Koh Tao is a very small island on the Gulf of Thailand famous for being one of the best and most affordable places to get open-water certified for scuba diving! If you spend any time backpacking South East Asia, you’ll hear Koh Tao recommended repeatedly. If you’re curious about diving and want to know whether it’s for you, this guide is for you. I’ll go in-depth (diving pun not intended) about why you should and shouldn’t get certified, what it’s like, the cost and how to choose the right dive school in Koh Tao. Full disclosure, I’m not a dive master or an expert by any means, just someone who did do their open-water certification in Koh Tao. I’m not going to recommend any specific dive school; these are just my honest opinions based on my experience!
What does it actually mean to get certified as an open-water diver?
Getting certified as an open water diver (also called getting your PADI) is an entry-level certification for scuba diving. It involved components of theory (book learning), practice (learning skills in the water) and experience (actually going scuba diving in the wild). Your certification will be internationally recognised. That means once you get your initial certification, you can dive recreationally anywhere in the world. Many people get certified in Koh Tao and then continue travelling and can scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef, dive with sharks in the Philippines and dive with turtles on the Gili Islands.
Even though your certification is for life, if you haven’t dived for a while, you need to do a refresher. Generally, if you haven’t scuba dived within the last year, a refresher is needed. It generally only takes 2-3 hours, but you will have to pay extra for this refresher training. As it is shorter, it won’t be as much as the initial cost of getting certified (unless you are somewhere in the world that is super expensive!). Once you have an open-water certification, you can dive up to 18 metres in open water. There are other certifications you need if you want to dive at night, for deeper than 18 metres or in caves or shipwrecks, but you first need the standard open-water dive certification to get these.
How much does getting open water certified cost?
Everybody talks about how Koh Tao is one of the cheapest places in the world to get your open water certificate. But what does it actually cost? In 2022, I paid 8300 THB Thai Baht ($238 USD) for the 2.5-day course. While that may seem like a fair bit of money to some, the exact same course would’ve cost more than double in my home country. This included a dive instructor, six dives, all equipment, plenty of photos, return transfers from the school to the boat daily, all classroom learning, the exam and the actual certification.
It may not be in everyone’s budget to get their open-water certification in Koh Tao. You also still have to pay for accommodation, food and drinks on the days you are doing the course. Koh Tao is still an amazing place to visit if you don’t scuba dive or get certified. It has great vibes, the nightlife is fun, the beaches are stunning, and you can enjoy snorkelling. You can read my full travel guide to Koh Tao here.
Can anyone learn to scuba dive?
The majority, yes! There are certain medical conditions and restrictions which may mean you cannot dive. Before you pay for the certification, you will have to fill out a pretty detailed information form that will assess your eligibility. If you don’t fully meet the medical eligibility criteria, you may have to get a doctor’s clearance. Worst case, you will be told that, unfortunately, you will not be able to scuba dive. There are heaps of health websites and scuba websites which go in depth about exactly which conditions will disqualify someone from diving. If you have concerns you may not be able to dive, check the information online from reliable sources or speak to someone from a dive shop/school in advance.
Some of the eligibility criteria you will see online are very general, like that, you must be physically fit and be able to swim. This usually confuses/ worries would-be divers. How fit do you have to be? How good of a swimmer do you need to be? Scuba diving, although it is a bit technical, doesn’t actually require that much physicality. Personally, I did not find scuba diving to be physically exerting at all. I am not the fittest person nor the best swimmer. I saw people of all ages, fitness levels, shapes and sizes diving in Koh Tao without so much as breaking a sweat. If you have specific fitness/swimming-related concerns, good dive schools can ascertain whether you can scuba dive before you pay and sign up for the course.
Reasons you should not scuba dive
While the majority of people are eligible to learn how to scuba dive, there are a few things that would preclude you from being able to dive. I did meet a few people while travelling who were not able to scuba dive or were told they could not scuba dive at this time. Here are the top reasons why people get knocked back or should not dive:
- You are sick. This doesn’t cover all kinds of sickness, but having any cough, cold or nasal congestion can increase the risk of injury. Many people come to Koh Tao sick or run down from the Full Moon Party in Koh Phangan. For your own sake, it’s better to make sure you are fully recovered before diving. You can cause serious and painful injuries to your sinuses and eardrums from diving sick.
- You cannot swim at all. Diving isn’t so much about the skill of swimming; it’s more about being comfortable in the water. If you can’t swim at all (not the same as just being a bad swimmer), you will probably not be comfortable in the water and will panic. Even if you can’t swim but are comfortable in the water, it is still a bit of a liability if anything happens.
- You are afraid of the ocean and being underwater. This probably sounds like a no-brainer, but if you have a deep-seated fear of deep water, scuba is probably not for you (at least at this time). Lots of people are nervous for the first dive; that’s normal. But if you are deathly afraid, you will probably not last three days of the course. There are one-day Try Dive courses that may be better suited if you still want to try.
How do you choose a dive school in Koh Tao?
One of the first things you’ll notice on Koh Tao is that every second building is a dive school. Despite being a small island, there are over 50 dive schools on Koh Tao. If you google “best dive school Koh Tao,” you’ll find hundreds of review blog posts and listicles. The only thing they have in common is that every website lists dive schools in a different order. So which is the best dive school? How do you choose a dive school in Koh Tao? Honestly, I don’t think it matters. It’s not important whether you go to the “best” dive school in Koh Tao, but that you choose the right one for you. Below are the things I think are the most important factors to consider when choosing a dive school.
Language
Do you speak a language other than English? You may want to choose a dive school on Koh Tao that specifically caters to your spoken language. There are Dutch dive schools, German dive schools, Spanish dive schools, French dive schools, Finnish dive schools and more. Learning dive theory in your native tongue with other people from your home country may be easier and more enjoyable. The other thing you can do is ask dive schools if they have a German instructor or group going. Apart from the specific language-focused schools, most of the other schools have multilingual instructors and do offer courses in other languages.
Location
This is probably the most important factor, in my opinion! Dive schools are all over Koh Tao, mostly in the Sairee Beach area or near the pier. While it may not seem far, if you choose a company near the pier when you are staying in Sairee Beach, you’re going to have to get yourself there and back every day. This can be a hassle and will add unnecessary travel time to your days. You want to choose a dive school near you in Koh Tao, or be prepared to commute!
Inclusions
While most dive schools offer the same course, some have different inclusions. Many dive schools are also hostels, so they will offer free accommodation if you stay with them. This can be such a money win and often means you will be staying with the people you dive with, which is great for making friends. Other dive schools include lunches and breakfasts depending on the times of day you’re doing the course. You may be able to negotiate different inclusions like hostel pickup or dropoff as well if you are looking at a dive school that is a little further from your hostel.
Recommendations and Reviews
There are heaps of really well-rated dive schools in Koh Tao! If you’re looking at any dive school, check the reviews and ratings online to make sure there are no red flags there. I personally wouldn’t be choosing a dive school with less than 100 reviews or less than a 4.5-star average on Google. You may also choose a dive school in Koh Tao based on the recommendation of other travellers you’ve met on the road.
Vibe
Go into the dive school, and chat with some of the instructors. Maybe you’ll even meet some people hanging around in the middle of their open water course. Do you like the atmosphere there? Maybe you prefer something a bit more laid-back and fun. Maybe you get a weird vibe from the instructors. Go with your gut. There are enough options of good quality dive schools on Koh Tao that you don’t need to settle for one that doesn’t feel right.
What does getting certified on Koh Tao actually look like?
Different dive schools will do things differently, but I’ll run you through what it’s actually like getting certified. Most programs will do the certification in a minimum of 2.5 days. How they actually run those days is up to the school. For example, here is what my 2.5 days looked like getting certified.
Day 0: Signing up for the open water certification
You will generally sign up for it between 1-3 days before you actually commence the course. Depending on dive school and availability, you may have to wait to start your course. I could sign up at around 5 pm the day before I started. You will fill out your eligibility form and chat with someone in the dive school about any concerns you may have. If you are found to be eligible, they will give you a full rundown of what to expect, and you will have to pay in full for the course.
They may also give you some reading, either with a physical booklet or online, that you must complete. They’ll tell you to do it before you start the course, but honestly, it is not necessary. It is really helpful to have a general idea of the theory and process of scuba diving before you begin, though.
Day 1: Classroom learning and two dives
In the morning, you have about 2 hours of classroom learning. You have an experienced dive instructor who explains the basics of how scuba diving works and all the equipment. They’ll take through safety and explain all the hazards of diving and how to prevent them. They also go through many emergency situations and what to do if these happen. It’s pretty basic classroom learning, and they use many diagrams and examples. The instructors do it every day and are really good at explaining things in a way that makes sense to everyone! If you’re worried about not being able to learn the theory of diving: don’t be. As long as you’re paying attention and not too hungover from the night before, you’ll be sweet!
The first actual dive!
After lunch, we got fitted for all our equipment, like wetsuits, flippers and masks, for the next few days. Then it was time for skills dive, where you learn diving skills underwater. What that means is you will be underwater and actually diving, but not usually in water that’s shallow enough to stand up in. Some dive schools do this in pools on land, while others do this in the ocean. The school I went to did this in the ocean but in a little cove with no waves or tides. Lots of people prefer learning in the ocean instead of a pool, as it gets you more comfortable with the ocean environment.
You’ll learn how to prepare your equipment and your tank and how to get into the water with your tank. You’ll also learn important skills like how to move through the water and ascend and descend. They do some safety skills, like what to do if you lose your mouthpiece and how to remove your tank and put it back on underwater. In between dives, you spend time relaxing on the boat and chatting with your dive master.
The second dive was what was considered a “fun dive”, where you get to actually see some sealife and use the skills you learnt in the skills dive. We went to about 7 metres and were able to practice our skills with the dive master. After we had done the two dives, we returned to land at around 5 pm and had the rest of the night to ourselves.
Day 2: One skills dive and one fun dive
On Day 2, we had the morning off to relax or study some theory/ coursework. The reading and theory are not really difficult but was is hard is studying at a hostel when you’re on holiday. After lunch, we headed back out for a skills dive and another fun dive.
The first dive was a skills dive, again in the ocean but in shallow water where you can stand up. You learn how to share air with another diver (if their equipment malfunctions), among other skills. After the first dive, you head back out to a dive spot and get the practise the skills. This time we went deeper to about 10 metres, and saw baby sharks and many cool fish. Afterwards, we were back on land at 5 pm with the night to ourselves.
Day 3: Two fun dives and the dive exam
The last half day consisted of two fun dives in the morning. On these dives, you finally reach 18 metres (the maximum depth you can dive to as an open-water diver). They take you to famous dive sites around Koh Tao, where you have fun diving. You also get photos using the instructor’s underwater camera. On the last day, we saw a baby whale shark swimming around the area.
After the last two dives, you head back on land and must pass your exam to receive the official certification. Depending on how ready you feel or if you need more time to study, you can delay the exam portion. We spent the afternoon relaxing and doing practice quizzes and modules online until we felt pretty confident.
Afterwards, you do an exam which is around 50 multiple choice questions. You must get at least 75% of these questions right to get certified. No one in our group got more than two answers incorrect, and most of us hadn’t even done all the reading. The exam is successfully completed by people as young as 10, so don’t stress about it being difficult. Some questions are just common sense, so the answer is obvious. Most of the answers we remembered were from things our instructor had said on the boat, as opposed to the materials we were supposed to read.
When the exam finishes, it gets graded by an instructor, and you get officially certified. They provide you with proof of certification, but it can take a few days for this to be uploaded online. With the proof they give you, you can do fun dives straight away if you want to. Many people discover a love of scuba diving and decide to do an advanced diving course or another technical diving course.
Was it worth getting open water certified on Koh Tao?
100% YES! It was one of the absolute highlights of my trip, and I wish I had gotten certified earlier. It was such an awesome experience being underwater and seeing a whole new world under there. Also, the culture of Koh Tao and how dive-centric everything is was one of the perfect places to get certified. My only regret from Koh Tao is that I didn’t stay longer and get my advanced divers.
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