Dive Into a New Adventure: Tips for Certified Divers Returning to Scuba Diving 🤿

Today, I put my scuba instructor cap on to discuss an important topic 👩🏽‍🏫: diving again after a long, dry spell. You might be wondering if you can join a trip after you took a break from diving, and the short answer is yes, but there's a bit more to it.

The fact is that sometimes life gets in the way and a year, or a decade, goes by since you went on your last dive. If you hold a certification, it's valid for life, but it's crucial to refresh your skills if you haven't dived in a while. It's perfectly normal to feel a mix of excitement and apprehension, but if you follow the right steps to get back in the water, you have nothing to worry about.

1. Take a refresher course 📖

If you are out of practice, especially if you only have a few dives under your belt, you should consider a refresher course designed to review essential dive skills, safety procedures, and equipment usage. This way you'll feel confident, ready, and safe during your upcoming adventure.

2. Service your dive gear 🔧

If you have your own dive gear, it's important to have it properly checked before your trip to ensure everything is functioning properly. Have your regulator serviced, check your BCD straps and valves, inspect mask and fin straps, verify your dive computer battery, and make sure your wetsuit still fits. It's always a good idea to bring spares such as straps, mouthpieces, O-rings, zip ties, and batteries.

3. Refine your buoyancy 🦺

A lot of factors that affect buoyancy might have changed since your last dive, including your body composition, your equipment, the environment, and the simple fact that you haven't practised in a while. Go diving in your local area, even if it means a pool session, and focus on practising. Good buoyancy is crucial for a comfortable, safe, and enjoyable experience, and it helps protect the marine environment too.

4. Dive with a professional team 🦸🏽‍♀️

Feeling rushed, receiving inadequate dive briefings, breaking standards, or not being appropriately equipped are factors that can lead to dangerous situations and even put us off diving altogether. Go on the operator's Google profile, check past customer reviews, ask your diving circle or former instructor for advice, and resist the temptation to go for the cheapest option. With Salted Trips, you're choosing a team with a stellar reputation and a commitment to providing a top-notch experience.

5. Team up with an experienced buddy 🧜🏽‍♂️

Remember what you learned in your Open Water course about never diving alone? The time to reembrace the buddy system has come. Diving with a knowledgeable buddy not only enhances your own safety, but is also a great opportunity to learn and improve your skills, revisit signals, remember and practice underwater etiquette, and absorb valuable tips.

6. Take a course 🤓

Continued education is a key aspect of evolving as a diver and adding more skills to your arsenal. If you've been away from diving for a while, consider taking the next-level course beyond your current certification, whether that means Advanced Open Water or a specialty such as underwater navigation or deep diving.

7. Choose a destination adapted to your skills 🏝️

When selecting the perfect destination, it's vital to align the location with your current diving experience and skill level. A place we can wholeheartedly recommend to divers of all levels is Lanzarote, where conditions are excellent year-round, currents are mild, most dives are from shore, and the underwater landscapes are stunning. Save Galápagos for later. And if you need help choosing a destination, drop us a line.

It sounds easy enough, doesn't it? Follow these tips and you'll be ready to be captivated by the ocean once again in no time. If you want to share your personal experience going back to diving after a long break, or if you're ready to book your next adventure, contact us. Happy diving, and stay salty!