A diver signalling underwater while holding a line

Rescue Diver

Name: Rescue Diver
Brand: PADI
SKU: RDC001
Price: 5500.00 ZAR
Availability: InStock

SKU RDC001

R 5,500.00 ZAR R 6,000.00 ZAR

Product variants

The course at a glance

Teaches you to spot a problem early and handle it, at the surface and underwater
eLearning first, then pool practice, then open water rescue scenarios
All scuba equipment included
Needs Advanced Open Water (or Adventure Diver with Navigation) and first aid training within 24 months. Minimum age 12
A required step towards PADI Divemaster

Stop diving for yourself. Start diving for everyone in the water with you.

Every diver remembers the moment their training shifts from "how do I stay safe" to "how do I help someone else stay safe." That's what Rescue Diver is. It's widely considered the toughest, and the most transformative, course in recreational diving, and there's a reason so many divers list it as their favourite.

This isn't about adding another card to your logbook. It's about developing the instincts to spot a problem before it becomes an emergency, and the composure to act on it if it does. Panicked divers at the surface, missing buddy procedures, equipment failures underwater: this course puts you through realistic scenarios until your response becomes automatic instead of theoretical. All scuba equipment is included for the duration of the course, so you arrive with nothing to source or hire beforehand and every bit of focus goes into the training itself.

Divers who complete Rescue Diver consistently describe the same shift afterwards: more observant on every dive, calmer under pressure, and far less likely to be caught off guard when something actually goes wrong.

Where Rescue Diver Takes You

Rescue Diver is also the gateway to the next level of diving altogether. It's a required step toward PADI Divemaster and Instructor ratings, and one of the certifications you'll need on the road to Master Scuba Diver, the highest non-professional rating in the sport.

You don't need to be chasing a professional career to benefit from it, though. Most divers who take this course have no interest in going pro. They take it because the confidence and situational awareness it builds change the way they dive, permanently, for the better.

Ready to see what you're actually capable of underwater? Book your Rescue Diver course below, or get in touch with our team if you've got questions about the prerequisites first.

What This Course Entails

The course runs in three parts. First, knowledge development, covering the psychology of rescue, recognising diver stress, accident management, and how to assist both responsive and unresponsive divers at the surface and underwater. This is completed through eLearning, at your own pace, before the practical work begins.

Next comes confined water training, where you'll practise rescue techniques and emergency scenarios in a controlled environment under close instructor supervision, building the physical responses that need to be automatic before you take them into open water.

Finally, open water rescue scenarios bring everything together. Expect realistic, sometimes physically demanding simulations, a panicked diver at the surface, a missing buddy, an unresponsive diver underwater, so you leave not just knowing the theory but having actually done it.

Prerequisites

Minimum age 12 years old.
PADI Advanced Open Water Diver, or PADI Adventure Diver (or equivalent) with the Underwater Navigation Adventure Dive completed.
Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care training (or qualifying equivalent) completed within the past 24 months.
Reasonable physical fitness, given the demanding nature of the rescue scenarios.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need Advanced Open Water before I can do Rescue Diver?

You need either PADI Advanced Open Water Diver, or PADI Adventure Diver (or equivalent) with the Underwater Navigation Adventure Dive completed. If you're Open Water certified without either of those, you can start the knowledge development and confined water sections, but you'll need to meet the full prerequisites before completing the open water rescue exercises.

Do I need a CPR and first aid certification before starting?

Yes. You'll need Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care training, or a qualifying equivalent, completed within the past 24 months. If yours has lapsed or you've never done one, we can arrange this alongside your Rescue Diver course

How long does the Rescue Diver course take to complete?

Most divers complete the full course, knowledge development, confined water training, and open water scenarios, within four to seven days. The eLearning portion is self-paced, so the practical days are where most of the time is spent.

Is Rescue Diver as difficult as people say?

It's widely regarded as the most physically and mentally demanding recreational course PADI offers. Expect realistic emergency scenarios that test your problem-solving under pressure. Most divers who complete it call it the most rewarding course they've done.

Do I need to be planning a professional diving career to take this course?

No. While Rescue Diver is a required step toward Divemaster, Instructor, and Master Scuba Diver, most divers take it purely to become more aware, more prepared, and more capable of helping others underwater.

Are air fills included in the course price?

No, and that is deliberate. Air is charged as you use it, per fill, and invoiced to you after your session. Every diver breathes differently, and a nervous first-timer will get through considerably more air than someone on their fourth qualification dive. Building a worst-case air allowance into every course fee would mean the lightest breathers subsidising the heaviest, so instead you pay for the air you actually use and the course price stays lower for everyone. We confirm the current fill rate with you when we book your dates, and you are welcome to ask us for it at any point before that. Dive site entrance fees are also paid separately, at the site on the day. Everything else, including your PADI eLearning, your instruction and the use of all scuba equipment, is covered by your course fee.