Join The Private Scuba Hall of Fame Soon ....... our customers are always ‘KING’
We pride ourselves in our attention to every tiny detail and our customers' total satisfaction. With more than 20 years of experience, from Africa, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Europe and the UK, I've had the pleasure to guide and train some of the best PADI scuba divers from all over the world. (please read the scuba testimonials from our diving students, who became our long term friends)

Diana & Ryan (India)

Activity:  Tried Scuba Diving & Snorkeling for the first time in Pattaya with Steve

"We had a fabulous day out scuba diving/ snorkeling and it's all thanks to you. Ryan enjoyed himself thoroughly and is already bugging me about when we can do it again. For us, the best part of the experience was having had you as our guide. Despite the not so good weather, we were not as disappointed as we would have been had it not been for you. Thank you very much for everything you did. Could you re-send the photographs please. Would so appreciate it. We've been telling everyone we know about our trip and Ryan's been praising you to the skies. You can be sure if anybody who even remotely knows us is headed off to Pattaya to scuba dive, they will definitely contact you. Thanks again for everything Steve, It was a pleasure meeting up with you. We'll be in touch again for sure :) Take care and Best Wishes"

John (India)

Activity:  Tried Scuba Diving for the first time ever in Pattaya with Steve & Hitesh

"I wanted to try scuba diving for a long time and when I got a flight from Mumbai to Pattaya over the New Year Holiday, I thought this would be a great opportunity to give it a go. I checked into my Hotel and searched for a Dive Shop in Pattaya that could help me to achieve my goals. Unfortunately, many of the centers were closed but when I contacted Steve from Private Scuba, he certainly knows how to treat a customer. He's an English Scuba Instructor with lots of diving experience and he organised everything for my dive trip to the Pattaya islands. He even brought one of his assistants 'Hitesh' to help because I think he realised that I was a bit nervous. This was really a great comfort in the water and I was quite surprised how easy they made things for me. Steve explained all about the scuba stuff and how to breathe underwater and within a couple of hours of leaving Pattaya Port I was down below around the coral reefs and fish. It was a fascinating experience and Private Scuba made it so special for me because they took lots of photos and underwater video footage for me to boast on Facebook. My friends will be so envious when they see the DVD that Steve made for me. If you a bit scared about scuba diving but want to try it, contact these friendly guys and they will help you make it real."

Tash (England)

Activity:  Returned to Diving in Pattaya with the Advanced & Rescue Courses

"I had completed my open water course in Australia about 8 years ago, I knew I was coming to Pattaya for 4 months and had always wanted to go further with my dive education. I contacted Steve a month before arriving and he gave me confidence with the knowledge he provided me. Soon after arriving I completed the advance open water course with Steve, he was always very understanding and made a point of addressing any areas that I was not so confident about. This then gave the motivation and confidence in my instructor to go on and complete the Rescue diver course, probably one of the best PADI courses anyone can complete. Learning with Steve has been a lot of fun, he ensures that you always dive professionally whilst still making the course fun, he is a real role model. This has now inspired me to start my Divemaster course with Steve and I now eventually hope to go on and do my IDC with Steve. He is always very attentive to detail and ensures that you are totally comfortable before moving onto the next stage of the courses. I consider Steve not only to be my instructor now but also a good friend and would recommend Steve without any doubts to carry out any PADI courses you may be interested in doing."

Sahil & Friends (India)

Activity:  Beginner Divers who tried the PADI Discover Scuba Diving Program

"Sahil and his friends were traveling to the Thai beach resort of Pattaya from their homes in India for an adventure holiday. The enquiry that we received was for six Indians to try scuba diving in Pattaya even though only one of the group had been swimming in water before. Sahil confessed in his early exchanges that non of the 6 guys were comfortable in deep water and they were not good at swimming. Fortunately, PADI's Discover Scuba Diving Program allows non-swimmers to have a go at diving and there are no swim tests for this experience that would deny the six Indian guys there chance at seeing the underwater world in Pattaya. Its an awesome experience .. everyone should try it once. To all those folks who do not know swimming, scuba diving with steve and wayne doesn't require any of those skills... If u can breathe thru ur mouth.. that 200% enough to enjoy the under water world.. Hats off to STEVE and WAYNE... great pics and unforgettable experience."

Jamie & Kob (Australia)

Activity:  Had the best PADI Advanced & Rescue Diver Courses with Private Scuba

"I completed my open water diving course in Australia some 20 years ago; I have only dived about 6 times since then & was missing the adventure of scuba diving, so when I went to Thailand for holidays I searched for someone who would take me on a dive to refresh my skills. This is how I met Steve, I started off with a brush up on skills & had such a great time that by the time I left Thailand I had not only done 11 great dives, but had also upgraded to Advanced Open Water Diver & I am already planning to do my Rescue diver with Steve in September 2011. My Thai girlfriend also came with me on two dive trips where she went snorkelling and then did the intro into scuba diving with Steve, we were both pleased with Steve & his team, Kob had a great time. If you are considering any type of diving from intro into diving and onwards I could not think of anyone better than Steve to ensure that you not only have a great time but also that you are in great hands of a professional."

Cesar (South America)

Activity:  Does the PADI Rescue Diver & Divemaster Course in Pattaya

"I contacted Steve from Private Scuba a few weeks before arriving in Pattaya, Thailand and as I'm extremely interested to become a PADI Instructor, I felt that I needed 'something extra' from my Rescue Course in preparation of my Instructor Level Courses to come. After a few emails from the Private Scuba Team, I booked the Rescue and Divemaster Courses. Scuba Steve also helped with my accommodation in Pattaya because I plan to stay here for 3 months during my Scuba Training. The room is clean, safe and has all the amenities that I need for a very reasonable monthly rate. I was given my study assignments and the course finished some 4 days later with some tough, but professional and experienced training on the dive boat and I made it to PADI Rescue Diver. I'm now planning to complete my PADI Divemaster Training with Steve and the Private Scuba Team in the next few months, and I have no doubt that the course will be thorough and a challenge. Many Thanks to the Team for a seriously Fun Rescue Course! Cesar Augusto" ...... You may remember that I did my PADI Rescue Course in Pattaya a few months ago and then I started my Divemaster training with Steve the PADI Master Instructor. He never said it would be easy ..... and he was right! My command of the english language is quite limited but Steve suggested that if I could pass the divemaster course in english, then it would help me because I wanted to become a PADI Instructor. Thanks to Steve and his team, I sucessfully completed the Divemaster course and also the PADI Nitrox Specialty. Private Scuba School also conducted my EFR Instructor course because I decided to travel to Phuket for my IDC (Instructor development Course). The emergency first response instructor rating is now a requirement for the IDC. I started my instructor course with a PADI 5 Star CDC that Steve organised for me and I have to say that the facilities, the training and the Course Director were more than I could ever have expected ...... just superb. I successfully passed the PADI Instructor Examination on the 12th of September and I am absolutely delighted. I'm currently in the Phi Phi Islands where I've secured my new job working as a scuba instructor and I'm having a great experience of life teaching PADI Scuba Courses. A huge thanks to everyone that helped me to realise my dream!"

Elena (Singapore)

Activity:  Elena completed the PADI Deep Specialty Course with Private Scuba

"My emails to him before the dive trip was plentiful, he was extremely patient in his response and advice. Steve was more than just a dive Instructor, he was a mentor and a great company to me during my solo-trip in Pattaya. Having done some very exciting and adventurous dives with him, his skill and mentor-ship are amazing. He patiently refreshes my memory and guides me in doing the right thing... And going right places in the water. I'm looking forward to more great diving trips with Steve and Private Scuba in South East Asia very soon ..."

Ryan (Hong Kong)

Activity:  Ryan completed the PADI Junior Open Water Diver Course in Pattaya

"Dear Steve, Thank you for introducing Ryan to the fun world of diving. It’s unbelievable that in just a few days, you trained, inspired and certified an 11-year-old boy who has no diving experience before. We particularly appreciate your care, attention and patience to Ryan and us parents. You gave us a great time in Pattaya. Serena and myself would not hesitate to recommend you to our friends and anyone who wants to experience the world underwater and we wish you all the best in Pattaya. Ryan, Serena and Joe"

Khun Aom (Thailand)

Activity:  Successfully completed the Emergency First Responder Course in Pattaya

"I had to learn CPR Course because I'm going to be an Au-pair. I search for this course from Internet and I found Private Scuba. I called to the number in that and Steve answered me. He was very prompt with his replies that made me decided to learn with him. And yes, a lot of fun for me to learn with him :-) So I'm look forward to take diving course with Private Scuba that I'm sure It's gonna be great for me to learn with professional like this :-D"

Sahil & Friends (India)

Activity:  Fadi's PADI Advanced Scuba Diving Course in Pattaya

"I began my scuba diving course in Dubai with PADI's eLearning facility. Having completed all of the knowledge development at my own pace and at my leisure, it was great to arrive in Pattaya knowing that I could spend most of my holiday time enjoying the 'fun' part in the water. I was pleasantly surprised to find that my instructor was a cheery Thai girl who is fully qualified and very experienced. It took me three days to complete my course, and Vicky made it an absolute joy whilst keeping my focus on the safety aspects of this great sport. A very warm thankyou to Vicky and the team at Private-Scuba.com ..... Having completed my Open Water Scuba Course last year with Private Scuba, I had another opportunity to visit Pattaya and do some more scuba diving. I contacted Steve and he organised a few days diving for me at short notice. I was particularly looking forward to diving the ship wrecks in Pattaya, and I decided to make the wreck dives as part of the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver Course. Steve got me three wreck dives during my Advanced Course including the HTMS Khram and the HTMS Kood. The other dives for my course included a Deep Dive, Navigation Dive and the Peak Performance Buoyancy adventure dive. I had a lot of fun and the whole package was efficient, professional and relatively inexpensive. The Private Scuba Team certainly know how to offer great scuba diving in Pattaya and PADI Scuba Courses that are full of adventure and excitement. Thanks Steve ..... next time I would like to make the Wreck Specialty Course."

Rich & Kids (Bangkok)

Activity:  Private Scuba Pattaya went the extra mile for us

"We first made contact with Steve at Private Scuba several weeks prior to our planned Scuba Courses in Pattaya. Living in Bangkok meant that we had a great opportunity to take a trip to Pattaya during the Songkran Festival (Thai New Year). After a few exchanges of e-mails and phone calls, we booked the PADI Open Water Course for myself and the Junior Certification Course for my daughter Lotte. Mom and the young one Ryan were extremely keen to join the boat trip so they enrolled for the PADI Discover Scuba Diving Experience and Bubblemaker Programme. We arrived in Pattaya as planned, and having had the advantage of some prior study at home, we made our first Open Water Dives at one of the nearby Pattaya Islands. Me and Lotte were concentrating on the scuba skills which are part of the course while mom and Ryan had lots of fun in the shallow clear warm water looking at the reef fish and corals. The first day was an absolute joy because all of our family could be together and enjoy the fresh air, change of scenery and a superb day's diving in Pattaya ... Steve's suggestion was to take a rest day inbetween the two diving days, so we were back on the boat on the Thursday to complete our two PADI Scuba Courses being Open water Diver & Junior Open Water Diver because Lotte is only 14 years old at the moment. Having completed everything except the fourth and final open water dive, we felt that we had learned a lot about the safety skills of scuba diving and had a lot of fun too. Unfortunately, the final dive didn't quite go as planned as Lotte had some equalisation problems meaning that she couldn't decend to make the final training dive. Private Scuba went the extra mile for us and arranged a private speed boat for the following day as we had to leave for Bangkok early in the afternoon. I'm extremely happy to say that we made the grade and we have made a new scuba friend at Private Scuba. We are already planning our next diving adventure with Scuba Steve and we would not hesitate to recommend the caring, attentive personal service that seems to come as standard at Private Scuba in Pattaya .... Thanks again Buddy."

Lisa (Germany)

Activity:  Lisa's PADI Advanced Open Water Diving Course in Pattaya

"Private Scuba Diving School were recommended to me by a work colleague for my PADI Advanced Open Water Course. My work keeps me busy during the week, so I was very happy that Steve conducted my course conveniently over several weekends to suit my working situation. I found Private Scuba to be professional, efficient and a lot of fun! My Advanced scuba dives included 2 wreck dives which were the highlight of my course and a Deep Dive. I'm looking forward to making a night dive in Pattaya on my next scuba adventure.I would not hesitate to recommend the Team at Private Scuba to anyone considering a Scuba Course in Pattaya."

Bangkok (Thailand)

Activity:  คุณอนุวัต และคุณกนกพร

"อาจารย์ วิคกี้ .. ดีใจที่เลือกเรียนกับ อาจารย์วิคกี้เพราะเป็นคนเก่งมาก มีความมั่นใจสูง เชื่อมั่นมากว่าปลอดภัยทุกสถานการณ์ .. ขอบอกว่า อาจารย์วิคกี้เหมาะกับอาชีพนี้มาก เธอค้นพบตัวเองได้จริงๆ .. กนกพร กัลยาณมิตร . อาจารย์วิคกี้ .. เรียนดำน้ำสนุก ให้ความมั่นใจกับลูกศิษย์ได้อย่างดี เทคนิคการสอนเก่งมากทำให้ไม่กลัว ตอนแรกคิดว่าไม่ผ่านแต่ก็ได้รับกำลังใจ จนผ่านสำเร็จ . ขอบคุณสำหรับประสบการณ์ที่ดีมากๆครับ .. อนุวัต พิชาดุลย์"

Pierre Maillot (France)

Activity:  Steve finds the right balance between diving safety and fun in Pattaya

"I contacted Steve when I was intensively looking for an instructor to pass my EFR and PADI Rescue Diver Courses in Pattaya. I really appreciated his friendly speech and open attitude and decided to start with him. I really enjoy the courses and the dives I have been experiencing. What I appreciated the most with Steve is that he finds the right balance between safety and fun which makes learning easy and really interesting. Furthermore, his demanding but also very flexible approach enhances significantly my diving experience, especially when "hands-on" opportunities with other instructors and proper students are given. I would be very grateful and proud to assist him as certified Divemaster if opportunity would occur in the future."

Bert (Bangkok)

Activity:  A good day and the service was nice and friendly

"I've been diving with Vicky in Pattaya at the island called Koh Rin. At a depth of 12 meters, we saw many hard & soft corals such as Table Coral, Staghorn Coral and Feather Stars and the Fishes that thrive here include Angel Fish, Damsel Fish and Butterfly Fish. The second dive was to a small pinnacle called North Rock which has lots of corals and fish such as Baraccuda, Puffer Fish, Moray Eels and Cuttle Fish. It was a good day and the service was nice and friendly."

Matt & Ade (Dubai)

Activity:  Steve (Scubacop) finds the right balance of enjoyable, yet thorough teaching

"Shipwrecks in Pattaya are plentiful and a great place to do the PADI Wreck Specialist Course. We concentrated our course on the wrecks of the HTMS Kut & HTMS Kram – these are sister ships sunk on purpose by the Thai Navy for the enjoyment of scuba divers! Having already completed wreck dives as part of our advanced course – we wanted more! Our first dive was to survey the wreck using an underwater slate to map out points of interest, possible hazards and potential penetration points. Back on board, we transferred all the information from our slates to complete a detailed map of the wreck and discussed with Steve aka Scuba Cop our findings and potential penetration points. In anticipation for the next dive, we practiced reeling off and tying off wreck line skills on the Dive Boat. Our next dive we explored the wreck further, this time taking the lead and navigating scuba cop to various points of interest, including a very playful huge resident turtle on the bow of the ship we had discovered previously. We practised reeling off from the side of the wreck without penetration in anticipation for the following dive before navigating our way back to the buoy line. On the boat back from day 1, we enjoyed a few beers with Scuba Cop and talked through our knowledge reviews and our experiences from the two dives. So day two - the big one! We held the dive brief (with a little help from Scuba Cop) we discussed and planned our penetration dive. Scuba Cop spent time explaining the best techniques for penetrating the wreck and drilled into us the hazards and dangers of entering a wreck. Once down the buoy line we used our maps and compasses and navigated ourselves to the penetration point. We then had a final practice of our line skills on the outside of the wreck before entering for the first time. This was far the best part of the course as entering the wreck opens up a whole new world! We took it in turns entering the wreck, tying off and following the lines until scuba cop was confident in our ability. We finished the dive with a swim thru (very cool) towards the stern of the wreck and then headed back to the buoy line – buzzing about our new qualification! By then, we were hooked on wreck diving and mentioned to scuba cop how amazing it would be to dive the wreck at night. As you can imagine night diving in Pattaya is not so popular! However Scuba Cop went out his way to arrange this for us and that same evening we were back out on the boat on the way to our first shipwreck night dive. Of course no penetration at night, but armed with our torches we explored the wreck and met the creatures of the night! Diving a shipwreck at night was quite a spooky experience but absolute quality. Can’t wait to do this again! All in all - the wreck specialist was one of our favourite PADI courses - so much fun. We had a great time diving the wrecks and scuba cop’s balance of enjoyable, yet thorough teaching (hence scuba cop!) made it a great couple of days diving. Looking forward to the next time already – Cheers Steve!"

Giulio (Italy)

Activity:  Steve made the PADI Rescue Diver Course a lot of serious Fun !

"I contacted Steve from Italy to book my PADI Rescue Diver Course in Pattaya. He was very prompt with his replies, and added lots of useful information about Pattaya & Thailand that helped me to decide that I'd made the right choice with Private Scuba. He scheduled the two courses of Rescue Diver & Emergency First Response CPR Course around the 2010 New Year festivities and I'm pleased to say that the flexibility and personal service was first class. After the Classroom and Pool sessions, we had a great day out diving on the Dive Boat and he also squeezed in a Wreck Dive in Pattaya around the Rescue Scenarios. The Pattaya Wreck Dive was a fantastic experience and I would recommend Private Scuba to anyone who's thinking about a PADI Scuba Course in Pattaya. Thanks for a superb diving experience."

K. Pomm (Thailand)

Activity:  ทำสคูบ้ารีเฟรส์แล้วก็ดำน้ำได้เลยในวันเดียวกัน

"ผมติดต่อเข้ามาที่นี่เพราะว่าผมอยากจะไปดำน้ำ ติดที่ว่าผมไม่ได้ดำน้ำมานานมากแล้ว ผมจึงได้สอบถามเข้ามาและได้รับการแนะนำให้มาดำน้ำที่พัทยาโดยจะมีการฝึกทบทวนทักษะเบื้องต้นให้ก่อนการดำน้ำหรือสคูบ้ารีเฟรส์ แล้วก็ไปดำน้ำได้เลย ไม่เสียเวลาและไม่ต้องเสียเงินเพื่มด้วยคลับ .. ประทับใจ แม้ครั้งนี้จะมีปัญหาเรื่องเมาเรือ แต่ก็ได้รับการดูแลคอยช่วยเหลือเป็นอย่างดี จนตอนอยู่ใต้น้ำลืมเรื่องเมาเรือซะสนิท ครั้งหน้าถ้ามีโอกาศจะมาดำน้ำกับพี่วิคกี้อีกครั้งครับ..ปอมม์.."

Suzanne (Denmark)

Activity:  Jacob & Suzanne had a great time Private Scuba Diving in Pattaya

"We were taking a holiday in Pattaya and we decided to go scuba diving. We're certified divers so we were looking for some fun diving daytrips to the islands in Pattaya. We had two nice dives with the pleasant company of Thai Dive instructor Vicky. We saw some nice corals, a bamboo shark and a stingray. The boat trip was very relaxing with good space and a friendly atmosphere. Thanks to Vicky and the Private Scuba Team."

Khun Joy (Thailand)

Activity:  ขอบคุณทีมงาน Private Scuba มากๆค่ะ ทั้งพี่วิกกี้และคุณ Steve

"จอยมองหาสถานที่สอนดำน้ำแบบสคูบ้าที่ราคาไม่แพงจากทางอินเตอร์เนต และจอยก็ได้พบเข้ากับ "Private Scuba" ทั้งราคาและคุณภาพการเรียนการสอน การดูแล เอาใจใส่ของทีมงานทำให้รู้สึกประทับใจมากค่ะ จอยได้ลงทะเบียนเรียนช่วงสุดสัปดาห์ ครูผู้ฝึกสอนเป็นคนอังกฤษเพราะจอยเลือกที่จะเรียนเป็นภาษาอังกฤษเพราะว่าเป้าหมายการเรียนดำน้ำครั้งนี้ก็คือไปดำน้ำที่พิลิปปินส์กับเพื่อนๆชาวต่างชาติจึงอยากเรียนรู้ศัพท์เป็นภาษาอังกฤษ การเรียนเป็นภาษาอังกฤษนั้นไม่ง่ายเลยแต่ก็ได้พี่ท