Advanced diving course
GO TO THE NEXT LEVEL.
GO DEEPER.
Deeper, in current, at night and on shipwrecks. Advanced Open Water SCUBA Diver, with international NAUI certification.
THE ADVANCED LEVEL
MAKES YOU CAPABLE OF MORE
The advanced level makes you capable of diving in conditions the basic diver cannot handle. Deeper, in current, at night, on shipwrecks. Where Open Water taught you to dive, Advanced teaches you where else you can dive and how each of those environments is planned.
The NAUI standard says it plainly: whoever passes this course is considered competent to dive without supervision, as long as the environment, activities, sites and equipment are similar to those of the training. It is also the gateway to Rescue Diver and the professional track.
THREE REQUIRED DIVES.
THE ONES THAT CHANGE EVERYTHING.
These are the three the NAUI standard does not negotiate, because they are the three that separate an advanced diver from a basic one.
Deep diving
Down to 40 metresDown to 40 metres, the limit of recreational diving. Profile planning, air consumption at depth, bottom time, safety stops and recognising narcosis. In Acapulco it is done at Bajo de la Quebrada, a site that takes that profile comfortably.
Underwater navigation
Compass and referencesOut and back headings, search patterns, distance estimation by kick cycles and by time, and returning to the entry point without surfacing to find your way.
Night or limited visibility
Same water, another siteLight protocols, torch communication, buddy contact and handling disorientation. The site you dived by day is another site at night.
THE DIVES EVERYONE
WANTS TO DO
The Océano Profundo Advanced Course, Advanced Open Water SCUBA Diver, gives you the introduction to the most requested specialty dives, which include:
Shipwrecks
External survey of the hull, no penetration. Veracruz has historic wrecks.
Waves and currents
Reading the water, planning the route and surface signalling.
Boat diving
Boat protocols, entries, exits and drift diving.
Search and recovery
Search patterns and lift bag use.
Altitude diving
Table correction for atmospheric pressure. Media Luna sits at nearly a thousand metres.
Underwater imaging
Framing, light and buoyancy to shoot without touching the bottom.
Observation and data
Recording fauna, flora and site conditions.
Dive computer
Multilevel planning and reading the algorithm.
Exploration and mapping
Site survey and underwater mapping.
You pick three when you enrol, depending on the destination and what you want to dive.
THEORY ONLINE,
PRACTICE IN THE WATER
Your course includes both the theory and the practical section. No classroom calendar, no taking time off to study.
Theory online
Your course includes the theory section in the NAUI education system. It opens the day you book and you go at your own pace, from wherever you are.
In-person review
Review sessions with the instructor before the trip. Questions get answered and the dives get planned together: everyone prepares and presents their own plan.
One or two trips
You earn your certification in one or two evaluation trips, depending on the destination. Some places fit all six dives into a single trip.
Exam and logbook
Closing session with a written exam on the course material and your logbook filled in with the corresponding signatures.
EVERY DESTINATION ADDS
A SPECIALTY
The six dives are covered in one or two trips. Which specialties you touch depends on where you go, and each destination has its own.
Acapulco
Open ocean · Pacific
Bajo de la Quebrada takes the 40 metres for the deep dive, and the bay works for navigation and boat diving. It is the destination with a published rate and the one with the most trips each year.
Covered hereDeep, navigation and boat
Veracruz
Reef · Gulf of Mexico
The Veracruz Reef System, the largest reef in the Gulf of Mexico, with historic shipwrecks among its dive sites. The wreck specialty is covered here without complications.
Covered hereWrecks and currents
Media Luna Lagoon
Freshwater · Spring
A spring in the San Luis Potosí desert: 28 degree water year-round and visibility up to 30 metres. It sits at nearly a thousand metres above sea level, so altitude diving is covered here.
Covered hereAltitude, navigation and freshwater
Isla Isabel
Island · Pacific
A volcanic island and seabird sanctuary off the coast of Nayarit. The trip runs Thursday to Sunday, so all six dives fit into a single trip without rushing the programme.
Covered hereAll six in one trip
Isla de Lobos
Reef · Gulf of Mexico
A reef island in northern Veracruz, ringed by shallow reef and calm conditions for working on navigation, buoyancy and observation.
Covered hereNavigation and observation
Price
ONE PRICE,
START TO CERTIFIED
MXN per person · Acapulco trip
Online theory, lodging, equipment, boat, the six evaluation dives and the NAUI certification. The same price as the Open Water Diving Camp.
That activates your access to the NAUI online system and you start the theory the same day.
The other destinations have their own rate, depending on travel and lodging at each site.
All of this is included
- NAUI online education system for the advanced level
- In-person review sessions with the instructor
- Two nights of lodging during the trip
- Dive equipment rental during the course
- Boat, tanks and the six evaluation dives
- NAUI certification processing and international card
Not included
- Travel to the destination
- Meals and tips
- Nitrox, if you choose to use it
- Dive insurance
Why this works out cheaper
The usual practice in Mexico is to charge for the course on one side and the evaluation trip on the other, so the real total shows up once you have already started. Not here: one figure covers the theory, lodging, equipment, boat, the six dives and the certification. What is not included is written above, not after you book.
BEYOND
THE STANDARD
Océano Profundo asks more of you than the international standard does. We meet every one of its requirements, and add our own on top. This is what NAUI requires, published in full so you know what you are buying.
What the NAUI standard requires
- A minimum of six open water dives, and the course is taught entirely in open water
- Three required: navigation, night or limited visibility, and deep
- Three specialty dives, chosen from the standard's list
- A maximum of four dives per day to meet the course requirements
- At least two dives deeper than 6 metres
- Maximum depth of 40 metres, with no staged decompression
- Four students per instructor when diving deeper than 24 metres
- Every diver takes a leadership role on at least one dive
- Open Water certification or equivalent, and 15 years of age at the water phase
- Closing written exam and all dives recorded in the logbook
What we add on top
Groups of three to six
The standard allows up to eight students per instructor with an assistant. We never go past six, and drop to four for the deep dive.
No dive signed off unearned
If the sea does not cooperate, the missing dive is rescheduled on a follow-up trip at a reduced cost. A dive that did not happen never gets signed off.
An instructor who is a marine biologist
Professional license 10490732. Identifying what you see and recording the site conditions are not a course extra: they are how we teach you to dive.
The sea is in the price
The standard says nothing about money. The usual practice in Mexico is to charge for the course and the evaluation trip separately; here the six dives are included.
Source: NAUI Standards and Policies Manual, 2026 edition, version 2.0, Advanced Open Water Scuba Diver section, pages 116 to 119.
DARE TO
LEVEL UP
Groups run from three to six students. Write to us with your current level and the destination you want, and we will build your six dive programme.