Getting certified with an indepenent NAUI Instructor vs a local dive shop

Schedules are fixed:
You must attend a rigid format &
complete the course within a
certain period of time. Showing
up late, missing a session, or a
custom schedule will come with
extra fees, & waiting until the
next class cycle.

Many will charge you extra fees
throughout the course: Things
like books, boat fees, park entry,
pool fees, tanks, & even your
Certification Card come with more
charges! BEWARE of an extremely
low introductory rate! Example:
“$99 Scuba Certification”
This is pretty much a lie. These are
often just for tuition, or books, etc.,
& are an excellent indicator of
how they do business.

Create your own schedule...
Nights, weekends, you name it!
Use the iDive Calendar to decide
what dates work best. This way
we can go at your pace, on
your schedule...

This is supposed to be fun!

All-inclusive pricing lets you know
what the course will really cost.
You will never be charged anything
Extra to complete the course & get the
card in your hand! The only thing
you will need to pay for outside of the
course is food, transportation, & about
$20 petit cash total to tip the boat
Hands -at your discretion- & park at
the Marina. (For ocean dives only)
Everything else is included!

Shops cost a lot of money to own,
staff, maintain, stock, pay taxes on,
power, insure... you get the idea.
You also must wait for them to open,
& try to beat traffic before they close.
They do, however, have gear in stock
& fill tanks on site. That, in all fairness,
is a plus. Shops must charge more to
keep a stock, & keep their doors open.
It doesn’t make them quite as evil
as the fish at the top of this page,
but your wallet & schedule just might
disagree. It’s simple math.

Price:
A full-sized, fully-equipped classroom
built right onto my home, with Saint
Augustine’s famous Conch House
Marina & Resort pool literally right
across the street. An ideal setup...
complete with tiki huts, restaurant
& bars to end the day!
In great appreciation to the Ponce
Family, this has eliminated much of
the overhead involved with teaching
Scuba. It helps keep us focused on
learning, instead of pushing gear.
However, a light stock of basic scuba
gear is on site for your convenience if
you wish to own your own equipment.

Probably the most important (& often
overlooked) aspect of the entire scuba
learning experience is WHO will be
teaching. While many great Instructors
do work at shops, you don’t always
know for sure who the person is you
will be trusting your life, or your loved
ones’ life to. This is something that
should be taken seriously, so please do
your homework with this when shop-
ping around! If possible, search online
for reviews, or ask past clients how they
felt or what they thought of the entire
experience, not just in price but
in safety & overall satisfaction.

A modest dive operation out of my
home, with small groups & no store
front guaranteeing walk-in business,
word-of-mouth is the driving force of
my life & blood. I do not function
without positive memories &
experiences!

Yes, I have been diving around the
world, have worked in a shop, & have
certified & assisted thousands.
But you can find that anywhere.
With the core of my training coming
from Disney as a Divemaster for
Epcot’s Dive Quest program, the Guest
Experience & Safety element reigns
supreme. The Disney Difference
translates to you, whether getting
certified here in St. Augustine, or
joining us on the next Dive Quest dive,
you will always be a Guest & never just
a customer!