Course overview

Become a fully certified diver with the PADI Open Water Diver course at Kovalam, the world's most popular scuba certification, in the warm Arabian Sea. Across knowledge development, confined-water sessions and four open-water dives on the Kovalam reef you learn to dive independently with a buddy to 18 metres. The qualification is recognised worldwide and never expires.

What you’ll learn

• Assemble, check and use complete scuba equipment
• Master essential skills including mask clearing, regulator recovery and controlled ascents
• Achieve neutral buoyancy and efficient finning
• Plan dives using tables or a computer and manage your air
• Handle common problems and execute buddy procedures
• Dive independently with a certified buddy to 18 metres

Prerequisites

• Minimum age 10 (Junior Open Water) or 15
• Able to swim and float/tread water (basic watermanship assessed)
• No prior certification required
• Diver medical questionnaire (physician sign-off if any condition applies)

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
   Theory and first skills

   Work through the knowledge sections and start confined-water skills in sheltered shallows near Ernakulam or off Kovalam.
2. Day2
   Confined-water mastery

   Complete the remaining confined-water sessions and the final theory exam.
3. Day3
   Open-water dives 1 and 2

   Make your first two training dives over the Kovalam reef in the Arabian Sea.
4. Day4
   Open-water dives 3 and 4 and certification

   Finish the final two dives, demonstrate the required skills and certify as a PADI Open Water Diver.

Verified through iDive

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Frequently asked questions