Just kicking around ideas in my head for a holiday next year, would like to go and see some of Asia. My main idea would be to base it around learning to dive (3 day padi openwater course) in Koh Tao, Thailand or bali.

Just wondering if anyone else has done something similar, and what their experience was?

Also as I will probably make it a 2 week holiday, diving would probably be a maximum of 5 days, course plus maybe a couple of extra dives, I am looking for suggestions of other activities (other than sex tourism). I will be travelling alone so another sporty activity would be good. I am not really interested in seeing the cities, but could do with something that brings me into contact with a group.

I will consider hopping between 2 or 3 countries if I can keep the cost down.

I would do the course in the UK and use your time abroad for actually diving.

Diving is a great thing do it that area. You can do the pool and classroom sessions in the UK to save time abroad but in reality those bits don’t take up much time and it can be a nice group activity.

Heaps to do in Thailand. Some of my favourites were sea kayaking in caves, hongs, and mangroves and mountain biking in the jungle (around Chiang Mai). Loads to explore. Its an easy country to get around so no need to stick in one place

I learned in Ko Samui. Did PADI open water and advanced. Did rescue diver elsewhere but returned to do dive master.

You will spend time sat in a classroom but your pool stuff will be in an outdoor pool in the sunshine and your open water dives in nice warm sea with cool stuff to see and no heavy suits and gloves.

You might get hooked and do the advanced too. P

What area did you go sea kayaking in nickjb?

I did mine in Koh Chang and would probably choose there before Koh Tao. Koh Tao is so overdived and not many fish/coral
You could get to sihanoukville in cambodia from there in a couple of days. Nearby Koh Rong/Samloem are ‘party island/s’
I did 40 dives there before I saw my first shark
2weeks isnt long in thailand. You could go to Phuket, where youre closer to everything, but a long way to better dive sites, though Khao Lak is close and a good base for better sites, but you may need your advanced for that.

Or Pulau Tioman in Malaysia, easy to get to,we saw shark, turtles, stingrays etc snorkelling

i did a padi course on the pehentian islands nearly 15 years back, it was good diving. (east coast malaysia/thailand border), just keep an eye on the terrorist situation of southern thailand.

so may be worth considering if you can get a cheap flight into Kl then go up to thialand after

I kind of agree with Nick/gobchul, you don’t want to spend your holiday reading the PADI books in a classroom, do that and the pool before you go with a british instructor, then do the dives to complete the cert there. It’s called an Open Water Referral in PADIspeak

what edhornby said – the book stuff is petty easy but you’ll still need to read it and a pool is a pool, so do the pool and reading stuff here then when you get there you’re straight into open water with no faffing about learning about kit.

Hi MSP – the PADI Open Water Diver course normally takes place over (a total of) five days – three days Confined Water (pool) and theory followed by 4 open water dives over 2 days. If you’re offered a course over 3 days it may well be the PADI Scuba Diver course. This is a subset of the OWD course (2 days pool/theory then 2 open water dives in a day). It does not qualify you to dive independently – you have to dive with a PADI professional (Dive Master or instructor)but if you’re only planning on diving occasionally on holiday this may suit your needs. As others have noted, it may be worth looking at doing a referral i.e. doing the pool and theory in the UK and arranging the open water dives with a centre out there. Have fun!

I did my basic+advanced in Koh Tao in ’03, and dived in a fair few other areas around SE Asia in the ensuing months. Agree with others above about doing the groundwork here as two weeks there will just fly by, Bangkok is an awesome city as they go and certainly worth at least a couple of days, and I’m not a city person!
Be warned though, diving can be addictive and subsequently expensive if you do 2-3/day…