Discover Scuba Diving
No experience needed - just curiosity and your first breath underwater.
1 day
PADI Certified
Course booking
From
£25.00
Need help choosing? Our team can match the course to your experience, goals and confidence level.
PADI 5-Star
Instructor Development Centre
Small Groups
Real Instructor Attention
Unit 4, Bellman Court, Great Knollys Street, Reading, RG1 7HD
Diving Academy
Safety First
Confidence Before Speed
Course overview
What to expect
Discover Scuba Diving
There's nothing quite like that first breath underwater, and Discover Scuba Diving is the easiest, most relaxed way to find out what it feels like, no experience or certification required. A PADI Professional hands you all the gear and walks you through the essentials, clearing your mask, controlling buoyancy, breathing through a regulator, all in the calm of a pool. It's the natural, no-commitment starting point before full Open Water Diver certification.
In detail
About This Course
PADI Discover Scuba Diving is the simplest possible way to find out what scuba diving actually feels like, with no previous experience or certification required. It is designed for complete beginners - whether you have never so much as tried a mask and snorkel or you have just always wondered what it is like to breathe underwater - and it strips the experience back to the essentials in a safe, controlled environment.
The session is led by a highly-trained PADI Professional, who provides all the scuba gear and talks you through the basic skills you will need before getting in the water: how to breathe through a regulator, clear water from your mask, and control your buoyancy. Everything takes place in a pool or other calm water environment, so there is no need to worry about currents, waves, or open water conditions on your first attempt.
For many people, Discover Scuba Diving is as much about overcoming the initial unfamiliarity of breathing underwater as it is about the diving itself, and that first breath, once the nerves settle, is often what turns a curious visitor into a committed diver. It is a low-pressure, genuinely enjoyable way to try the sport before deciding whether to commit to a full course.
Offered at The Diving Academy's training centre in Reading, Discover Scuba Diving is a popular first step for those considering the PADI Open Water Diver certification, which builds on this taster experience with full, internationally recognised open water training.
The process
How The Course Works
Step 1
Quick Safety Briefing
Before anything touches the water, your PADI Professional walks you through the basics of the equipment and the handful of safety points that actually matter. No manuals to study and no test to pass - just enough to make the next part feel calm rather than daunting.
Step 2
Your First Breaths Underwater
You get in the water in a pool or a pool-like spot - calm, clear, and easy to stand up in if you need to - and take your first breaths underwater with an instructor right beside you the whole time. It's designed purely to let you feel what diving is actually like, with nothing to prove.
PADI states: the confined water session takes place in a pool or a body of water with pool-like conditions - good visibility and calm water.
Step 3
An Optional Taste of Open Water
Depending on how your session is run, you may get to carry that same experience straight into open water the same day. Done right, this dive can even count towards a future Open Water Diver course, so today isn't necessarily a one-off.
PADI states: depending on how it's conducted, the experience may count toward a future Open Water Diver course.
Course curriculum
What You'll Learn
Learning Outcomes
Getting ready
Before You Start & What's Next
What's Included
- A highly-trained PADI Professional provides scuba gear and explains basic scuba diving skills
- Takes place in a pool or calm water environment
Prerequisites
- Speak to our team to confirm the best starting point for your experience.
Next Steps
- PADI Open Water Diver certification
Upcoming training
Dates & Booking
No fixed dates listed right now
Choose your preferred start date and the academy will confirm instructor availability with you directly.
Speak to the team
Not sure where to start?
We will help you pick the right course, package and dates without making the process feel complicated.
Quick facts
Duration
1 day of structured training
Location
Unit 4, Bellman Court, Great Knollys Street, Reading, RG1 7HD
Certification
Recognised PADI qualification on completion
Have questions?
We're here to help
Our course directors can talk you through Discover Scuba Diving, confirm it's the right fit for your experience, and help you find a date that works.
From
£25.00
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