Where you begin - PADI Open Water Diver course

Your PADI Open Water Diver certification is a ticket to a new world of adventure and experience. It is the basic certification required by dive operators and charter boats.

In a PADI Open Water Diver course, you learn more than a new set of skills. You learn when and how to use them. You master basic fundamentals first and build upon them gradually so you don’t feel rushed. Instead, you feel confident and comfortable. You learn at your own pace -- however fast or slow that is. Be prepared to laugh and smile a lot! And, don’t be surprised if you come away absolutely thrilled. Scuba diving does that to people!

Types of Scuba Classes
At Sea Sports Scuba, we offer two types of PADI scuba training: the Open Water Course, and the National Geographic Open Water Course. Both courses provide you with the basic certification to dive anywhere in the world. In both courses you’ll read a textbook and watch the accompanying video prior to attending the first classroom session. Your preview of this material will allow the classroom time to be spent reviewing any questions you may have, rather than covering new material.

Open Water Course: The PADI Open Water Course is typically conducted over a weekend – from Friday night to late Sunday afternoon (see the class times chart below). Then on a following weekend, you will demonstrate the skills you learned in the pool dives while diving in an “open water” environment, which is held at one of two training facilities: The Blue Lagoon (PDF document) in Huntsville, Texas, or Twin Lakes (PDF document) in Manvel, TX.

Can’t devote two weekends to training? We have a weeknight schedule that takes you through the classroom and pool sessions during a single week (Monday – Thursday evenings) and then you have your “open water” dives on a following weekend.

Two days of Open Water Diving on a weekend following the Final pool session, 4 Dives

Two days of Open Water Diving on a weekend following the Final pool session, 4 Dives

To see our calendar of classes, click here in PDF.

The Weekend Open Water classes are indicated by the initials “WE” in the “Starting Date” column.
The Weekday Open Water classes are indicated by the initials “MTh” (Monday – Thursday) in the “Starting Date” column.

Still can’t find dates that work with your schedule? Just call the store nearest you and we can arrange a private Open Water class. You’ll get the same high quality instruction, but in a one-on-one environment that fits your busy calendar!

National Geographic Course: A blending of the PADI Open Water course and National Geographic content, the National Geographic Open Water Course is a unique offering. Compared to the schedule of the regular Open Water course, the National Geographic Open Water Course has an additional classroom and pool session, and an additional open water dive. In the extra pool session you’ll learn to master “neutral buoyancy” so you can hover underwater like a seasoned pro!

The National Geographic Open Water Course is also limited to a maximum of 4 students, so you will have more individualized instruction and more time to practice your skills in the pool and at the open water dive site. The additional classroom session is used to review the exclusive content on marine ecosystems that is presented in typical National Geographic splendor.

This additional content and practice time means you will leave the National Geographic Open Water course a more knowledgeable, confident diver.

Two days of Open Water Diving on a weekend following the Final pool session, 5 Dives

To see our calendar of classes, click here in PDF. The National Geographic classes are indicated by the initials “NG” in the “Starting Date” column.