PADI is the acronym for the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, the world's leader in scuba training courses. There are PADI diving schools all over the world and a PADI certification is universally recognized. ActionQuest has been rated as a PADI Five Star Gold Palm facility, the highest rating that PADI awards based on our experience, safety standards and commitment to continuing education.

Just like our sailing certifications, with PADI there is a clear progression in scuba certifications from the Introductory Open Water all the way through to Professional Divemaster. We also teach over 12 different scuba specialties so that shipmates can continue to build on their skills with each new scuba camp voyage.

Most of our teen scuba camps are offered in the British Virgin Islands. Scuba publications regularly feature the BVI for their exceptional diversity of diving environments, marine life, water quality and visibility. The close proximity of dive sites allows us to maximize our time for all in-water and associated activities.

During our BVI programs, AQ provides absolutely all scuba gear necessary for the courses. This includes masks, fins, BCD, tank and regulator. Shipmates joining us for any advanced-level scuba course have a complete set of equipment issued to them for the duration of the program. Students learning to dive for the very first time have their equipment stored and taken care of by their instructors in between dives, so as to ensure that everything is ready to go when it is time to dive!

Introductory Certification Level Scuba Camps

Scuba diving is fun and easy to learn -- especially if you're already comfortable in the water. Our scuba camps seek to surpass standards set by PADI and all scuba equipment is provided by us for any BVI voyage.

The PADI Open Water certification program is part of the Vega voyages. Shipmates complete academic classes, confined water and open water training sessions as part of this course. Shipmates begin training in shallow water (much like a swimming pool). Once this is complete, they continue on to open water training between 20 and 40-feet, always with an instructor. PADI courses are performance-based rather than time-based. This means that if a student is having difficulty with any particular skill, our instructors will work one-on-one with that shipmate until the skill is mastered.

At AQ, we offer introductory scuba diving certifications for students enrolling in the following programs...

VOYAGE	SELECT YOUR AGE
Vega
Carina

Advanced Certification Level Scuba Camps

We have a range of voyages for shipmates who already hold a scuba certification and this includes the Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver, numerous PADI specialties and Divemaster, the first professional level.

Every year, we have a number of students who are not yet certified divers but want to join us for an advanced scuba course where certification is a prerequisite. In this instance, we suggest contacting your local PADI school and inquiring what it might take to obtain a PADI referral. With a PADI referral, you can join us for any program in which a basic scuba certification is a prerequisite. For more information on PADI referrals, please read our Scuba FAQ section.

At AQ, we offer advanced scuba certifications for students enrolling in the following programs... (students with a referral may join us for any voyage but Rescue or Divemaster)

VOYAGE	SELECT YOUR AGE
Carina
Neptune
Barracuda
Dolphin
Rescue
Divemaster

Programs that Include Scuba as an Activity

Many other AQ programs include scuba diving as an activity but do not necessarily have certifications in scuba included as part of the program. These include the following...

VOYAGE	SELECT YOUR AGE
Minerva (Caribbean)
Billabong (Australia)
Darwin (Galapagos)