Drift Diver

Vendor:PADI

Drift Diver

R 3,500.00 ZAR

Stop swimming. Start flying.

Fighting a current wastes air, tires you out, and turns a dive into hard work rather than the reason you got into diving in the first place. Drift diving flips that entirely. Instead of fighting the water, you let it carry you, gliding over a reef or an underwater landscape at whatever pace the current sets, using less air and a lot less effort than a standard anchored dive.

The PADI Drift Diver course teaches you to do this properly, because a current-driven dive isn't the same as an anchored one and treating it that way is how divers get separated from their group or their boat. All scuba equipment is included for the duration of the course, so there's nothing to source or hire beforehand, including the specialised gear, floats, lines, and reels, that drift diving actually requires.

This is one of the more purely enjoyable specialty courses out there. Divers who've done it tend to describe it the same way: less exertion, more time looking around, and a genuinely different feeling of moving through the water.

Where Drift Diver Takes You

Once certified, you'll be equipped to dive currents confidently and safely, including staying with your buddy or group, communicating with a live boat that follows you on the surface rather than anchoring, and using safety equipment like a delayed surface marker buoy properly.

It opens up dive sites and conditions that aren't accessible, or aren't sensible, without this training, many of the world's best drift sites simply can't be dived from an anchored boat. Drift Diver is also one of the specialty certifications that counts toward PADI Master Scuba Diver, and the first of your two dives can often be credited as an Adventure Dive toward PADI Advanced Open Water Diver.

Ready to let the current do the work? Book your Drift Diver course below, or get in touch with our team if you've got questions about upcoming drift-friendly trips.

What This Course Entails

The course starts with PADI eLearning, covering the planning, procedures, and potential hazards of drift diving, along with an introduction to the specialised equipment involved, floats, lines, and reels, before you get in the water.

From there, you'll complete two open water dives with your instructor. You'll practise buoyancy control and navigation while moving with a current, communication techniques for staying close to your buddy or dive group, and how to use a delayed surface marker buoy and other drift-specific safety equipment properly. You'll also cover site selection and the basics of what actually causes ocean and river currents in the first place.

By your second dive, drift diving stops feeling unpredictable and starts feeling like the most relaxed kind of diving there is.

Prerequisites
  • Hold a PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver certification, or qualifying equivalent from another training organisation.
  • Minimum age is 12 years old.
  • Complete a basic health screening questionnaire to confirm you're fit to dive.

Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need Advanced Open Water before doing Drift Diver?

No. Drift Diver only requires PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver or a qualifying equivalent. In fact, the first dive can often be credited as an Adventure Dive toward Advanced Open Water, so many divers do it beforehand.

How many dives does the Drift Diver course include?

Two open water dives with your instructor, focused on buoyancy control, navigation, buddy communication, and proper use of drift-specific safety equipment like a delayed surface marker buoy.

Is drift diving harder than normal diving?

Not harder, just different. Drift diving is generally less physically demanding than swimming against a current, but it does require specific procedures for staying with your group and communicating with the boat, which is exactly what this course covers.

What equipment does drift diving actually require?

Beyond your usual scuba gear, drift diving typically involves a delayed surface marker buoy, and sometimes a reel or line, so the boat can track and locate you. All of this is included for the duration of the course.

Does Drift Diver count toward Master Scuba Diver?

Yes. It's one of the specialty certifications that can count toward the PADI Master Scuba Diver rating, the highest non-professional classification in recreational diving.

Pairs well with