PADI eLearning
Complete the academic study online before you arrive, so your days here are spent in the water.
Silo · Certification
PADI Open Water Course Certify in three days in the Gili Islands
The world's most recognised scuba qualification, taught in 28–29 °C water with visibility past 25 metres. Three days, nine dives, and a certification that works anywhere on the planet to 18 metres.
- 3 days
- Course length
- 9 dives
- 5 confined + 4 open water
- 18 m
- Certified depth
- 1:4
- Max students per instructor
- Age 10+
- Minimum age
- Ask for price
- All-inclusive
No hidden fees
What Your Course Fee Covers
The price you are quoted is the price you pay us. No equipment surcharges, no academic fees.
Full equipment
Mask, snorkel, fins, BCD, regulator set and wetsuit. Scubapro and Aqualung, serviced every six months.
Professional tuition
Every session with an active-status PADI Instructor, maximum four students.
Boat and tanks
All transfers to the training sites and filled tanks for all nine dives.
Certification
Your official PADI e-card plus a physical logbook to record the training dives.
Insurance
Diver insurance for the duration of your training, affiliated with DAN.
Not included: accommodation, meals, and the island entrance fee plus Gili Eco Trust contribution — roughly IDR 150,000 (about USD 10) per person, paid once on arrival. That fee funds reef conservation and waste management in the islands.
Day by day
From Pool to Open Water in Three Days
Theory is done online before you arrive, so all three days are practical. Timings shift with student progress and sea conditions.
Day 1
Foundations and confined water
09:00 – 16:00
Meet your instructor, learn to assemble and care for the gear, then the first three confined water dives.
- Course orientation and eLearning review
- Equipment workshop
- Confined water dives 1–3: regulator recovery, mask clearing, buoyancy
- Debrief and log dives
Day 2
First ocean dives
09:00 – 15:00
Two open water dives to a maximum of 12 metres at a shallow, calm site such as Meno Slope.
- Briefing and boat departure
- Open water dive 1 — applying confined water skills
- Surface interval on the boat
- Open water dive 2 — skills and underwater navigation
Day 3
Certification dives
09:00 – 15:00
Your final two dives to 18 metres at a deeper site such as Turtle Heaven, then the paperwork.
- Open water dive 3 — advanced skills and dive planning
- Surface interval
- Open water dive 4 — final demonstration, then a fun dive
- Logbooks and certification. You are a PADI Open Water Diver
You do not need to be a strong swimmer. PADI asks you to float or tread water for 10 minutes and swim 200 metres — or 300 metres with mask, fins and snorkel — without stopping. There is no time limit and any stroke is fine.
Choose your base
Trawangan, Air, or Meno
We run training centres on all three islands and the PADI standards are identical everywhere. What changes is your surface interval, not your course.
Gili Trawangan
Solo travellers and groups
The most developed of the three, with a lively social scene and the widest choice of restaurants.
Hostels to villas · from $20/night
Gili Air
Couples and families
Chic and relaxed. Beachfront cafes, yoga studios and boutique hotels without the nightlife.
Boutique hotels · from $40/night
Gili Meno
Quiet and secluded
The most tranquil island. Quiet beaches, a turtle sanctuary and very little else.
Bungalows and small resorts · from $35/night
Ways to book
Course Options
Small group
Ask for price USD
Maximum 4 students per instructor
The standard course. Small enough that your instructor can watch every student on every skill.
Book this optionOne to one
Ask for price USD
You and your instructor only
For a schedule of your own, or if you would rather learn without anyone else in the group.
Book this optionA 20% deposit secures your place; the balance is due on arrival. We accept Wise, international bank transfer, and Visa or Mastercard (3% bank processing fee). Groups of four or more can be quoted as a package.
Standards
Why Training Here Is Safe
PADI 5-Star IDC
PADI Center S-26789, the highest rating PADI awards. We are qualified to train PADI professionals, not only recreational divers.
Senior instructors
Insured, active-status PADI professionals. Our senior instructors hold the MSDT rating with an average of 5,000+ logged dives, and teach in English, French, German and Indonesian.
On every boat
Emergency oxygen, first aid kits and marine radios. All staff are trained Emergency First Responders.
Never rushed
If a skill needs more time, you get more time — extra sessions at no additional charge. A relaxed student is a safe student.
Every student completes a PADI Medical Statement. If you answer yes to any listed condition you will need written clearance from a physician before entering the water. The nearest hyperbaric chamber is in Mataram, about 90 minutes from the islands.
After Open Water
Keep Going While It Is Fresh
The Advanced Open Water course builds straight on what you have just learned: five Adventure Dives, minimal theory, and a depth limit of 30 metres. Taking it immediately after Open Water is the most efficient way to consolidate the skills while you are still in a learning mindset. Booked together, the two courses run 5–6 days.
PADI Advanced Open Water
Before you book
Common Questions
No. PADI asks for a 10-minute float or tread in water too deep to stand in, and a 200-metre swim (or 300 metres with mask, fins and snorkel) without stopping. There is no time limit and you may use any stroke.
No. PADI standards and course content are identical on Gili Trawangan, Gili Air and Gili Meno. We run training centres on all three and the boats reach the same sites from each. Only your surface interval changes.
The course fee covers everything we charge. Outside it: accommodation, meals, and the island entrance fee plus Gili Eco Trust contribution of roughly IDR 150,000 per person, paid once on arrival.
Every student completes a PADI Medical Statement. If you answer yes to any of the listed conditions you will need written clearance from a physician before any in-water activity. Send us the form early and we will tell you where you stand.
At least two weeks, and further ahead in peak season — July to August and December to January — when instructor availability is tightest.
Reserve your place
Four Steps to Your Certification
Tell us your dates and which island you will stay on. We reply within four hours during operating hours.
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Enquiry
Send your preferred start date, how many of you there are, and your island.
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Confirmation
We confirm availability and send the PADI Medical Statement to review.
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20% deposit
Secures your place. Your PADI eLearning access code follows straight after.
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Arrive
Meet your instructor and begin. The balance is payable on arrival.