PADI Specialties
The PADI Specialty Courses are designed to expand divers' skills and knowledge in specific areas. These courses offer opportunities to further explore the underwater world, building on the foundation established through core certifications. Each course focuses on a particular aspect of diving, allowing divers to deepen their understanding of various techniques and enhance their overall diving ability. Suitable for certified divers of all levels, these courses provide personalized experiences that cater to individual interests and diving goals.
Explore our selection of PADI specialty courses to elevate your diving skills and knowledge:
Enriched Air Nitrox
This PADI Enriched Air Nitrox Specialty Course teaches divers to use enriched air nitrox, a gas mixture with higher oxygen and lower nitrogen content than regular air. This allows divers to extend their bottom time and shorten surface intervals, reducing the risk of nitrogen-related issues such as decompression sickness. Nitrox is especially useful for repetitive dives or dives at deeper depths where air limits dive time. The course covers the benefits, risks, and dive planning specific to nitrox use, including analyzing and labeling tank contents. It’s a great way to dive longer and safer.
Wreck Diver
The PADI Wreck Diver Speciality Course is designed to train divers in the specialized skills required to explore and navigate shipwrecks safely. Participants learn how to plan and execute wreck dives, focusing on techniques for managing depth, limited visibility, and tight spaces within the wreck. The course also covers proper equipment use, buoyancy control, and navigating through the wreck to prevent damage to both the site and yourself. Additionally, divers are educated on the legal and ethical aspects of wreck diving, ensuring they respect protected sites and follow local regulations.
Digital Underwater Photography
The PADI Digital Underwater Photography Specialty Course teaches divers how to improve their underwater photography skills. Key techniques include the PADI SEA approach (Shoot, Examine, Adjust), which helps divers quickly capture and adjust images to get the best shots. You’ll also learn essential composition principles like framing, lighting, and subject placement to create stunning photos of marine life and underwater landscapes. By mastering these skills, divers gain confidence and the ability to capture beautiful underwater memories.
Deep Diver
The PADI Deep Diver Specialty course prepares divers for exploring deeper depths, with depth limit of 40 metres. Divers learn about specialized deep diving equipment, how to safely plan and execute deep dives, simulate emergency decompression stop, managing gas supply and practice proper buddy contact procedures. This course also emphasizes the importance of understanding the physiological effects of deeper diving, such as nitrogen narcosis and pressure changes, and teaches divers how to handle these challenges safely.
Peak Performance Buoyancy
The PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Specialty course is designed to help divers master buoyancy control, which is the absolute key for efficient diving. By improving buoyancy skills, divers can glide effortlessly, move with precision, and use less air, resulting in longer dive times and increased comfort. The course also focuses on protecting the marine environment, teaching divers how to avoid damaging coral reefs and other delicate ecosystems.
Cavern Diver
The Cavern Diver course trains divers to explore caverns safely and responsibly. It covers topics like line-laying and line-following and the use of special equipment like lights and reels.
Night Diver
The PADI Night Diver Specialty course teaches divers essential skills for diving in low-light or nighttime conditions. This course focuses on navigation techniques and communication methods to ensure safety and confidence while diving in the dark. Divers will learn to use dive lights effectively, understand how underwater visibility changes at night, and gain strategies for managing their surroundings.
Search and Recovery
This course trains divers in search patterns, lift bag use, and other underwater techniques for finding and recovering lost items.
Underwater Navigator
The PADI Underwater Navigator Specialty course teaches divers how to improve their navigation skills underwater. Divers will learn to use a compass and natural navigation techniques, such as recognizing environmental cues, to find their way beneath the surface. The course also focuses on techniques like estimating distance and heading, allowing divers to confidently explore new dive sites. By mastering these skills, divers gain a deeper understanding of underwater environments and become more self-reliant and efficient in their navigation during dives.
Diver Propulsion Vehicle
This course introduces divers to the use of Diver Propulsion Vehicles (DPVs), which can cover large areas of underwater terrain quickly.
Drift Diver
The Drift Diver course teaches divers how to enjoy drift dives, which are carried out in current and often involve a boat pickup at the end.
Sidemount Diver
The PADI Sidemount Diver Specialty course teaches divers how to use a sidemount configuration, where the tanks are worn on either side of the body, rather than on the back. This setup provides increased comfort, better streamlining, and greater flexibility, especially in tight or confined spaces. Divers learn to manage the sidemount system, including proper tank placement, buoyancy control, and gas management. This course is particularly beneficial for those diving in caves, wrecks, or other areas where traditional tank placement might be less efficient or practical. It also enhances overall diving skills, allowing for improved comfort and safety during more technical dives.
Underwater Naturalist
The PADI Underwater Naturalist Specialty course helps divers explore the fascinating world of aquatic ecosystems by diving deeper into the behaviors, interactions, and ecological roles of marine life. Divers will learn to identify key species and understand their behavior, fostering a greater appreciation for the environment. This course also emphasizes responsible diving practices, encouraging divers to minimize their impact on fragile underwater ecosystems while becoming more knowledgeable, respectful explorers.
AWARE Fish ID
The PADI AWARE Fish Identification Specialty course trains divers to identify common reef fish species found in the Gulf of Thailand. Divers learn key features of different fish families, such as color patterns, body shapes, and behavior, helping them spot and name a variety of underwater species with ease. This course enhances your diving experience by deepening your understanding of the marine environment, contributing to better wildlife appreciation and conservation efforts.
Boat Diver
The PADI Boat Diver Specialty course teaches divers the essential skills and etiquette for diving from a boat. In this course, you’ll learn proper boat diving procedures, such as how to safely enter and exit the boat, how to store and manage your gear, and how to communicate effectively with the boat crew. The course also covers techniques for ensuring safety and smooth operations when diving from a boat, helping divers gain confidence in a variety of boat-based dive environments.
Self Reliant Diver
The PADI Self Reliant Diver Specialty course is designed for experienced divers who want to develop the skills and knowledge to dive independently. This course emphasizes self-sufficiency, focusing on redundancy planning, safety, and emergency management. Divers learn how to manage their equipment, handle emergency situations, and safely explore underwater without the need for a dive buddy. Through this course, divers are taught to make smart decisions about dive planning and risk management, ensuring they can dive with confidence in a variety of conditions while prioritizing safety.
Emergency Oxygen Provider
The PADI Emergency Oxygen Provider Specialty course equips divers with the skills to recognize diving illnesses that can be treated with emergency oxygen and how to properly administer oxygen in emergency situations. This course covers essential topics such as identifying symptoms of diving-related injuries, setting up emergency oxygen equipment, and providing the correct oxygen delivery. It is an important skill for divers, as knowing how to respond quickly and efficiently can significantly improve the chances of a diver's recovery.
Search and Recovery Diver
The PADI Search and Recovery Specialty course trains divers in the techniques needed to locate and retrieve objects underwater. During the course, divers learn how to properly use search patterns, lifting equipment, and recovery techniques to safely bring up objects from the water. It focuses on safety, planning, and the use of various tools and techniques, like lift bags and slings, to manage the weight and buoyancy of the recovered objects.
Dive Against Debris Diver
The Dive Against Debris Diver Specialty course trains divers to actively participate in reducing underwater pollution. It focuses on identifying, removing, and safely disposing of debris found underwater. The course also covers how to document and report collected debris, contributing to environmental conservation efforts. Divers learn how to safely collect debris, understand its environmental impact, and contribute to ocean protection. It’s an ideal course for those passionate about making a difference while diving.
Master Scuba Diver
The PADI Master Scuba Diver course is the highest non-professional certification within the PADI system. It is an advanced achievement for those who want to demonstrate their diving expertise. To earn the Master Scuba Diver rating, divers must complete five specialty courses, accumulate at least 50 logged dives, and fulfill certain other requirements set by PADI. This course is designed to help divers deepen their knowledge in various specialized areas, enhancing their overall diving skills and experience.
