Course overview

The PADI Underwater Navigation specialty sharpens your ability to find your way around a dive site using natural references and a compass, a genuinely useful skill on Trincomalee's reefs and rocky sites. Over three dives off Nilaveli and Pigeon Island you learn to navigate accurately, judge distance and relocate points of interest with confidence.

What you’ll learn

• Navigate using natural references like reef contours and sand ripples
• Use a compass for reciprocal and square patterns
• Estimate distance by kick cycles and time
• Mark and relocate a submerged point of interest
• Plan navigation patterns before a dive
• Stay oriented and lead a buddy team underwater

Prerequisites

• Minimum age 10
• PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver or equivalent
• Basic buoyancy control
• Diver medical clearance signed by a physician

What's included · What's not

Probability of sightings · month-by-month

What you're likely to see each month, based on historic operator logs.

Day-by-day itinerary

1. Day1
   Natural & compass navigation

   Cover navigation theory, then complete the training dives off Nilaveli and Pigeon Island, mastering natural-reference and compass techniques and certifying as an Underwater Navigator.

Verified through iDive

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Frequently asked questions