Scuba Wreck Divers Testimonials
Matt and Ade's PADI Wreck Specialty in Pattaya
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 and 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 ScubaCop) 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 'scubacop' 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 Steve 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 Steve 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!
Matt and Ade - Dubai UAE
Lisa's PADI Advanced Open Water Diving Course
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.
Lisa - Germany