PADI Drysuit Course | The Fifth Point Diving Centre

"I'll never dive in the UK, it's waaaaay too cold!"

Does that sound like you?! It's a common theme when we talk to divers who prefer warmer waters.

We're not gonna lie to you - the water in the UK is on the chilly side! But we promise that you'll only feel the cold if you're wearing the wrong gear.

The PADI Drysuit Course will keep your diving adventures going all year round. You have some amazing dive sites on your doorstep and you are seriously missing out if you're letting the cold put you off.

What's involved?

The PADI Drysuit Course teaches you lots of tips and tricks to handle your drysuit while diving. Through independent study, private tank sessions with your instructor and dives in the ocean to put your new skills to good use, you'll feel confident to dive in a drysuit on every dive.

You'll get to grips with the differences that drysuit diving presents including how to deal with the neck seals, tweaks in buoyancy control and improving your trim. You'll also learn some nifty little tricks to get you out of upside-down situations!

In-depth independent study. Learn more about your drysuit with PADI's elearning.
Confined water sessions. Jump in our training tank with your instructor to practice buoyancy, trim and some safety procedures before hitting the ocean.
Open water dives. Explore some beautiful Northumberland dive sites while practising your new drysuit skills.
1:1 training. During your tank sessions, it'll just be your instructor and you - unless you're bringing a buddy of course!

DO I REALLY NEED A DRYSUIT FOR UK DIVING?

You'll not find many hardcore wetsuit divers in the UK. The majority will dive in a drysuit. All of the team at The Fifth Point dive in drysuits, even in the summer.

There's a lot of other things to consider than just how cold the water is. We wrote this helpful little blog to help you work it out. Answer the 5 questions and you'll know if you need to do your PADI Drysuit Course!

WHAT PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE DO I NEED?

The PADI Drysuit Course is for qualified divers who are looking to feel more comfy in colder waters.

If you're thinking of taking your PADI Open Water (the beginner's course), PADI Advanced or PADI Rescue, we also offer the PADI Drysuit Course as a bolt-on option where the training will be incorporated into your core course.

DO I NEED A MEDICAL?

As part of your PADI Drysuit Course, you'll be asked to fill in some paperwork including a medical questionnaire.

It's a self-declaration of your current health and fitness through a series of yes/no questions. Depending on your answers, you may need to visit your GP and get signed off as fit to dive before you can hit the water.

You can take a look at it here.

Get in touch if you have any questions about this.

DO I NEED TO BE A PADI DIVER TO TAKE THE PADI DRYSUIT COURSE?

The PADI Drysuit Course is open to all divers regardless of their original training agency.

WHY SHOULD I CHOOSE THE FIFTH POINT?

As your PADI Drysuit Course is 1:1 with your instructor in our onsite training tank, our sessions are totally flexible.

YOU pick the schedule.

Your life is busy and we can help make it as easy as possible to arrange your training.

PADI Drysuit Course sessions are completely flexible in our onsite training tank. You can jump in during weekdays, late into the evenings, weekends. Whatever works best for you.

Our credentials.

We are a PADI 5* Instructor Development Centre which means our team train everyone from beginner divers all the way up to instructor level.

Nic and Jim (the co-founders of The Fifth Point) have been teaching people to dive for over a decade. They have created a very special team of instructors and divemasters. They're amazing in the water, but most importantly they're going to make sure that you feel welcome and like you're part of the family.

Our commitment to protecting the ocean.

The ocean is a very special place. It's our playground, our office, our happy place. It's also the world's life support system. Without it, there would be no life on Earth.

As a scuba diver, you witness first-hand the pressures that the ocean face. From the devastating impact of climate change on underwater habitats to the issues caused by marine debris.

If you're interested in joining our little army of eco-divers, sign up for one of our regular diving days, check out our environmental activities or join our scuba diving subscription Submerge.

HOW MUCH WILL MY PADI DRYSUIT COURSE COST?

Your PADI Drysuit Course will cost £275.00 and include:

PADI Drysuit elearning
2 sessions in our training tank
2 shore dives at a beautiful local site
All equipment
Certification e-card with a limited edition PADI AWARE design

WHY ARE YOU MORE EXPENSIVE THAN OTHER DIVE CENTRES?

If you've been looking into the PADI Drysuit Course, you may have noticed that our prices are slightly higher than other centres in the region.

There's a few reasons for this and we've summarised them below. If you'd like to read about it in more detail, check out this article we wrote that explains things a bit more.

We only teach 1:1 and you choose your training schedule.
We pay our instructors for their work.
We are committed to protecting the ocean
Our team is amazing and you'll use top of the range scuba equipment
Our facilities are second to none.

We always suggest that you get in touch with all of the other dive centres too. You need to find the centre that has the right feel for you. You also need to find the instructors who you click with the most, you're going to be spending a lot of time with them after all! The only way you can do this is by sending emails, phoning up, or best of all calling in for a visit to meet the team.

We wrote a little blog post that will help you choose the perfect dive centre. You can read more here.

WHAT GEAR WILL I USE? IS IT INCLUDED?

You are more than welcome to bring your own equipment. But don't worry if you've not got something - we'll supply anything you need.

You will use top of the range, modern diving gear during your PADI Drysuit Course. In fact, you'll be wearing exactly the same equipment as your Instructor! We'll make sure that you've got gear that fits you properly, is comfortable to wear and straight forward to use.

Our school gear is wing and long hose configuration. If you've not used this kind of kit before, don't worry - we'll build an orientation into your session.

We supply everything you need including:

xDeep Zeos backplate, harness and wing buoyancy device
Apeks XL4 long hose regulator
xDeep integrated weight system and weights
Aqualung Fusion/Avatar dry suit with Fourth Element Arctic undersuit
Fourth Element 3mm or 5mm hoods and gloves
Fourth Element 5mm Pelagic boots
Apeks RK3 fins
Aqualung i300c diving computer
A scuba diving air cylinder to best suit your size (choose from 7L, 10L and 12L tanks)
A wide selection of masks to choose from

Rental of all your dive equipment is included in your PADI Drysuit Course. Investing in your own dive gear definitely has its advantages, but it's a lot of dosh! It's always nice to have your own gear when it comes to more personal items. For example, you might want to invest in your own mask, snorkel, fins maybe even your own dive computer to track and log your adventures?

When you're ready, we can help you choose your own gear and give you all the advice you need. Our divers also get great discounts from our store at The Honest Diver Supply Co!

WHAT'S NEXT?

Join The Submerge Scuba Subscription

Our Diver Subscription is the perfect way to keep diving all year round. It's aimed at divers who want to get out in the water regularly without it costing the earth.

There's different membership levels that include...

FREE guided dives each month
FREE equipment rental each month
FREE Training Tank Sessions every month
10% discount on retail at The Honest Diver Supply Co
10% discount on courses
Access to our closed Facebook group for online training, bants and support
Priority booking on all dives, trips and environmental activities
Invites to monthly socials
and much more...

Dive warmer. Dive longer.

Perfect for year round UK diving.