PADI Referral Program

A PADI referral allows you to complete most of your scuba training for the PADI Open Water Course at home and then finish your certification dives with Cthulhu Divers here in Cancún. This means you can support your local dive center and avoid studying during your vacation at the same time. You'll complete all of the classroom theory and pool exercises in advance and then join us for your first underwater ocean adventures!

Theory Options

You can begine your use PADI adventure by contacting your local dive center (we also have a list of trusted US and UK dive shops in our dive shop locator towards the bottom of this page). When you speak with them, they will go over your options with you and help you decide on a theory format which best suits both your schedule and your pocket.

The first is the traditional textbook option where you'll be given a physical textbook to read before starting classes. This course can be completed by children as young as ten and so you should easily be able to read through the book and answer all the Knowledge Review questions at the end of each chapter before your in-person training begins.

Alternatively, you can also elect to complete the theory online via the PADI e-learning option. Arguably the easier choice of the two, this material is also updated frequently by PADI and you will have full lifetime access to it including any and all revisions. In order to register you with PADI for this online material and to provide you with your login details, your chosen dive center will ask you to provide them with the following details:

In-Person Classes

Regardless of how you choose to complete the theory portion of the course, you will need to attend some classes at your chosen dive center where they will demonstrate the basics of scuba and demonstrate how to assemble and dissemble your dive equipment. Afterwards you will head to a pool to practice skills with one of their PADI instructors. PADI instructors are experts in their field and so you will be encouraged to ask questions and practice the skills until you feel confident in your abilities as a diver.

Time spent in the classroom and pool will differ from student group to student group but you can expect to spend roughly 2 to 3 hours in the class and 3 to 4 hours practising skills in the pool.

On The Dives

You will have completed most of the hard work during the skill rehearsal and so can expect an almost typical diving experience. The only difference will be that you will be pulled to one side every so often in order to complete the practiced skills under real-life conditions.

Dive Site Options (Day 1)

Musa & Reef - 2 Tanks - 27ft / 9m
or Two Reefs - 2 Tanks - 27ft / 9m

Musa is hands down our most popular tour as it is both the world's largest underwater museum and is really close to Isla Mujeres which protects it from heavy currents making it a relatively easy dive for first-timers. After the dive at Musa, you will also have a second dive included at either Jardines Reef, Manchones Grande Reef or our own personal Cancún favourite, Manchones Chico Reef. All three sites are absolutely teeming with life but the latter has a large number of French and Bluestriped Grunt who school together with Schoolmaster Snapper; this combination of yellow and white fish against the deep turquoise makes for some stunning photos. It is also a great place to be on the lookout for the turtles which are released into the area by Tortugranja, a turtle sanctuary on the island. Alternatively if you wish to skip the museum and dive two of these reefs instead, simply let us know and we will sort out the logistics and make it happen for you.

Musa is also a great option if you are traveling with any non-divers who aren't quite ready to commit to a full certification but would like to give the sport a try. For more info on this option, please visit our PADI Discover Scuba Diving page.

Dive Site Options (Day 2)

Mesoamerican Reefs - 2 Tanks - 55ft / 16m

Cancún is situated at the very northern tip of the Mesoamerican Reef, the world's third largest barrier reef system, so we have a few options for you to choose from outside the gulf area between Cancún and Isla Mujeres. Both of these dives are "drift dives" meaning that our boat will drop you off at one location and we'll drift along the reef and meet it at a second location. Whilst this area isn't nearly as rich in green or hawksbill turtles, we do see the odd loggerhead turtle (aka: Mexican Godzillas) and divers are also far more likely to come across eagle ray and small reef sharks.