PADI Beginning and Refresher Courses
Learning to dive is one of the most rewarding experiences of your life. Earning your PADI certification will forever change the way you see the world, both above and below the surface. Whether you are just starting out, or haven't been diving in a while and want to refresh your skills, ATX Scuba offers private and semi-private classes to accommodate your busy schedule. *If exposure protection is needed due to water temperature, we can help you find a suitable wetsuit to rent or purchase.
Discover Scuba - $50
Have you always wondered what it’s like to breathe underwater? If you want to try scuba diving, but aren’t quite ready to take the plunge into a certification course, Discover Scuba Diving is for you. No prior experience with scuba diving is necessary, but you must be at least 10 years old and you need to be in reasonable physical health. Includes one pool session, participant guide, and use of all scuba gear.*
Open Water Diver - $495
If you’ve always wanted experience unparalleled adventure and see the world beneath the waves, this is where it starts. To enroll in a PADI Open Water Diver course (or Junior Open Water Diver course), you must be at least 10 years old, have adequate swimming skills, and be in good physical health. No prior experience with scuba diving is required. Includes all educational materials (online or book option) and use of all required scuba gear except for mask, snorkel, and fins.*
Scuba Review - $75
Haven’t been scuba diving lately? Feeling a bit rusty? The Scuba Review program is just the refresher you need to brush up on your knowledge and skills. A PADI Professional will get you in the water having fun and feeling comfortable again. It’s quick and easy, and a good way to prepare for your next PADI course or get ready for adventure on a diving vacation. Includes one pool or lake session, the Scuba Tune-up Guidebook, and use of of scuba gear except for mask, snorkel, and fins.*
ReActivate Scuba Refresher - $180
Haven’t been diving lately and want a quick scuba refresher? The ReActivate™ program is the perfect way to update your dive skills and knowledge from the PADI Open Water Diver Course before jumping back into the water. Whether you want a few reminders or need to go over the basics, ReActivate is personalized for you: You conveniently review scuba concepts on your tablet, mobile device or computer, then go diving with a PADI Professional. The best part is, divers who complete both the knowledge development and in-water skill refresher receive a new certification card with a ReActivated date on it. Includes online knowledge development, two open water dives, a new certification card, and use of all scuba gear except for mask, snorkel, and fins.*
PADI Continuing Education and Specialty Courses
As a certified scuba diver you’ve witnessed firsthand the wonders that lie within our planet's waters. Your Open Water Diver Certification introduced you to a world of adventure and discovery, and made you keenly aware that you've only just scratched the surface of the underwater world. PADI continuing education courses are designed to advance your scuba skills and give you the added confidence to keep doing what you love. All educational materials and specialty gear are included for advanced courses, but basic dive gear (BCD, tanks, weights, regulators, gauges, computers, fins, and snorkel gear) are not. We are happy to help you locate suitable rental gear or advise you on what to purchase if you do not already have your own.
Advanced Open Water Diver - $300
The course helps build confidence, expand your scuba skills, and explore dive specialties and interests. You don’t have to be “advanced” to take it – it’s designed to advance your diving, so you can start right after earning your PADI Open Water Diver certification.The best part is, each Adventure Dive may credit toward the first dive of the corresponding PADI Specialty Diver Course! PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers who are at least 12 years old are ready to step up and enroll in an Advanced Open Water Diver course.
Rescue Diver - $300
Scuba divers describe the PADI Rescue Diver course as the most challenging, yet most rewarding course they’ve ever taken. Why? Because you learn to prevent and manage problems in the water, and become more confident in your skills as a diver, knowing that you can help others if needed. During the course, you learn to become a better buddy by practicing problem solving skills until they become second nature. Plus, the course is just fun – it’s serious, but still allows for lots of laughter in between the focused learning. PADI (Junior) Adventure Divers who are at least 12 years old and have completed the Underwater Navigation Adventure Dive may enroll in a Rescue Diver course. You also need to have CPR and First Aid training within the past 24 months, which you can complete with your instructor during the course if you do not have it already.
Enriched Air Diver (Nitrox) - $200
The PADI Enriched Air Diver course is PADI’s most popular specialty scuba course. Why? Because scuba diving with enriched air nitrox gives you more no decompression time, especially on repetitive scuba dives. If staying down longer and getting back in the water sooner sounds appealing, then don’t hesitate to become an enriched air diver. If you’re a PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver who is at least 12 years old, you can enroll in the Enriched Air Diver Specialty course. Note that in some regions the minimum age is older than 12.
Peak Performance Buoyancy - $175
Excellent buoyancy control is what defines skilled scuba divers. You’ve seen them underwater. They glide effortlessly, use less air and ascend, descend or hover almost as if by thought. They more easily observe aquatic life without disturbing their surroundings. You can achieve this, too. The PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Specialty course improves the buoyancy skills you learned as a new diver and elevates them to the next level. PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers or higher, who are at least 10 years old, are eligible to take the Peak Performance Buoyancy course.
Deep Diver - $250
The lure of the deep. There’s something exciting and mysterious about exploring deeper dive sites while scuba diving. Sometimes it’s a wreck that attracts you below 18 metres/60 feet, and on wall dives it may be a giant fan or sponge. Whatever it is, to scuba dive with confidence at depths down to 40 metres/130 feet, you should take the PADI Deep Diver Specialty course. If you’ve earned the PADI Adventure Diver rating or higher, and you’re at least 15 years old, you can enroll in the Deep Diver course.
Underwater Navigator - $200
Be the scuba diver everyone wants to follow because you know where you are and where you’re going. The PADI Underwater Navigator course fine-tunes your observation skills and teaches you to more accurately use your compass underwater. If you like challenges with big rewards, take this course and have fun finding your way. If you’re a PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver who is at least 10 years old, you can enroll in the PADI Underwater Navigator Specialty course.
Search and Recovery - $250
It happens: People accidentally drop things from docks, off boats or even while scuba diving. If you’ve ever lost something in the water and wanted to go find it, then the PADI Search and Recovery Diver Specialty course is for you. There are effective ways to search for objects underwater that increase your chances of success. And there are good and better methods to bring up small, large or just awkward items. Search and recovery can be challenging, but a whole lot of fun.
PADI (Junior) Advanced Open Water Divers who are at least 12 years old can enroll in the Search and Recover Diver course. PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers with a PADI Underwater Navigator certification also qualify.
Wreck Diver - $250
Whether purpose-sunk as an artificial reef for scuba divers, or lost as the result of an accident, wrecks are fascinating windows to the past. Ships, airplanes and even cars are fascinating to explore and usually teem with aquatic life. Each wreck dive offers a chance for discovery, potentially unlocking a mystery or spying something others have missed. The PADI Wreck Diver Specialty course is popular because it offers rewarding adventures while observing responsible wreck diving practices. If you’re at least 15 years old and have earned a PADI Adventure Diver certification or higher, you can enroll in the Wreck Diver Specialty course.
Night Diver - $200
The thought of dipping below the surface at night seems mysterious, yet so alluring. Although you’ve been scuba diving at a site many times before, at night you drop into a whole new world and watch it come to life under the glow of your dive light. The scene changes as day creatures retire and nocturnal organisms emerge. If you’ve wondered what happens underwater after the sun goes down, sign up for the PADI Night Diver Specialty course.
PADI (Junior) Open Water Divers or higher, who are at least 12 years old, can enroll in the Night Diver specialty course.
Project AWARE Specialist - $150
The Project AWARE Specialty course is an introduction to Project AWARE as a global movement for ocean protection. It focuses and expands on the 10 Tips for Divers to Protect the Ocean Planet. Through interactive discussions, you’ll learn how you can make a difference for ocean protection every time you dive or travel. A dry, ‘fins off’ course, this specialty is ideal for divers and non-divers alike to gain insight into how decisions above and below the surface impact our water planet.
PADI Professional Courses
As a PADI Professional, you can live a life of which others only dream. Whether you work in a local dive shop, at a resort or on a liveaboard dive boat, you'll be one of the special few who work doing what they love. On the path to becoming a PADI Professional, you will train with experienced and dedicated dive educators and discover a career that allows you to transform lives and share incredible underwater adventures.
Divemaster - $800
Love scuba diving? Want to share it with others on a whole new level? Take the PADI Divemaster course and do what you love to do as a career. Scuba divers look up to divemasters because they are leaders who mentor and motivate others. As a divemaster, you not only get to dive a lot, but also experience the joy of seeing others have as much fun diving as you do. The PADI Divemaster course is your first level of professional training. Working closely with a PADI Instructor, you’ll fine-tune your dive skills, like perfecting the effortless hover, and refine your rescue skills so you anticipate and easily solve common problems. You’ll gain dive knowledge, management and supervision abilities so you become a role model to divers everywhere.