Red Sea Diving Centre

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I want to learn scuba diving in the Red Sea,what insurance and documentation do I need?

Also what do I need to look for in a good diving centre?

martdfrogman's given a good answer there, but I'd like to add one more thing to it.

Although the dive centre you go to will provide all the necessary paperwork for the course (if they don't, they're breaking PADI Standards), they cannot assess your medical fitness to dive.

You will be required (prior to any diving) to fill out a declaration of medical fitness to dive, by confirming that you do not have, and never have had, any medical problems which might make it unsafe for you to dive. (e.g. ENT problems such as frequent/severe ear infections, respiratory illnesses such as asthma, circulatory problems such as heart murmurs or PFO, neurological illnesses such as epilepsy, psychological illnesses such as depression, etc.)

If you have such a condition, and declare it on the self-declaration form, but do not get medical clearance to dive, a professional dive centre will not allow you to enrol on a course with them, for your own safety (this is one of the definitions of professionalism, as opposed to profiteering).

If you choose to lie on the self-declaration form, any accident which results may be deemed to be your fault, and therefore no matter who insured you, they probably won't cover any medical/evacuation costs.

So, if you think you might have a medical condition that poses a risk of injury or death while diving, you should get yourself assessed by a doctor familiar with hyperbaric medicine (your local GP may be able to recommend a specialist in your area), who can certify you as fit to dive if e.g. the problem no longer exists, or is adequately controlled.

It would probably be better to do this before you go on holiday, as you may not be able to find such a qualified doctor at your destination. (Having said that, if you're going to Sharm el-Sheikh, Dr Adel Taher at the Sharm hyperbaric chamber is the DAN representative for the Middle East region, and eminently qualified.)

However, even if you do manage to find a hyperbaric doctor at your destination, you will lose one day of your holiday getting the checkup done. The PADI Open Water Diver course takes at least 3 days (if the student is well prepared) and usually 4 (if they turn up 'fresh'), which won't leave you much time to relax out of a 7-day break, as you should not fly within 24 hours after diving (diving within 24 hours after flying _is_ OK though).

Good luck, and welcome to our world. You're going to like it here!

Red Sea Free Fall - Sled Diving Video


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