My fiance and I are traveling to Bonaire for the first time for our honeymoon (See "Honeymoon at Harbour Village" posting under accommodations) We are first time divers and want to get the book work and pool dives out of the way before we go. The local PADI Dive School charges $70 for a textbook, $250 pp for the lectures and pool dives, and approx. $200 pp for equipment...$970 total. I don't want to get ripped off and this seems REALLY expensive to me, but then again I wouldn't know since we are new to this. There is also an online instructional course that is only $90 pp and then you do the pool and open water dives at the resort to finish up the certification. This is obviously WAY easier, but seems a bit shotty...It's hard not to be skeptical about it, although we really will have a hard time affording the first option. What is the best way to go? We are so torn!

it won't be shotty

good luck!

Understanding the material - regardless of how you get it - and the pool work is what is critical.

Hope that helps.

My recommendation would be : Do as much of the course before you leave , if possible do the pool training at home as well . I also recommend you try getting some more prices , your quotes are high . You are going to Divers Paradise , try to learn at home and reap the rewards of your destination , congratulations to you and your fiancee and enjoy the world of scuba .

While the price of the text book and I am assuming that the $70. includes the R.D.P. and it's separate manual and log book, seems high, I don't think the prices you mention for the classroom presentations and pool diving training are high. That is assuming the $200.00 worth of dive gear (high quality mask, fins, snorkel and boots) are yours to keep.

Remember, with the on-line courses you also have to typically purchase an R.D.P. and you have to take part in an academic review session (quiz) to insure that you have in fact grasped the material, also to make sure that you in fact were the person that completed the on-line course, neither the R.D.P. nor time an instructor spends performing the quiz will nor should be free. Only after completing the quiz/review are you to advance to do the pool training dives followed by the open water check-out.

i agree with lloyd. those quotes are thru the roof. i just checked the carib inn website and they are charging $315 for the complete open water class. the cost of what you want to do (classroom and pool work at home, open water on bonaire) is normally a little more than taking the entire course at one location but $520 for a book, classroom and pool work, and equipment is way too much.

shop around....i don't know where you live but even if you have to drive an hour to get reasonable prices, i'd do it.

I once had a DM ask me if I knew what PADI stood for and as I tried to recall the word that each letter represented, he said, "Put Another Dollar In." LOL

Good luck finding something more reasonable!

carlea, that's like what we say about harley davidsons...the HD can stand for either High Dollars or Hundreds of Dollars.

Kristin - My husband & I did our open water course entirely in the Florida Keys in 4 days. Four years ago we had our daughter certified on Bonaire, having only watched the PADI video and read the workbooks under the watchful eye of her parents. Our son is doing the same next month. If you are comfortable in the water and have some snorkel experience, I don't think you get much out of pool time with your local shop.

When we got certified 8 years ago, we didn't have time to drive 30 minutes to/from the dive shop and pool for 6-8 classes, plus we didn't want to pay a babysitter to watch the kids. We don't regret it and feel that it was worthwhile having the same instructor from start to finish. If your time is tight in the US, doing the class on Bonaire is a good idea, however you will be tired and it might not be a relaxing honeymoon.

It's also outrageous the LDS is charging you for equipment during the class - most places lend you everything as part of the class.

GOod luck!

Kristen:
Our local shop in the Washington DC area charges $275 pp for the classroom and pool work (typical price locally), plus there is the cost of the training manuals ($70 sounds about right...it varies). You also need your own mask, snorkel, and fins/booties...all the rest of the equipment is part of the $275; but a mask, snorkel and fins/booties can easily add to $200 pp. They will also last for many years and give lots of pleasure!

Your profile says you are just west of Philadelphia, and I know the prices there are similar. A friend of mine in Newtown Square just did his training last year.

So I don't think you are being overcharged. Note that the $275 should include some quality pool or confined-water time that is essential to your learning how to be a safe and comfortable diver. In Bonaire, you can do most of that initial training in shallow sandy-bottom water; you don't need a pool except for maybe an hour or so.

The online course satisfies much of the classroom portion of the training, but the cost of the classroom/pool training is in the pool work...rental of pools is very expensive and the liability insurance to use them is outrageous. So you can save some time but not much money by doing the online course, plus you don't get to know the instructor or the other students as well.

Most people like the compromise of classroom/pool at home, then open-water certification dives in Bonaire. I've taught classes totally in DC, totally in Bonaire, and mixed. The folks seem to prefer the mixed.

Kristen, I agree with Tom and Mel...

$200pp for gear(assuming it is yours to keep) and the hands on instruction w/pool time is a fair price @$970.

I will add this. IMO, there is no substitute for direct interaction with an instructor, whether it be in the classroom or in the pool. I know I am a safer and more confident diver because of that interaction. I also consider pool work VERY important for a new diver! That is where any issues can be addressed.

M2C

i might agree too...if the $200 covers the equipment you'll get to keep. but they shouldn't charge you to use their bc's, regs, etc. that is normally included in the cost of the class

That is what I was saying Pat "if the $200.00 is for equipment you get to keep" and at that price I feel it should be good quality gear too.

Good luck Kristen and best wishes for a fun filled honeymoon and many happy and healthy years together.

i know what you mean. i saw a salesman at a dive shop trying to sell a brand new diver a set of fins for about $175. i knew the diver so i waited till the guy left and told her that she could get decent fins for under $100 that would last for a long time. she only planned on diving ten times a year and didn't need professional grade fins.

let's say you buy a decent set of fins for about $70, mask $40, snorkel $10, booties $50. that's $170...does that sound about right? i haven't bought stuff for a while (but will probably get new fins this year) except to replace my original mask with a prescription mask....so i'm not real current on prices but $200 seems pretty high for a new diver.

then again, maybe i'm just cheap...i've heard that before.

I am an active instructor here in the northeast USA.Sounds like a reasonable price for 2 people..especially if you are the only 2 in the class,then I would say its a bargain.You do not save any $ with the online course.Its available as a time saving convience.Most lds,if not all,will charge the same price for a course whether or not you do the academics online.Their costs do not change much when you go online.
Pool work,also known as confined water HAS to be done,you cannot read a book and then go on an openwater training dive.To do so is violating standards and VERY life threatening.If spending $200. on a simple mask/fin/snorkel gear setup is too expensive to do then I suggest,and I do not mean to be offensive,to take up some other activity.Diving correctly and safely requires a commitment of time for training and $ for gear .If the commitment is not there,do not dive.You are wasting your time.Use as a guide what I charge- $300. for text(crewpack) academics and pool work.Works out to 15-18 hrs.(8hrs is pool time).Out of the original $300. I pay for text book(crewpack)$60.and pool time($50.-$150.)per hour. and gear -tanks-regulator-bcd.($30.per student).
Whats left is mine..openwater training dives are $150. for the 4 dives..That takes another 6-8 hrs. of my time .I have to pay for the certification card fee out of that,figure $20..count in depreciation of my gear,insurance etc..Realistically classes should be around $650.-$800. for an instructor to make any money at this.Thats for academic/pool only.Ow training dives should be $400.It comes down to what the market will bear.I notice that you are staying at Harbor Village.You say the cost to learn to do an activity properly that can involve danger and possibly death,is expensive and look for a fast-cheap solution,but you are staying at what is most likely the MOST expensive place to stay on Boanire.What are your priorities?

(Message edited by diveteach on February 1, 2008)

Pat to be honest most good mask range around 40 to 90 dollars. Snorkle depend on what you want, a tube for 10 dollars to the ultra dry for 50 dollars. Fins, Full footed for about 45 to 80 dollars. Open heeled 70 to 219 dollars. Booties as low as 35 to 60 dollars. It is real easy to spend a lot depending on how comfortable you want to be in the water.

My newest mask is about 1500.00 dollars but it does have a heads up display in it. It's so COOL!!!!!!! I know Tom..............

Pat, I think your price estimates are fair however, as in Kristin's case the boots would be for warm water, I think one should be able to save another $15.00 to $20.00 and still be getting a good hard soled 3mm boot.

Pat, say I am frugal, my kids say I am "cheap"

Tom you will never ever be cheap my friend!!!!!!

Make sure when you buy your fins that you buy open-heel fins and booties with a sturdy sole for shore entries/exits in Bonaire. If you rent fins on Bonaire you will get full foot fins which are useless for shore diving. When we were certified 10 yrs ago we did semi-private instruction (just me and my wife) which was marginally more expensive but class was at our kitchen table and pool was scheduled at our convenience. The one on one was well worth it. I do not remember the cost.

Thanks guys! We talked a lot last night and decided not to do the online thing. I've also looked into other dive shops that are farther away, and yes they are a bit cheaper, like $180 for classroom and pool instead of $250, but we would be driving over an hour. I think we would rather just pay more for the facility that is 10 minutes away. And to clarify...the equipment IS OURS TO KEEP... The $200 quote was for mask, snorkel, fins, booties, and weights and weightbelt, we would use their BC's, regulators, and computers. I'm convinced this is more on the higher priced side of things, yet I don't think we are getting "ripped off" so to speak. I'm still researching, and any more comments or suggestions would really help! Thanks again!

ok kristen, that at least clarifies the equipment question. when i read your first post i thought you were being charged $200 to use their regs, bc's, wiehgts, tanks, wetsuits (we did all our stuff in ohio and needed 7 mil suits, plus gloves and hoods for the dives). the $200 charge for the stuff you get to keep might be a bit on the high side but not too high...and it will last a long, long time.

so what it comes down to is that you're paying $250 plus the book for your classroom and pool sessions. that's reasonable.

Emilio,

I wasn't necessarily complaining about the cost, it's just that we are new to this and we don't really know what to expect and I wanted others' opinions. We are also not trying trying to skip the pool work....I know that part is very important. I was just wondering whether or not to do it at home or at the resort. We are very "committed" individuals in ALL aspects of our lives and we are very concerned with our safety. We are only trying to be frugal because we are a young couple, myself just out of grad school, and have wedding and "new first home" expenses to watch out for at the moment. Of course we are staying at the nicest place on Bonaire for this particular trip. It is our honeymoon and you only get to honeymoon once! I thank you for your input and I can assure you we are going to do things the right way!

emilio, you're right, harbor village is probably the most expensive place on bonaire but she's there for her honeymoon so we know where their priorities are.

Emilio you put dive instruction in the class it deserves people are always looking for "the deal" people don't think! Water is a harsh environment and that is your life, the Instructor puts a lot of time and effort to get to where they are and the responsiblity that they take on but as you put as the market will bear, whoever reads this don't look for bargain basement pricing look for quality instructor and dive shop you as the student won't regret it. I wish we could charge a little more for courses way to go Emilio

Kristen; Hope you have a great time with the course.For people who try diving it is sometimes a "lets try it" kind of thing and then onto something else.
For people who want to get good at it and truly enjoy it,and stick with it,the activity never gets old and becomes a lifelong avenue of enjoyment..
Hope it NEVER gets old for you all..Enjoy.

Kristen, good decision!

Enjoy your honeymoon

I just checked with our LDS
Anacapa Dive Center
they charge $300 for the course and books

I agree, good decisions on your part Kristen. I hope you love diving as much as we do and look forward to your trip report!

Quiet down Patrick and Tom..... quiet down!!!

Kristen, I hope you realize there will be a fee for your open water dives on Bonaire! Your LDS has to write up a referal for you to take to Bonaire, and you have to make a appointment with the D/Shop in Bonaire... Have Fun!!! Ron

Kristen, I'd recommend taking a text book with you to Bonaire. Even if you finish all of your class work. Something may come up on a dive that you have a question about. That book is a great resource. Have a wonderful honeymoon.

Pat & Carlea, your posts remind me what I've heard about owning a BOAT...Break Out Another Thousand.

I work at a LDS and we are 189 for the PADI OW confined course, gear lent to you. $200 for gear is low, take a look at the quaility and maybe buy higher even. Books have to come with the course. I really recommend doing the pool and class at home so that you get to Dive when on holidays not sit in a classroom. The course is on average 20 hours that you can do at home.

The money is not what is important..getting a good instructor that you "connect" with is the most important thing. A great instructor will help you "learn" the correct way so that you will always feel comfortable about your dives. I was certified over 10 years ago and still remember the quality instruction I was given by my instructor (who is now my friend). Don't do an online course, having a personal touch is the way to go.

Of course once you do this, you will be hooked just like the rest of us. Buying all your own gear, planning trips to all sorts of places, maybe even diving close to home (I see you are from PA, I do a lot of diving in my home state of Massachusetts) sinking all kinds of money into this thing we call SCUBA And I wouldn't have missed any of the fun, comraderie and adventure for anything. Have fun!!!

I agree with William. Getting a good instructor is more important than the money. I'm doing Advanced Nitrox Certification on Bonaire in April and I chose the instructor based on many favorable comments made about this individual on Bonaire Talk - expensive but worth it to get that warm and fuzzy feeling that you've probably got an outstanding instructor nailed down. I've got a cheaper option on the same training here at home but haven't been able to get a good feeling about that option so its off to Bonaire to do the training. Sometimes these sacrifices just have to be made! On the money issue, I'd try and get the open water cert dives included in the $970 somehow - worth a shot anyway.

You will have to pay the extra moola for the open water cert dives, but your C-Cards will be from the Dive Shop on Bonaire!! That is worth the money in it's self!!! Have a ball... Ron

Kristen, You will love diving with your spouse, they make the best buddies because they love you.
David was teaching OW and AOW when I took my class. He was suppose to teach my class but got a buddy to switch classes with him. He always tells people he knew better than to teach me if we wanted to stay married. It is funny now but at the time I sure was mad. But he is the best buddy I have ever had and I have dived with our son and many friends over the years.
Enjoy your honeymoon. We are trying to set up vacation time to spend our 20th anniversary on Bonaire. Great place for romance.
Andy