Class of new divers at the surface with their instructor and slate

Open Water + Enriched Air Combo

Name: Open Water + Enriched Air Combo
Brand: PADI
SKU: OWE001
Price: 7900.00 ZAR
Availability: InStock

SKU OWE001

R 7,900.00 R 8,850.00

Product variants

Learn to dive and learn nitrox at the same time. PADI allows it. Almost nobody mentions it.

Most divers get certified, dive for a year or two, notice everyone else staying down longer, and then go back and do their Enriched Air course. It works, but it's the long way round, and it means every dive until then was shorter than it needed to be.

PADI standards permit you to enrol in the Open Water Diver course and the Enriched Air Diver course concurrently and complete them together. It's in the instructor guide, it's entirely above board, and it's the most efficient way to start diving. Your very first dives as a certified diver can be on enriched air.

This bundle is exactly that: your full Open Water certification and your Enriched Air specialty, run together, with all scuba equipment included throughout.

What You End Up With

Two certifications. PADI Open Water Diver, qualifying you to dive independently with a buddy to 18 metres anywhere in the world, and PADI Enriched Air Diver, the most popular specialty PADI offers, which means longer no-stop times and, for most divers, feeling noticeably fresher after a day of repetitive dives.

Enriched Air also counts as one of the five specialities toward your Master Scuba Diver rating, so you're a step into that on the day you certify. Booked separately these come to R8,700.

Ready to start properly? Book the combo below, or get in touch with our team if you'd like to talk through how the two run together.

What This Course Entails

This bundle combines two courses. The PADI Open Water Diver course runs as normal: five eLearning modules, five confined water sessions in a heated indoor pool in Fourways, and four open water qualification dives at Bass Lake Adventures or Miracle Waters, with ocean qualification available on request.

Alongside it, the PADI Enriched Air Diver course covers oxygen exposure and management, analysing your own cylinder, setting your computer for the blend you're breathing, and the depth limits that come with enriched air. It runs concurrently rather than afterwards, which PADI standards specifically allow.

All scuba equipment is included for the duration of both courses. Site entry fees for qualification dives are quoted separately, as are enriched air fills beyond those used in training.

Prerequisites

No previous diving experience required. This bundle starts from scratch.
Minimum age is 12, because that is the Enriched Air minimum. Divers aged 12 to 14 earn Junior certifications and dive to a maximum of 21 metres.
Able to swim 200 metres, or snorkel 300 metres, and float unassisted for 10 minutes.
Complete a basic health screening questionnaire to confirm you're fit to dive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I really do both at the same time?

Yes, and it's PADI standards that say so, not us being clever. You're permitted to enrol in the Open Water Diver course and the Enriched Air Diver course concurrently and complete them together. It's the most efficient way to do it, and it means your very first dives as a certified diver can be on enriched air.

Why bother with nitrox as a brand new diver?

Longer bottom time and, in most divers' experience, feeling considerably less wrung out after a day of repetitive dives. Learning it at the start also means you never build the habit of planning around air, and you never have to unlearn anything. It's the single most popular PADI specialty for good reason.

Do I have to do the courses back to back?

Not at all. Book the bundle once and then schedule each course as it suits you, whether that's over a fortnight or across a year. The saving is on the package, not on cramming it in, and your bundle price is held regardless of how long you take.

Is equipment included?

Yes. All scuba equipment is included for the duration of every course in the bundle, exactly as it would be if you booked them separately. Site entry fees for qualification dives, and any boat or charter fees, are quoted separately.

What if I don't end up completing the whole bundle?

Talk to us and we'll sort it out sensibly. The discount applies to the package as a whole, so if you stop partway we'd settle up at the standard price for the courses you actually completed. Nobody gets penalised for a change of plan.

Are air fills included in the course price?

For the Open Water part, yes: the air for your pool sessions and your four open water qualifying dives is included. Air for the other dives in this bundle is charged per fill as you use it, and we confirm the current fill rate when we book your dates. Dive site entrance fees are paid at the site on the day. Your PADI eLearning, your instruction and the use of all scuba equipment are covered by the bundle price.