Enhance and deepen your scuba diving training

After gaining experience as an Open Water Diver, you’ll likely feel the desire to deepen your scuba diving journey.

SDI/TDI speciality courses teach you the techniques and provide the tools to expand your exploration opportunities.

Check out the available courses and choose the one that interests you most.

SDI ADVANCED BUOYANCY DIVER

Perfect your buoyancy!

The SDI Advanced Buoyancy Diver Course is aimed at:

Certified divers who wish to improve and/or refine their buoyancy control to help prevent damage to the underwater environment.

Course prerequisites:

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver, SDI Junior Open Water Diver or equivalent

• Minimum age: 18, or 10 with parental consent

The SDI Advanced Buoyancy Diver course provides an in-depth focus on the following aspects:

Why is buoyancy so important?

• Not touching marine life helps protect the environment

• Less effort means more fun

• Lower air consumption increases dive time

• Better buoyancy makes it easier to take photos and videos

• Proper buoyancy and good trim help avoid contact with the seabed

Course programme:

• Scuba equipment assembly

• Pre-dive check and bubble check

• Performing a pre-dive weight check

• Controlled descent

• Hovering exercises

• Fine-tuning using breath control

• Fine-tuning using BCD or dry suit

• Near-bottom exercises without contact

• Controlled ascent

• Safety stop at -5 m for 3 minutes

• Final ascent to the surface at 1 metre per minute

Minimum requirements for SDI Advanced Buoyancy Diver:

• Efficiently complete all open water requirements
• Demonstrate reliable buoyancy control techniques

SDI COMPUTER NITROX

Dive longer and increase safety with Nitrox certification

The SDI Computer Nitrox Course allows you to breathe oxygen-enriched gas mixtures ranging from 22% to 40%.

• What is Nitrox?
  It’s a breathable gas with more oxygen and less nitrogen.

The benefits of Nitrox

• The Nitrox mix contains less nitrogen than standard compressed air.
• It reduces issues related to nitrogen narcosis.
• It increases bottom time compared to air at the same depth.
• It shortens surface intervals between dives.
• It’s ideal for those who love to travel and dive multiple times a day.

This course provides divers with the skills and knowledge necessary to enjoy safe and fun Nitrox dives.

During the course, you will learn:

• How to analyse the mix in your tank

• How to set the oxygen percentage on your dive computer

• How to plan dive profiles based on the oxygen mix

• How to manage dives within depth and time limits

• How to appreciate the benefits of oxygen-enriched mixtures

Sign up today for the SDI Computer Nitrox Course with Diving Group Portofino.
The Portofino Marine Protected Area is waiting for you!

SDI ADVANCED ADVENTURE DIVER

Broaden your scuba diving knowledge

• If you’ve completed your Open Water Scuba Diver course and are now ready to expand your knowledge, then the SDI Advanced Adventure Diver Course is perfect for you!

• The SDI Advanced Adventure course gives you an overview of five different SDI specialties, unlike the Advanced Scuba Diver Course, which requires you to complete four full specialties.
• Two of the required specialties are Deep Diver and Navigation Diver, which are the foundation of continuing scuba training.

Other specialties include:

• Perfect Buoyancy Diver (Advanced Buoyancy Control)
• Sidemount Diver
• Dry Suit Diver
• Computer Nitrox Diver
• Wreck Diver
• Night/Limited Visibility Diver
• Search & Recovery Diver

This course is designed to introduce you to each of the five selected specialties

One dive for each of the chosen specialties may count towards the completion of a full speciality certification.

Who this course is for:

• Any certified open water diver who wants to expand their scuba knowledge and skills

• Any certified open water diver who wants to advance their scuba training

• Any certified open water diver who wants an introduction to SDI specialties

Course prerequisites:

• Minimum age: 18, or 10 with parental consent

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver or equivalent, or SDI Junior Open Water Scuba Diver or equivalent*

*Note: Junior divers (ages 10–15) may only take specialties approved for their age group

Limits for junior divers:

• Deep dive: the maximum depth for divers aged 10–15 is 21 metres / 70 feet
• Dry suit: minimum age 12 years
• Wreck (limited penetration): minimum age 15 years

What you can expect to learn:

• An overview of the SDI Deep Diver and SDI Navigation Diver specialties
  A basic introduction to three additional specialties of your choice, as an entry point into that specific area of diving

Some of the in-water skills include:

• Successfully perform the listed skills for diving in one of the three chosen specialties, as well as in both core specialties in open water
• Deep Diver
• Test and check all equipment
• Familiarise yourself with the dive site
• Descend to the planned depth
• Do not exceed the established limits
• Follow the dive plan to a maximum depth of 30 metres
• Divers aged 10 to 15 must not exceed 21 metres
• Ascend to the safety stop
• Exit the water and log the dive

• Open Water Navigation

• Establish a reference point, plan the dive, and enter the water from shore/boat

• Practise the out-and-back technique on the surface

• Perform square and triangle patterns on the surface

• Execute a square pattern on the bottom
• Execute a triangle pattern on the bottom
• Ascend to the safety stop
• Exit the water and log the dive

What’s in it for you?

• An opportunity to experience different SDI specialties

• Continue building your scuba education, skills, and knowledge

• Possibility to enrol in and complete the selected specialties

• Upon successful completion, the option to enrol in the SDI Rescue Diver course

Minimum requirements for SDI Advanced Adventure Diver:

• Successfully complete the appropriate SDI Advanced Adventure Diver knowledge assignments with a minimum score of 80%, followed by 100% review and correction by the instructor

• Efficiently complete all course requirements

• Demonstrate mature and sound judgement in dive planning and execution

Do you want to enrich your scuba diving experience?

Explore five different specialties of the SDI Advanced Adventure Diver course with us in the Portofino Marine Protected Area.

SDI DEEP DIVER

Explore deeper dive sites

If you want to see beautiful gorgonian walls, wrecks, or deep-dwelling marine life, this course will train and qualify you to dive safely to a maximum depth of 40 metres.

Who this course is for:

• Divers who want to expand their scuba knowledge and skills

• Divers looking to improve their training

During the Deep Diver Course, you will learn:

• How to plan your dive

• How to manage your dive profile within no-decompression limits

• Safety procedures

• Managing narcosis

• Gas supply management

Topics covered:

• Equipment required for deep diving

• Physics and physiology of deep diving

• Emergency procedures for deep dives

• First aid

Open Water Dive 1:

• Full equipment test and check

• Pre-dive check

• Bubble check

• SAC (Surface Air Consumption) rate calculation

• Controlled descent to planned depth without exceeding limits

• Maximum depth for first dive: 30 metres

• Ascend to safety stop

• Deploy surface marker buoy

• Ascend from 5 metres at a rate of 1 metre per minute

Open Water Dive 2:

• Full equipment test and check

• Pre-dive check

• Bubble check

• Controlled descent to planned depth without exceeding limits

• Perform a simulated emergency assigned underwater by the instructor

• Follow the dive plan to a maximum depth of 40 metres

• Ascend to safety stop

• Deploy surface marker buoy

• Ascend from 5 metres at a rate of 1 metre per minute

Upon completing the course, you’ll have received the training needed to dive beyond 18 metres, up to a maximum depth of 40 metres.

Minimum requirement to enrol:

• Advanced Adventure certification

The gorgonians of the Portofino Marine Protected Area are waiting for you!
Sign up now for the Deep Diver Course with us!

SDI WRECK DIVER

Dive into underwater history!

With the SDI Wreck Diver course, you’ll learn how to use the appropriate equipment and techniques used during wreck diving.

This course can be taught without penetration (2 dives), or with limited penetration (3 dives).

Limited penetration is defined as swimming within or through the ambient light zone of the entry point.

Course prerequisites:

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver or equivalent

• Minimum age: 18, or 15 with parental consent for limited penetration

• Minimum age: 10 with parental consent for the non-penetration course

• Junior Open Water Divers are not allowed to participate in penetration dives or dives deeper than 18 metres

• Divers must have a deep diving specialty certification or be able to show proof of experience for dives deeper than 18 metres

Why dive wrecks?

Topics covered in the course:

• Surface support

• Communication, when and if necessary

• Backup equipment (lights, cutting tools, mask)

• Redundancy procedures

• Buddy system

• Buddy contact

• Contact in low visibility

• Pre-dive planning using charts and other information

• Navigation and mapping

• Use of slate/wetnotes

• Pre-dive marking and signage

• Determining direction

• Disorientation

• Lost buddy

• Primary light failure

• Emergency procedures

• Low visibility diving

• Importance of primary and backup lights

• Proper use of lights

• Night vision and not shining lights into your buddy’s eyes

• Spools and reels

• Types of lines

• Primary and secondary tie-offs

• Line handling and retrieval (must be practised on land before performing underwater)

• Directional markers

• Special emergency procedures

• Safe wreck penetration

• Wreck mapping

• Wreck structure and features

• Psychological considerations

A comprehensive specialty course for wreck diving enthusiasts.

Sign up now!
You’ll do your course dives on the famous Mohawk Deer wreck in the Portofino Marine Protected Area.

SDI DRY SUITE DIVER

Stay warm! Take the Dry Suit Diver Course!

With this course, you can dive all year round, even in cold water, while staying warm.

Course prerequisites:

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver, SDI Junior Open Water Diver or equivalent

• Minimum age: 18, or 12 with parental consent

The course covers the following topics:

• Different types of dry suits (neoprene and trilaminate)

• Types of seals:

  • Latex

  • Neoprene

• Suit features

• Models with back and front zips

• Types of boots

• Zipper protection: protects the waterproof zipper from abrasion

• Various types of undersuits

• Dry suit valves (inflation and exhaust)

• Maintenance and care

  • Cleaning

  • Zipper care

You will be expected to demonstrate the following skills:

• Dive planning

• How to properly don a dry suit

• Check the functions of the dry suit

• Buoyancy control and proper weighting

• Practise dry suit techniques

• Inflate and deflate the dry suit

• Maintain proper trim

• Emergency procedures for dry suit malfunctions

• Controlled ascent

The SDI Dry Suit Diver certification counts as one speciality credit toward completing the SDI Advanced Diver Development or SDI Master Scuba Diver Development programmes.

Minimum requirements for SDI Dry Suit Diver:

• Efficiently complete all open water requirements

• Demonstrate competence in dive planning and execution

SDI NIGHT/LIMITED VISIBILITY DIVER

LEARN TO DIVE IN LOW VISIBILITY

This course will teach you how to navigate at night and in low visibility conditions.

Course prerequisites:

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver, SDI Junior Open Water Scuba Diver or equivalent

• Minimum age: 18, or 10 with parental consent

The SDI Night/Limited Visibility Diver course covers the following topics:

• Dive planning

• Safety procedures

• Different types of aquatic life at night

• Experience in low visibility conditions

• Special equipment

• Underwater torches

• Importance of primary and backup lights

• Buddy system

• Buddy contact

• Communication

• Navigation

• Compass use

• Boat diving

• Shore/lake diving

• Signal/strobe lights

• Disorientation

• Lost buddy

• Light failure

• Emergency procedures

After successfully completing this course, you will be able to plan and execute night dives and dives in low visibility conditions.

In addition, the SDI Night/Limited Visibility Diver certification counts as one speciality credit toward the SDI Advanced Diver Development Programme.

SDI SEARCH & RECOVERY DIVER

Learn how to search for and recover objects underwater!

This course is designed for divers who want to learn search and recovery techniques in scuba diving.

Course prerequisites:

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver, SDI Junior Open Water Diver or equivalent

• Minimum age: 18, or 15 with parental consent

The SDI Search and Recovery Diver course will cover the following topics:

• Navigation

  • Compass use

  • Distance estimation

  • Natural navigation

• Diving in limited visibility

  • Factors affecting visibility

  • Hazards of low visibility

• Diving techniques

• Search techniques

  • Circular search

  • Grid search

  • Current-assisted (overlapping) search

  • Search dive hand signals

• Recovery techniques

• Depth considerations

• Lift bags

  • Required features of lifting devices

• Knots and rigging

• Filling techniques

Some of the skills you will be expected to demonstrate include:

• Reviewing compass techniques

• Reviewing search techniques

• Practising and performing various search patterns

• Reviewing lifting techniques

• Recovering an object from depth

• Lifting and recovering an object weighing between 11 and 33 kg / 25 and 75 lbs

• Simulating an underwater emergency using at least two search techniques

• Logging your dives

The SDI Search and Recovery Diver certification counts as one specialty credit toward the SDI Advanced Diver Development Programme.

Minimum requirements for SDI Search and Recovery Diver:

• Efficiently complete all open water requirements

• Demonstrate competence in dive planning and execution