Safe diving is the result of a combination of factors - training, experience and well maintained equipment all play their part in ensuring that you minimise any accident or dive related injury.
Depending on which organisation you choose to gain your scuba diving certification, you could be qualified within a week.
The largest dive organisation is PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors), but any of dive organisation that gives you a recognised scuba diving certification will allow you to hire equipment and dive anywhere in the world.
Gaining your basic certification (Open Water Diver in the case of PADI) is just the first step - the more experience you gain, the more you are likely to find what excites you about diving. Once you know the type of diving you really enjoy, you can gain additional specialised certification, allowing you to dive safely in different situations and environments.
You can learn the theory and practise of skills such as better buoyancy control, diving to greater depths and diving at night, or continue your training to gain scuba diving certification in first aid and rescue, divemaster and eventually instructor level.
In the Costa Brava the main dive organisations you will see are:
- PADI - Professional Association of Diving Instructors - the biggest dive organisation in the world, and with a philosophy that allows home study in order to concentrate on performing skills in the water. Most, if not all, dive centres on the Costa Brava offer PADI qualifications.
- BSAC (British Sub Aqua Club) - the governing body for sport diving in the UK. Training takes place over a number of weeks at weekly training sessions and the Ocean Diver certification can be taken at some resorts, although there are none on the Costa Brava.
- CMAS (Confederation Mondiale des Activites Subaquatiques) - a highly regarded worldwide organisation, first presided over by Jacque Cousteau.
- FEDAS (Federacion Española de Actividades Subacuaticas) - the Spanish branch of CMAS.
- FECDAS (Federacio Catalana d'Activitats Subaquatiques) - the Catalan brance of FEDAS.
For information on gaining scuba diving certification from PADI, please contact us.
