I've dove with that hang out with that center seem to have a very similar energy. Overall I am yet to find a better dive center in the world than them. And there's a PADI 5-star dive center in my city too but honestly the only thing really good about them is that equipment rental is really cheap and that the rental equipment is high quality. Everything besides that is just...not particularly good. Groups of 7-10 people for a single course is nothing new for them, the quality of the courses I would guess is substandard as I've had the opportunity to dive with the divers trained by them twice and both times did I fear for my and their life. What really encapsulated their way of doing things was when I saw a picture on their Facebook profile of an open water student with horribly configured gear, everything being too lose, BC inflator hose being extremely long and bulging out because it was mixed up with the drusuit hose which was on the other hand super tight and going over the shoulder to actually reach the valve, the SPG going over the shoulder instead of under the arm - and the best part - the instructor standing right next to the student smiling and throwing the "OK" sign. Really goes to show how PADI doesn't really care for quality and I'm glad I don't have anything to do with it.
Just got back into diving after a 10 year hiatus. (Groan) so glad someone else feels the same way about PADI! I haven’t heard any opinions about NAUI. I’m currently NAUI certified but I am also very uneducated. Does anyone have opinions about NAUI before I continue certifying? I like that they are popular but not for profit. Opinions welcome! Thanks all!
I knew a SSI Dive instructor who did all the opposite that you said a 5 star instructor should be except 1 and that was he preferred small classes 1 instructor to a max of three student
New subscriber here. This reminds me of when I was looking for a dive center + resort where I could take my open water. The price for this 5 star dive center was 1k USD. A thousand dollars?! For open water?! No, that did not include the hotel room. Literally next to it was another resort that had fair prices. It cost me less than 1k for the open water plus 2-weeks stay. Sure the rooms weren't 5 stars but it wasn't so bad either. And the most important thing is, we were diving in the same dive spots anyway.
Ever in CA, San Pedro go see Pacific Wilderness, you will be surprised with a first class dive shop.....NO ONE TOUCHES MY GREAR, I carry, I set up and my fault if a problem.
Waauu - I startet in 2019 and got my OW 17 February 2019- now i´just got my master scuba diver .. And i still like PADI , and I hope to become a Divemaster this year.. Now we got a new 5 star center in Denmark ( i am from Denmark) and I just asked about the 5 star but did not get a complet answer about how they get the 5 star or how to get 3 or 4 stars - so thanks a lot- I did find out that 5 star center is just the minimum..
Interestingly, I've asked this question myself before, and even asked dive shops, without any reasonable answers. So I emailed PADI about it, and received their "PADI® Retailer Association Membership Standards" manual to review. So I can verify everything James suggests in the video. It's a total crock of crap, and seemingly nothing more than a cheap sales gimmick that means next to nothing. Ignore the PADI 5 Star standard plaques advertising shops. Ask around, for solid reviews, if possible. Then check out the facilities, equipment, etc., and don't be afraid to say, "Well, this stuff looks pretty sad, guys!", and walk away. If you're somewhere popular for diving, then you'll have A LOT OF OPTIONS, usually. Shop around. Oh, and if you do have a great experience, SHARE IT on the advisory boards, like your FB diving pages, trip.com reviews, or where ever! Let other divers know! Cheers
Idea for Divers Ready - set up an Independent Review Body??? Option 2: PADI sends me to every single dive centre all over the world as a quality review agent.
Hi Myles! Thanks for watching! You know, I had that idea before! Secret shopper for a Dive Center. It might become a thing one day! Cheers buddy! James
The extent of the classroom training in my PADI OW course was taking a short written exam, and then going around the classroom having each student answer one of the questions. No teaching by the instructor. The only other classroom work was how to attach your kit to a tank. I realize that there was computer study and tests, but really, how does one hour of test review at the shop count as classroom? Two hours in the classroom, a one day pool session and 2 half days at the lake does not an OW diver make.
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Look, I'm not a big fan of Agency-bashing for the sake of it, but this is deserved. Let me know below what scuba services you think deserves ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!
It's not bashing if it's true.
@@UniqueScubaLakewoodRanch right?! That's what I thought!
James, good video. The PADI 5 Star Rating system has always annoyed me. Years ago I owned a dive shop and we became a 5* Centre. I remember that we mainly had to self-certify ourselves by filling out a form and sending it off. After that it was simply a matter of paying the *annual* fee to keep the rating. It's a marketing scam pure and simple.
Not sure if you included it in your suggestions but I would want to see:
- Potential for a variety of ratings from 1* to 5*
- Maybe a breakdown of the rating into different areas (facilities, services, environmental, etc)
- Checks on emergency procedures and plans. (problem is this might create potential liabilities for the certifying org).
- Scuba instructors being re-examined every X years. (ok, this last one is more of an agency requirement)
- A better quality control, investigation and complaints process. For example what happens when a diver dies at a PADI 5* Centre whilst on a fun dive? My understanding is that this has nothing to do with PADI, there is no investigation by PADI, and the 5* status is not affected. I'd love for someone from PADI to correct me with evidence that this is not the case.
Roatan Divers might not even be rated by PADI (I don't know or care) but this is beyond question a 5-star operation.
Business is business and that’s what 5star means to dive centres. This rating should really stay between the agency and the dive centre for the perks of a discount on training packs, not branded as you say for the benefit of the public. Misrepresentation.
Today you gained a new subscriber!! I was a PADI instructor and the deeper I got into the professional side of the organization the more I felt like a salesman. I spoke with my Course Director and told him my passion is scuba NOT sales. I was quickly told that's what PADI centers everything around $$$$$. I left them a couple of years ago and went to SDI and am world's happier!! Love your channel! I'd really like to see a shop that had a variety of trial regulators and BCDs, try it before you buy it type program. Take a deposit, 2 dive maximum or dive it in the pool, 24 hr test period. It would be super nice!!
Thanks Roy! Welcome to Divers Ready! Great idea with the rental fleet... easier to do with regulators (although they would need regular tuning to keep performing their best, as any rental regs do!) BCDs would be challenging because they'd need to stock every make and model in their range in EVERY size! Could be expensive to set up, but undoubtably would be an amazing customer experience! Thanks again! James
@@DiversReady I thought about the BCDs after the fact and it would have to be narrowed down to a popular jacket style, a popular hybrid and then a wing maybe??
Yes!!! During the IDC you lern how to sell everything but not how to be a good OWSI. After IE i wasn't proud to become a PADI Instructor I was frustrated.
SDI have followed in PADI's footsteps by introducing their Course Director certification. GUE is similar to PADI's marketing strategy. As for your equipment and regulator trials. The answer is already there. Ask a specialist who performs wreck, cave and deep dives.
I don't know about BCDs and regulators but my local dive shop in Utah lets you come in the evening and spend as much time as you want in the pool trying out different masks, fins, and other diving equipment they sell before you buy it. I always thought that was really cool. They also let us practice our skills (i.e. doing your own personal refresher course) in the pool with their gear for free for an evening, as long as there are no OW or AOW classes in the pool that night.
Very good and relevant clip. I became a certified diver under FAUI in 1988. Even then I could see a difference in standards between my fellow FAUI open water divers and PADI divers that had the same level of experience. My course was 30% cheaper than PADI's and there was much less hype.
I could never truly comprehend why some PADI 5 star dive centers could deliver such low standard yet the dive shop down the road (non 5 star) was a class operation.
This clip has helped me understand what I already knew.
Put Another Dollar In.
Thanks James. You just got a new subscriber.
Great video. PADI has always been more about money than quality. The dive center I learned at sadly closed, but I would drive over an hour to get there for advice, service, and equipment purchases, even with another center only minutes from my house. They offered PADI, NAUI, SSI, and back in the day even YMCA classes. They could service almost any gear and most of it was done in-house my trained and certified staff. Sadly there seem to be fewer and fewer dive shops in my area every year. And the remaining ones are also basically PADI because there is more profit to be made selling classes for more money, then only covering the bare minimum so you can pressure students into more specialty classes. Admittedly I don't live in an area where there is great year round diving (dry suit is needed for several months of the year), but hear in New England, we do have a great dive community. Class quality definitely depends more on the instructor than the agency, but having audited or taken classes from all three agencies on multiple occasions I have seen some of the scariest gaps in training from the PADI courses. When getting an ex of mine certified while we were dating I checked a PADI shop and some of the information they were telling me made me question the safety of their course. The classroom and pool work requirements are minimal at best, and understanding of the material seems to be optional, especially with online training with tests that are nearly impossible to fail. Auditing a class with a friend I was amazed by the differences from my own training a couple decades ago. There were fast practically bullet point lists of things not to do and the significantly less hours of class room than I had for my basic open water, when I learned it just felt more helpful as to... here is what you shouldn't do, this is why, and here is how you survive it if you do. PADI dive centers are the only place I have ever seen a Discover Diving experience consisting of 15-20 mins of "instruction", verifying each student can perform a mask clear, followed by an 80ft max depth dive to explore (including a brief swim through) of a wreck. (I have several stories of shops doing the bare minimum but I won't go into them now). Well that and over there years on dive trips I have run into several divers to whom I was genuinely concerned about diving with, often though conversation they would demonstration a complete lack of knowledge of basic diving concepts like atmospheric pressure, safety stops, ascent velocity, dive tables and why planning is important, the importance of being able to remove/dump your weights, and even being 100% dependent on a computer they don't know how to use. The one common thing between all of these people is every single one of them was a PADI (Basic) Open Water certified diver. I have heard from dive shops many things such as "we don't teach dive tables or anything about decompression, we just tell you to buy a computer" and "why would we teach buddy breathing, when you should have an octopus".
I think the thing that gets me the most about PADI is their profit over quality/safety mentality. This is not the first time I have heard about the shady money driven Five Star status for PADI. There are even many examples of larger chains not evening meeting the minimal qualifications you listed in the video but still reach Five Star and it is all because they do more volume. These are large chains or even a specific cruise line, that not only don't offer the specialty diving certifications, but don't participate in any environmental or informational programs. The sad thing is though, diving is a relatively small community and because of that, most companies associated with it need to make as much money as possible per diver to stay in business, leading to a profit over quality model. And due to the small community size, there is less call for any type of safety or quality regulation in government as companies hate regulation and fight it with money, and there frankly aren't enough of us out there to be statistically significant to justify most politicians time. (Rant over.)
Thanks for the video. Keep them coming!
This is 5-star information! The next time I look at the 5 stars sign on the dive shop near me I will immediately know I've paid for it.
Thanks Boyle! Welcome to the channel! James
As a sailor in the Navy, I’ve been stationed at different locations. In each of those locations I usually brought my business to one particular dive shop over all the rest. My favorite dive shop in Pensacola was little more than a hole in the wall business. The owner openly admitted that his shop wasn’t much, but he could get me just about anything I wanted. He finished by saying that after I hit up all the other shops, that I’d be back. He was right. Because as a young sailor, money wasn’t there to be wasted. Gear through his shop was far , FAR cheaper than anywhere else. His overhead cost were practically nonexistent, so there was practically no markup on dive equipment. I purchased my first set of gear through that shop. Was it 5 star??? HARDLY, but if it was still around, I’d still be a customer. He knew how to treat people right.
Fast forward 35 years and now I’m using a shop that’s entirely different. It’s just the opposite of that long ago place. This is absolutely a 5 Star shop. Their rental gear is like new, they’ve got excellent service, they teach every level of scuba including many specialty courses, they’ve got private classes, and the shop has it’s own indoor pool facility specifically built to accommodate scuba divers. What’s even better, if you get certified through their shop, they’ll include free use of their pool at anytime that there’s not a class going on. Additionally, anytime that they’re going to any of the Florida Springs with another class, you’re allowed to go with the group for another dive in the freshwater springs. Incidentally, THEY PICK UP YOUR ENTRANCE FEES. Five Stars? MOST DEFINITELY. As a disabled diver, they also fully customized my entire rig so that it would accommodate my disability. It made all the difference, literally, between being able to dive or not being able to dive. They certainly didn’t have to do that, but they’re more interested in getting their customers diving than just making money. And again, it’s basically the only shop I use. Sure, I’ve spent a lot of money there, but those perks certainly make my equipment investment a really good one.
Incidentally, when I asked “5 STARS?”, I was referring to the quality of the shop AND service, NOT PADI. Frankly, I have no clue if either of these two ships are PADI 5 STAR, and to be honest, I really don’t care either way. I loved both shops, because BOTH were able to provide me with exactly what I needed when I needed it.
Exactly, they won you with their service, which is exactly as it should be! Sounds like two great shops. Thanks for watching! James
Interesting... Sounds like Dive Pros on hy98 Pcola LOL They are PADI and have 4.5 to 5 star customer reviews. Some people don't care about PADI rating but customer reviews.
To me the things that make a dive Center 5 star are attitude and the interest the instructor shows in you. My two teenage sons and I completed our OW with Steve and Bruce at Herts dive club in the UK. It was using a public pool and cold murky conditions at Stoney Cove. However attention to detail, after dive feedback, coaching and support plus all other instructors and Dive Masters coming over after the dives to check and see how it went. Now that deserved the PADI 5 star award the centre has.
True. I figured this out along the way... I had a 5-star experience with Mexico Divers in Isla Mujeres - professionalism, safety, quality gear, etc. Then I dove with another "5-star PADI" outfit in Bahamas recently and it was sketchy. Suffice to say I've decided to buy my own reg and carry a SAD kit.
I started diving in 1992, I was an Instructor and I worked in a few different diving associations. But I was with PADI. I also supported teaching with NAUI and BSAC. But over the years, I was out of a job and the cost to maintain my membership teaching status as an instructor was just too expansive. So 6 years ago I just gave up. Bye bye, to my passion in diving days and bye bye to expansive membership fees.
Been a diver thru padi since 1989 and this man is hitting it on the head. So true. Try another agency and you won't regret it.
Pretty much everything you said in this video resonates with me. For true 5-Star service, liveaboards and dive resorts in Asia take the cake in my opinion. Here are examples on liveaboards: helping you on and off with your gear, fresh water or juice as you are gearing up, fresh water or juice as you come back from the dive, hot chocolate as you come back from a night dive, your choice of a cold or hot wash cloth as you board the boat, special handling for cameras, rinsing your gear, washing your wetsuit and hanging it up ready for the next dive. Similar examples from dive resorts but specifically, carrying all of your gear from the resort to the boat so all you have to do is walk on, carrying your camera if you would like to and from the camera room to the boat. I've even seen people get carried from the boat to shore!!! There are so many more extra services you get in Asia that the rest of the world just doesn't provide.
James, I have been very reluctant in following your videos, because of all the "diving experts" we see online, but anyway I still follow you... and I have to say, as an intructor and a former PADI instructor, that this is a GREAT perspective! Great video, great arguments! Congratulations!
Thanks Carlos, that means a lot.
I would never self-profess expertise. I have a decent amount of experience, but not more than most of my friends. What I do have is complete autonomy... I don't work for a Dive Center, or an Agency, I work for myself, so I can say what I really think. Honesty is important to me. I appreciate your support, buddy!
James
@@DiversReady keep on the good work! Now I am a follower! :)
PADI = Put Another Dollar In
Could not have been said better.
Put Another Dollar In was created by PADI dive instructors years ago to complain about the constant price increases not customers.
Outstanding James... thank you for just speaking the truth. Hard to come by and very appreciated! Looking forward to seeing more, love the channel and congratulations to Karina on her recovery! Great to hear your Dive Buddy is back in the water! Keep up the fantastic work and keep speaking truth!
the best diving was with a little dive boat in key largo. he was a 6pack capt & divemaster they were a great bunch during the dive but after we got in we were invited to sit down have a beverage and some BBQ with them we had a great time. i dove with them for the next 12 yrs until he closed and moved back north to take care of his parents. their personal service & their personality always made for a great time.
I don't need five-star training, but this is what it takes to provide elite service.
A five star center has-
immediate access to water is available almost all the time.
(pool, lake or ocean on site rather than, "we're renting a pool next week").
enough showers available so half the class can clean up at a time.
(this might be an outside concrete pad with four show heads for a class of eight.)
enough storage and changing room so clothes and gear don't have to lie on the wet floor as you peal yourself out of your 7 mm suit.
dry, environmentally controlled, and secure, storage available for gear.
The restrooms and training facilities are free from trip, fall, and slip hazards.
(Slick and slimy floors are dangerous.)
At least half of the planned trips are completed as scheduled.
( Yeah, there are weather cancellations, but don't advertise trips that never have enough customers to make the trip happen.)
environmental cover from the sun and rain is available at all times.
(don't cook or drench your customers)
Water and towels are provided by staff rather than by the guests.
A year without injuries requiring medical treatment to the students or staff.
Hi Rob, thanks for watching! Agree 100% with all of the above. James
Having a pool specifically built for scuba diving training is a big one. Such pools are much deeper than the typical pool. My local Dive-Shop’ s pool is about 18 feet deep. That’s important because the human body goes from positive buoyancy to negative within the first 8 - 12 feet of depth (depending upon body composition...fatties take longer to get to a depth where they’ll naturally start to sink) so that’s where the largest change occurs. Unfortunately, most shops that use other’s pools are teaching right where this change takes place
Hello , I am a NAUI Instructor , since Jan 2002, in SW Florida and I absolutely love Key Largo for certifying new students / sight-seeing. We also have awesome diving off the coast here all along the west coast of Florida ; equally for sight-seeing, training for advanced / deeper certifications, spearfishing etc. And I could not agree more with you regarding PADI's dollar-driven approach / motivation over quality and variety. Just as most divers , regardless of certification level or years of experience , will have a blended mix of brands / types of equipment. It's all about what works best for them during their individual styles / types of dives they enjoy, the locations / water-temps,depths etc , etc they consistently enjoy / pursue.
I was diving with Sea Explorer on Reethi Faru in the Maldives, and I think it would tick all the boxes of your description of a 5star DC. The dry room especially was a massive 300 square meter ventilated area with ceiling fans and hangers for aal the gear, 2 basins for rinsing the gear, looking like small swimming pools with subsections for Regulator and Masks, and the other for wetsuits and BCD's, showers, guest bathrooms, House Reef tank service, and the boats where just massive. I guess that is why people pay a bit more in the Maldives, but also the diving was breathtaking, with Sharks, Whale Sharks, Manta Rays, Dolphins and and and.
Thanks for sharing!
When I was doing underwater recovery we also did dive accident investigations for DAN and local law enforcement.
We had one investigation where the divers involved where all divers were PADI rescue diver certified. Reading their affidavit they did everything wrong and they themselves almost ended up in chambers. I do not put much faith in that organization.
I was PADI trained but NAUI certified via instructor. The instructor was both a PADI and NAUI instructor. He felt PADI was subpar.
I had an accident on a dive boat
In 2019 in Belize. I was pushed off the boat by a dive master and nearly lost my foot. The crew on a 55' boat didnt know basic first aid. Thankfully there was and EMT diving with us. Long story short 7 surgeries with more to go. Chronic pain and other issues. The dive shop is now being given a 5 star rating. They have been fighting the lawsuit for 4 years. They lost don't want to pay. Knowing this PADI certification nothing to rely on. The shop had lost it's certification ability due to sexual harrassment by a dive master to a tourist on the boat.
my local dive center is a 5star and very pleased to say they do everything u mention in the positive part of this video , they have a big retail shop selling everything from fin strap to drysuits and wetsuits , they are very clean and give a good service and there rental equipment is fully working and replaced if needed ect
As a recreational diver, this was a perspective I had not thought about. Thanks for the info. Love your channel. Congrats on Scuba Diver Magazine. I will now give them a follow.
Thanks Robin! James
For professionals, Padi is something of a pyramid scheme to begin with. It’s nothing against the courses or content or (most of) the materials, it’s just the way the whole thing is structured at the business level. The individual operators take the risk, the more they buy into the system and the more people they enroll, the more discounts they get on materials etc, and the more competetive they can be. Meanwhile the padi operation stands back and develops and sells the materials and methods and the framework to the people willing to take a risk on building a dive operation … again - it’s all well worked through, but it is what it is … from an operational point of view - the courses, as sales items, are just window dressing, and really are not all that much of a source of income - the real sale is course materials, equipment, dive holidays, accommodation and of course the dives themselves, and the annual fees for being “renewed dive masters and instructors” … This is nothing that should make a person not want to take the Padi diving education, it’s something mostly pertaining to diving professionals.
Thank you so much James for what 5 star really means PADI mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm you are the very first person that really has explained PADI. Thank you!!! I am really happy your wife is able to rejoin you in that water God bless you!!!!
Excellent video! Very informative. After hearing all that makes me glad my dive center offers SSI. Definitely sounds like PADI is more worried about numbers and money that safety.
My first dive center traveling was awesome and really got me into the sport, I was hooked like a fish. My second, now local, dive center was trash. The owner was pretentious, condescending, and definitely seemed like the cattle herder-she was nice to my wife but despised me. In fact, we were 'fired as a client' because I wanted to finish our certs with my long hose (our gear configuration to this day) after having so much trouble with their rental equipment which nearly caused me to drown (among other things). Our third and current dive shop is where we found home-we still dive more abroad than near home but they take care of us and our gear (and they refill my O2 when I need it). That place takes care of what we need and helps us when we need it-shame we need to drive over an hour for decent service instead of 15m down the road. They are all PADI 5 star. --- If there's anything I'd ever recommend in a dive center is having every employee, manager, and owner care about the people who walk in. They're there for a service or product, help them; if you can't do that, you shouldn't be there. If your dive center doesn't care about you, find a new dive center.
Love this, Yuriy! Exactly my point! Thanks for sharing. James
She was nice to my wife but despised me, so she was nice but not nice, I wonder bud sounds like maybe the 2/3 majority is on the ladies side....... just wondering?
@@omegadivingacademy7937 "...sounds like maybe the 2/3 majority is on the ladies side."
I don't know what you mean by that.
One thing i always look for in a store, no matter what im buying, i expect the seller to know their product. If i ask questions about a product and all i get is vague answers, it makes not want to buy it.
If a seller doesnt have faith in their product, why would a buyer.
Thanks James.
hilarious! love it!
SSI also gives awards (mainly based on... yes. number of certifications).
we don't have one, we don't want one.
we prefer to stay small with service recommended by personal reviews from guest than having an award for mass-production which doesn't mean anything...
It's like... "And I'd like to give the 'Divers Ready! Award For Best Scuba Channel On RUclips' to... Divers Ready!" Hehehe!
Thanks for watching Irina! James
Excellent content. Here the joke used to be, "how many PADI instructors does it take to change a light bulb?" Answer, "How much cash do you have?" I trained with NAUI and have always liked the solid training. Our instructor did fail some students who couldn't get the skills and didn't want to work on them. He felt they were too risky as divers to themselves and to others to certify them.
I realize I'm late to the Divers Ready party, but keep up the good work.
When I was certified by padi
in 1973 (Gawd, I'm old) there were two choices in Orlando: Padi and Naui. Padi was seen as the thinking man's dive shop (Plan your dive and your plan) while Naui was seen as the muscle it through shop. Easy choice at the time. No regrets since.
We aren't old, we are "Seasoned". Got my basic in Pittsburgh, PA in 1973. PADI, and NAUI.
As someone just starting scuba this rating system is very worrying. There should be an independent quality assurance service.
I couldn't agree more!
Binging your videos and appreciative of how generous the knowledge is but have to comment that the shout out to your wife returning to diving and her recovery is the best.
Seaxplore in Sodwana South Africa - Their focus is on small groups and personalized service, you choose where you want to dive, how long and how deep you want to dive. That is 5star!
As you went through YOUR list for 5 star rating, I immediately thought of Dive Wederfoort in Curacao. It has been the only center I have been too that matches your list. The rest, well you wonder why they even bother to be in business. Thanks for all you do. As new divers we always learn new things on your channel!
I'll be sure to check them out in September when we head to Curacao! Thanks for the recommendation!
We went to Coral Divers in Curacao last year and they were really good
Great Video, as a new Rec diver from PADI I was starting to look into this. When your E-Card cost $$$, it is more to do online training than the book. Its all about the $$$$. If they were truly wanted to help the industry and environment they would change the way training is done. I am truly looking to do Advanced open and look to SSI.
while ssi is better regarding e-learning/e-card it's still the same overall, you might want to consider RAID(everything online) or SDI as well as they have a tech diving background which should also show in their recreational courses
Great video. The dive center I learned at fits all your requirements for a 5 star center but also an instructor training center for SSI so no 5 stars. I was a PADI divemaster and agree that they just want more $$$$$ in the box regardless.
That's great to hear! And a great example to my point! I find that most dive centers I visit that I would consider to be 5-Star worthy, are not PADI 5 Stars at all! Thanks for watching Neil! James
I'd like to learn from your experience. Did you move to another agency? If so, which one?
Great one James!. yes, certainly 5 star would imply quality and exceptional features.
PADI always meant to us “old timers” Put Another Dollar In. You’ve said nothing to alter that. My OW was issued by PADI when dinosaurs roamed the planet and dirt was still young, but I did not chose the shop because it was PADI: I chose it because we (my wife and I) thought the instructor would be great-and he was!
Great video! Thanks for the eye opener! I've been diving on my holidays for years, and for me the quality of equipment is most important. I had an incident where a piece of rental equipment broke mid dive and things could've gone very wrong. So I'm usually looking for a 5 star PADI center in hope they have well maintained quality gear. Good to know 5 stars don't guarantee anything..
I think that should also have a dive pool, offer a variety of of instructor's PADI/SDI/SSI etc. Be a hotel, or resort. Offer another dive if the visibility is lower than 5 meters.
That would be a 5 star dive center worth extra money!
Once again James an amazing video that for a new Diver on his way to dive master this I amazing to know what a 5 star means. Looking forward to the next video
Thanks so much Biker Tom!
I'm late to this video, but I'll share my comments.
First, great video. I absolutely love your list for what should make a 5-star dive center. I'll share my experience from years ago.
I live in Minnesota. My wife and another couple were traveling to Key West via car. My wife was a non-driver, but our friends and I were relatively new, inexperienced divers. We're all experienced swimmer -- in Minnesota lakes. Keep that in mind.
We decided we wanted to go diving, so we I did my homework, but clearly not enough homework. We found a dive center in Key West. "PADI 5-star." Oh, they should be good. Ah, you see where this story is going.
I called them. I explained, "three inexperienced divers from Minnesota, we could use a little care." And the response was, "Don't worry, we'll take good care of you."
Now, what does that mean to you? Well, I'll come to what it means to me, after I explain the Key Largo experience.
We got there. They had gear and a cattle car. What they did NOT have was anyone who actually went into the water with us. We got to our first dive site, and the entire dive briefing was, "There's some current. The dive site is there." That was it. That was fucking it.
They tossed 30 divers into the water, and the entire support they gave those divers was this: they had to let out a drift line off the back of the boat as countless divers drifted away, never finding the small reef we were supposed to visit. They did eventually send a divemaster back to help round up all the lost divers.
Ug.
So we got to Key West. The dive center there picked us up the next morning from our B&B and drove us to the dive center. They listened to our Key West experience, not saying too much. But their boat had a dive master (AKA: the owner), who was one of the nicest guys you could ever meet, and his aide, who stayed on the boat. The three of us and 3 other people. That's it. And then the OWNER of the site baby-sat the three of us. Before we went into the water, he talked about the current. He talked about following the mooring line down. "Hand over hand." What a concept. Pretty obvious in hindsight, isn't it?
We went diving with them for three or four days, and it was absolutely wonderful. We did wrecks and reefs. He didn't have to babysit for the reefs. They were shallow and little current.
But the wrecks. Wow. Beautiful, beautiful dives.
It was a tiny place with one boat. But the difference was when we said, "Three divers with little ocean experience," he took care of us, calmly and professional.
And then laughed at themselves as they were in full wetsuits while I was in my shorty. Minnesota blood and all that. (Note: The water temperature on my own water dives was 42 degrees.)
So, in my mind, the difference between a shit-ass dive center and a 5-star dive center might be your list, or it might just be this.
The 5-star dive center, when they hear, "three fairly new divers from an inland state", they take care of you. They go in the water with you. They get you to the site. They act like an actual divemaster, not just a freaking bus driver.
Another excellent video! I’ve only ever followed the PADI route and got to DM and then backed off as all I want to do is dive. So, now, I dive with my Rescue cert and decline any other trainings.
I just finished my open water course with a dive center that offered Raid witch can also offer a Padi course ...yes i paid more for the Raid course however my son and I got individual attention witch was great and it has no 5 star rating. I found that the instructor and training we got should have been a 6 star rating so for me offer an professional service and all the referrals you will get will be better than any rating we found this dive center by all the good things people had to say about them....South Africa.
Nice one James! I have just subscribed yesterday, because from the very first video I've seen the passion and no BS selling from your side. You are doing this for us and that is obvious from todays video again, as you are going against your self as dive instructor by saying what you did.
About the 5* diving center, I had just experience like that in my last vacation this july, when @Subaquatic SSI diving center in Croatia was happy to fulfill our request for a night dive on a site, where they never did it before (only during the day), were super helpful with finding shop where I could by my gopro diving case and more.
So 5* to them and this would be my point to add, willingness going over the standard already tried sites / time of the day dives.
What a great video, when I first started diving I would always look for 5 star dive centers. Now I have to say the best ones I use are not PADI 5 star. A special mention to Blue Bottom Diving in Tenerife who are about the best I have dived with world wide.
Thanks, new subscriber today for you and Dive Mag.
Thanks Jonney! Welcome to the channel! James
I just signed up for my open water courses a few days ago. In the paperwork, textbook and videos it constantly mentions other courses and reminds you to start thinking about how you want to continue after this one. It makes me feel like it's a marketing scheme. Most people will not need to take more than the open water course because most people are just wanting to scuba dive in light conditions during family vacations and that sort of thing. I would say very few people are interested in actually becoming that diehard in scuba but boy do they make you feel like you NEED all these other classes.
My home dive shop is a PADI 5 star. Quality is definitely hit and miss some days. Others it’s amazing. The owner is...woof. I’ll leave it at that. A plus is that they have their own boat. However, I will likely be venturing to other shops/training agency in the future.
I stopped looking at padi when I went tech.
I don't blame you. The quality of the training always comes down to the Instructor in the water with you, but the PADI Tech system just has too many hoops to jump through. Thanks for watching! James
How did you start tec? I thought Padi Tec45 is a start but are there other ways?
Yes!
West Bay Divers in Roatan Honduras was simply outstanding. After every dive we were offered fresh cut fruit, water. Our boat captain Anthony was always near us when we surfaced unlike other dive companies we saw where their boat was several yards 200+ away. Our Dive Master Joe’l was simply amazing, the amount of unique creatures he was able to point out to us was incredible.
I am a newly certified PADI open water diver. Let me start by saying I have learned a lot from your videos and will and have recommend friends to subscribe.
Now about this video. I had a great experience with my dive instructor. I think it comes down to the dive center rather then the organization that you got certified under. I get it, your frustrated with the business end of PADI, but at the end of the day aren’t we all trying to make money as business owners?
Keep the videos coming!
I always have had the feeling that this video describes about Patty and especially this five star phenomenon, thank you so much for clarifying what to not expect from a five-star facility!
Enjoyed that. I recently dived for a week in Amed, Bali. I would say the dive centre was close to 5 stars against your criteria. From memory they were teaching SSI. Clearly quality and comittment of the centre itself is more important than the agency behind it. I'm a Divemaster trained through a different agency again.
Thanks for watching Rob! Agree 100%... the agency has very little to do with the quality of the dive center.
I am actually narrowing down my choices to do my divemaster and IDC when i saw this. Looks like i can throw all my research on 5 star down the toilet..
Eerr... Help?
Also, i am definitely a subscriber now. Awesome content :)
Thanks Daing! It's all about the Instructor who will be guiding you through your DM. Find an Instructor you really like and can trust and you will be guided well. Thanks for being part of this channel! James
(Pity I only saw your post now) Hi, no research is without value, I am sure James would agree, however 5 star does have some qualities separating dive operators. Anyone can nitpick all the details, we were a NAUI Platinum Pro dive Center in 2001 and never even saw our NAUI rep on the premises ever or received a call to pay the subs for the next year so???? (Still NAUI for us however most of us carry multiple certs having worked sport and commercial all over the world)
Here is the basic issue, if nothing else it already it sets apart the dive operators who have none of the 5 star requirements from those who do, so that already thins the herd. I have seen many operators who are great online but operate from a cargo container. Most of the time people who are serious about diving put their money where their mouth is and there is a start.
Although I agree with James to some extent most of what he mentioned are items you should be doing anyway without a mandate from any agency. Agency mandates are always a shell for operating your business you should be having that business plan regardless of the agency and the reality is that you already used the 5 star label to separate some stores for possible selection for your training so in the dive industry all marketing helps since the industry is a fickle one and allegiance to a dive shop is up for grabs if the other guy has the same mask for 10 dollars more.
NO divers mostly do not compare favourably and easily move off to another store due to price without much consideration case in point a diver dived with a store off their own boat and got grumpy due to the 50 dollar price difference in the dive package from the other store in the general area so they wanted a refund of the 50 dollars since they believed they were being ripped off........ the owner said no. They went to the other guy who booked them but surprise surprise he did not own his own boat and sold space on the original guys boat. When asked why they moved it was clear that the 50 dollars was an issue and they never even considered the fact that the 1st guy owned the boat and would be liable for any cost to service, insurance or liability and yes to even have purchased the boat in the first place so 50 dollars on a 3 dive package including gear would have been no problem considering the commitment to the business. I say all this to say EACH person is responsible for their research of which most do not do any at all and just go with what is most common in that area or closest. Even an instructor you like can be a useless instructor just because he is a nice guy means very little, be informed on issue you are enquiring about and ask the necessary questions to understand who the instructor is and what the process will all be. BY THE WAY I HAVE BEEN IN MANY 5 STAR HOTELS AND RESORTS THAT WERE WAY WORSE THAN ADVERTISED. BUT MORE NO NAME BRAND NON 5 STAR DIVE SHOPS THAT SCARED THE DAYLIGHTS OUT OF ME as said before at least it thins the herd.
I know this comment is super late (just came across this video, although I am a long time subscriber) and it's eye opening and excellent.
I would absolutely second the small group requirement for "5 star" service. I was just in Costa Rica and on two separate days there were only two divers on my boat, along with the divemaster and two shop trainees enjoying a day off. It's crazy that the shop (Rich Coast Diving) was happy to run a dive boat for just the two of us. Kudos!
Found your channel from Lake Hickory (Bryan). Love this video!~
PADI is about $$, volume and promotion only. Quality hardly comes into it. That's why I switched from BSAC to SDI under recommendation of the instructor I was under at the time of my conversion when I moved away from the UK. BSAC didn't at the time provide much international certification support when I moved back to Australia, so had to change.
My partner certified under PADI just to get quickly certified and it was terrible. SDI availability was limited at the time where we are. PADI always trained multiple students and had poor student to instructor ratios. When I trained in BSAC it was one on one guidance, but that was back in the 90's.
What's blown me away? Dive centre staff carry all the gear, help the divers put the gear on and help checking for safety e.g. valves open. Safety checks prevent having one diver hold everyone else up e.g. by jumping off the boat with a closed valve / losing their mask while they jump in etc
Thanks Myles! 110% agree! Often, good safety becomes great service. James
I have yet to find a place that carries all of my gear. They'll put it on the boat but they certainly don't shlep it around for me. That'd be some VIP treatment right there.
Hell, my wife and I were happy when they did proper head counts and roll call the last place we went
@@YuriyDel Did a dive trip at Southern Cross Club in Little Cayman. Arrived, they grabbed our luggage to put in our bungalow, and took our dive gear to the boat/storage area on arrival. Didn't touch it again except to dive in it for the next 6 days. They took small groups out to the wall, changed tanks for you on the surface intervals, etc. You sit down, put on your kit and walk 5 feet off the boat all week! :)
@@kotro88 Throw in a few attractive women to fan me with palm fronds and one to feed me grapes and I've found paradise.
WOW!!! I mean WOW!!! What an awesome perspective on this subject. I totally agree on what you are saying is 5 Star. Quality, service, and cleanliness! I've been to some really nice places and some rat holes so I totally get it. Now with that being said, I don't feel that because a dive center or shop is in a rat hole it can't be a 5 Star as long as the have those 3 qualities. I also don't believe the dive association should be the ones that designate themselves 5 Stars. I feel the recreational and professional DIVERS should do the nominations as to who is 5 Star based on the standards you laid out plus conservation dives and clean up dive and beach trips. The best dive center I've been to is in The Palms Resort in Kuwait City, Kuwait. The staff and instructors there go way above and beyond! They have a nice boat fleet for a variety of dives and number of divers. The shop is immaculate and has a variety of scuba equipment (oh that's another thing! I hate the places that cater to just one brand - at least have two different brands and not just in wet suits - ALL the gear!) Oh, and they have the towel and shower service! VERY NICE!!! Now on the subject of ELITE instructors, not based on PADI's criteria but my personal opinion and experience, the instructors at The Palms dive center ARE ELITE! They were just great! It wasn't like your typical "let's hurry up and get you certified" environment. They take the time to make sure you understand what you are learning and can proficiently perform the tasks. They even went the extra mile by letting me try different types of BCD from wings to jackets. I remember spending numerous hours getting my weight right with my instructor and if I didn't get the task right the first time, we did it until I got it right like it was second nature. Thanks for the great videos! I could keep going but I feel this is running long and you might not read it all. I would love to come to south Florida and dive with you and pick your brain.
So happy your wife's better mate
Roatan Divers employs Felix, the Mares ambassador to Roatan, who will personally lead you to the local Mares retail shop where he will assist with equipment selection and get the best possible price. This was a great benefit to me when my old BCD failed. This is only one of the exceptional services offered by Roatan Divers. They don't earn 5 stars, they earn 6.
Hi tom! Thanks for watching! Sounds great! James
Bambu Divers in Bali is my favorite dive center, very personal and fun experience.
In the US, even though they're huge Rainbow Reef in Florida has always been super professional.
Right on point. Never been interested to get the PADI 5 Star DC / Resort. I'm just running a whatever star DC with a better quality than the PADI way... You deserve to be subscribe. Will keep on watching your videos.
James your integrity is refreshing to see.. Thanks for making these videos
I hate to say it, but I learned more in the SDI OW book and RUclips than I did from my first weekend's instructor. Nice guy, but he was more about telling stories than training. Our 2nd weekend on the lake however, we had an excellent instructor, and a decent DM.
Thank god, I'm naui certified and padi is a swear word in the shop I use.
Congrats for your wife mate! Happy for you both!
Thanks Kia Ora!
I did dive at Camayan divers in the Philippines on vacation, and that thought was 5 Star, and I don't know if they have a 5 star rating or not. They carried your tanks and gear to and from the boat. Every dive was a boat dive and relatively inexpensive. Dive groups were small, the shop was immaculate. They always asked you what wrecks you wanted to see that day, and only went out when the divers wanted to, and as much as they wanted to (they fit your schedule instead of the other way around). It is also at a very nice beach resort with all the resort amenities.
PADI
Put
Another
Dollar
In
Back in 1986 there was a lawsuit between Naui and Padi. Basically there was a falling out among upper management, those that left formed what is known as PADI. Well Naui sued, so since PADI survived, there must have been a settlement of some kind.
My instructor at the time was also a Naui instructor, not knowing if Padi would survive a lawsuit, he would teach open water as a Naui course, and all advanced courses as PADI. His thought was that if Padi folded a diver wasn't totally shut out of being able to go diving
Hi Mark, I knew PADI sprang forth from NAUI, but I didn't know it was contested. Sounds like the making of a good book! Thanks for watching. James
The dive shop owner opening his shop on a day he is closed. So we could rent some equipment Then on top of that when my personal BCD had a failure. He brought a rental BCD all the way to the marina. And didnt even charge me for its use. That is the kind of service you get from Gene's Aqua Pro Dive shop in Gore Ok on lake Tenkiller. After my wife and I got done with our diving that day. We went back to his shop and he was still there doing house keeping. We gladly bought almost $5000.00 worth of gear that day from him. Service means everything and when you go the extra mile. It can definitely pay off.
When i think of elite i think of navy seals
😝😝😝
And cave divers. They each have their specialties
This video points out a lot of good points that new divers should know when choosing a place to dive
Thanks for watching, SamanthaCoolBeans! James
I attended a 5-star PADI Dive Center in Mexico in February. They fell down on almost every point you mention as representing 5-star service...except their dive masters were competent and friendly. Their advertising led me to believe they operated at a far higher standard than I found...I was actually rather put off by the whole operation. In a way, I'm glad I didn't see this particular video because it would have made me even more irked that I already was. OTOH I have to say that almost every dive operator in Hawaii I've gone out with pretty much met your 5-star criteria or at least came close.
As a dive master and working on my open water instructor. I do not agree with the pay to play business model. There are courses you don't need.
You can study and practice on your own. If the course is required for the education/certification glide path, then you'll need it. But if not? You don't have to spend the money.
I was working with a dive shop in Germany when I was stationed there. They would push sell all of the time to new divers. Courses, equipment, and dives. But the one thing that would burn my ass is they would over schedule courses or not follow through with course dates.
Example when I was stationed in Germany:
Dive guide course was being offered with the outdoor recreation center. Enrolled a few that met the requirements. They paid for the course in July and didn't get a call until October 1. Two months later the dive shop decided to start the course. So one had to get a refund due to he couldn't complete the course because of Military reasons, when he was ready to take it when he paid back in July. Also they would only train two people minimum per course, but would train local Germans even if it was only one 🤔?
I was a trainee DM on an open water course cold pond dive in the uk. I was paired with this teenager, he didn't have a clue on buoyancy. I had to save him on an uncontrolled descent. I gad a word with the instructor saying he wasn't safe. He asked the kid if he was alright, the kid said yes so he let him carry on. I said I wanted someone else, which he did. It was like he was going for his Elite rating and it didn't matter what quality of divers were, he just passed them.
Interesting side note - also a spinal surgery recoverer (microdiscectomy) - was a major concern to me when I started diving, especially as a lot of information out there suggests that spinal injuries are hot spots for DCS problems? No one will commit to whether it's an increased risk or not and DAN suggests it might be an issue but might not (as I read it).
Allowing people with no diving experience into the open water course is a major issue right from the start, doesn’t matter who you dive with as they all allow this, which imo creates quality & safety concerns as well as increasing unsatisfied participants having time wasted from instructors having to waste time focusing attention to individuals with zero experience that cannot pick up a basic skill. It should be compulsory to have at least completed 2-3 introductory dives before taking open water. The current system allows anyone to take open water, so once the dive shop takes the money for a 3 day course, the poor instructors have pressure to pass every student that gets dumped on them so the shop makes money. Ive witnessed more than once how this current framework can go horribly wrong, i know when i get to instructor ill have no hesitation in removing a student from the course if they cannot meet criteria. In most cases, a thorough introductory course would have weeded out those unsuitable for open water.
James- love the channel. As a newly certified diver I loved this piece. One suggestion for a future piece would be how to choose a dive center when traveling out of the country and you are unable to get recommendations from fellow divers.
BTW- any recommendations for dive shops in Aruba? I’m going there in March and am having trouble determining which one based upon websites.
Thomas Weismantel Thanks for watching! Already made that video, Matey! Here it is: ruclips.net/video/hkFIv_YcPCc/видео.html
I’ve only dived Aruba once. I used Red Sail Sports. They are a multi-island chain of dive centres, but they do an ok job. The diving isn’t as great as the neighbouring islands of Bonaire and Curacao.
Divers Ready thanks for the info. Yes I know the diving isn’t as good but I will be there for my nieces wedding and since I live in the northeast, I need to get into water. At this point anything is better than just wishing I could go siving
You have just described Ocean Spirit in Perebere Mauritius. They trained me to CMAS 1star and got my wife diving with a very gentle course which we both took. We gained our Advanced PADI a little later in St Lucia with another good dive centre. Scuba Steve. Ocean Spirit now have PADI 5 star but sttill have CMAS courses. Don't tell PADI LOL.
Thanks James, I am really enjoying your videos, keep 'em coming!
Thanks That Sidemount Guy! I appreciate you, buddy. James
5-Star Service:
Our favorite destination in Indonesia is Blue Corner Dive on Nusa Lembongan (Bali).
Their community involvement is outstanding, they’ve set up a system where the boat captains lease to own their boats, offer instruction in several languages including an IDC in Indonesian, the house Marine biologist has set up a massive coral restoration program and was home to MMF’s local office until they out grew the space.
Surface intervals on the boat include home made local cuisine lunch (amazing), coffee, tea and water.
They offer well serviced, quality rental gear suitable to the wide variety of sites available.
The accommodations range from private traditional bungalows to an un-airconditioned hostel style dorm. The restaurant is excellent, and the beach bar is always packed. The staff will happily arrange all your transport from pickup at the Airport (DPS) all the way to the resort and back.
While they meet the criteria for a PADI 5-Star IDC, their services are what really makes it 5-Star.
Glad to see that Blue Corner Dive genuinely love their customers. I shall keep them in mind if I go to Bali.
Thank you, this is very valuable information. I'm shocked that the five star criteria doesn't include any reference to the quality and experience of the instructors and dive masters.
Great point!
Waauu - Best video about Padi.. I just ask about waht 5 stars means in a dive shool here in Denmark - and the did not explain it - i just got at email to padi and they told me to ask them.. ,, Great video.. gave me somthing to think about.. until now i spend almost 6000usd to become a Master scubadiver - and just startet the Divemaster .. .. But thanks for giving us all at choice .. and your fantastic channal..
There's a RAID dive center in my city that's truly first class. They don't really go into crazy numbers of courses or students during the courses. The instructors are ACTUALLY elite - CCR divers who do exploration dives on deep wrecks and yet they teach OC courses or basic open water and let me tell you the bang you get for your buck is crazy, these guys go way above and beyond what you would expect from a dive center. All the divers who I've dove with that hang out with that center seem to have a very similar energy. Overall I am yet to find a better dive center in the world than them.
And there's a PADI 5-star dive center in my city too but honestly the only thing really good about them is that equipment rental is really cheap and that the rental equipment is high quality. Everything besides that is just...not particularly good. Groups of 7-10 people for a single course is nothing new for them, the quality of the courses I would guess is substandard as I've had the opportunity to dive with the divers trained by them twice and both times did I fear for my and their life. What really encapsulated their way of doing things was when I saw a picture on their Facebook profile of an open water student with horribly configured gear, everything being too lose, BC inflator hose being extremely long and bulging out because it was mixed up with the drusuit hose which was on the other hand super tight and going over the shoulder to actually reach the valve, the SPG going over the shoulder instead of under the arm - and the best part - the instructor standing right next to the student smiling and throwing the "OK" sign.
Really goes to show how PADI doesn't really care for quality and I'm glad I don't have anything to do with it.
Just got back into diving after a 10 year hiatus. (Groan) so glad someone else feels the same way about PADI! I haven’t heard any opinions about NAUI. I’m currently NAUI certified but I am also very uneducated. Does anyone have opinions about NAUI before I continue certifying? I like that they are popular but not for profit. Opinions welcome! Thanks all!
I knew a SSI Dive instructor who did all the opposite that you said a 5 star instructor should be except 1 and that was he preferred small classes 1 instructor to a max of three student
New subscriber here. This reminds me of when I was looking for a dive center + resort where I could take my open water. The price for this 5 star dive center was 1k USD. A thousand dollars?! For open water?! No, that did not include the hotel room. Literally next to it was another resort that had fair prices. It cost me less than 1k for the open water plus 2-weeks stay. Sure the rooms weren't 5 stars but it wasn't so bad either. And the most important thing is, we were diving in the same dive spots anyway.
Well said and presented, you have just won my like & subscription, and also shared your video to my so-called 5⭐ PADI LDS.
Thanks Caesar! And thanks for watching! James
I just became the 1k subscriber ! good job
Awesome! Thank you so much Aurelien!
Ever in CA, San Pedro go see Pacific Wilderness, you will be surprised with a first class dive shop.....NO ONE TOUCHES MY GREAR, I carry, I set up and my fault if a problem.
Waauu - I startet in 2019 and got my OW 17 February 2019- now i´just got my master scuba diver .. And i still like PADI , and I hope to become a Divemaster this year.. Now we got a new 5 star center in Denmark ( i am from Denmark) and I just asked about the 5 star but did not get a complet answer about how they get the 5 star or how to get 3 or 4 stars - so thanks a lot- I did find out that 5 star center is just the minimum..
I must say...Scuba Works when diving in Jupiter FL definitely meets and exceeds standards!!!
Thanks for posting great videos. I'm just getting into the sport, and have found your videos extremely informative.
Interestingly, I've asked this question myself before, and even asked dive shops, without any reasonable answers. So I emailed PADI about it, and received their "PADI® Retailer Association Membership Standards" manual to review. So I can verify everything James suggests in the video. It's a total crock of crap, and seemingly nothing more than a cheap sales gimmick that means next to nothing. Ignore the PADI 5 Star standard plaques advertising shops. Ask around, for solid reviews, if possible. Then check out the facilities, equipment, etc., and don't be afraid to say, "Well, this stuff looks pretty sad, guys!", and walk away. If you're somewhere popular for diving, then you'll have A LOT OF OPTIONS, usually. Shop around.
Oh, and if you do have a great experience, SHARE IT on the advisory boards, like your FB diving pages, trip.com reviews, or where ever! Let other divers know! Cheers
Idea for Divers Ready - set up an Independent Review Body??? Option 2: PADI sends me to every single dive centre all over the world as a quality review agent.
Hi Myles! Thanks for watching! You know, I had that idea before! Secret shopper for a Dive Center. It might become a thing one day! Cheers buddy! James
congratulations James someone had to say it loud and clear
Great Video! Congrats to Karina!
Thanks Buddy!
The extent of the classroom training in my PADI OW course was taking a short written exam, and then going around the classroom having each student answer one of the questions. No teaching by the instructor. The only other classroom work was how to attach your kit to a tank. I realize that there was computer study and tests, but really, how does one hour of test review at the shop count as classroom? Two hours in the classroom, a one day pool session and 2 half days at the lake does not an OW diver make.
Padi used to say that 5* centers had better maintained compressors, independently inspected i.e. safer - maybe not these days ?
Thank you so much. But in my place somehow the padi 5 star dc is cheaper 🤣🤣
Hi Mohammad! It can totally be that way in lots of places! Thanks for watching! James