Everything You
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You just need to be comfortable in the water, you don’t need to be a competitive swimmer. The PADI standard is a non-stop 200-meter swim (or 300 meters with mask, fins, and snorkel) and 10 minutes of floating or treading water. It’s not a timed test; it’s a check that you’re at ease in the water. If you can do relaxed laps in a pool, you’re fine.

From age 8, kids can experience diving through the PADI Bubblemaker program (max depth 2m). The PADI Junior Open Water Diver certification starts at age 10 with depth limits. From 15, you can earn the full unrestricted PADI Open Water Diver certification. There is no upper age limit, some of our most passionate students started diving in their 60s and 70s.

More people than you’d think start their first lesson nervous, and leave hooked. Fear of water is human. NB’s training is designed to overcome that fear gently and step by step. You start in a pool where your feet touch the bottom, building skills and confidence before you ever see the ocean. With a maximum of 3 students per instructor, nobody rushes, there’s plenty of time to talk things through.

Most healthy people can dive without issue. PADI requires a medical statement before training begins. Conditions like pneumothorax, asthma, recent surgery, or certain heart conditions may need a doctor’s sign-off. If anything concerns you, we recommend a dive medical exam before enrolling. Don’t self-diagnose, many people who worry their body isn’t built for diving find out from a doctor that they’re perfectly fine.

Scuba diving is far less physically demanding than most people expect. In the water, buoyancy carries your weight, movements become smooth, and you travel with nothing but breathing and slow fin kicks. If you can take regular short walks or do light exercise, you’re fit enough to start.

Korean waters offer a varied, dramatic environment for dive training. In winter, water temperatures can drop to 2°C.

You’ll meet unique marine life that lives only in cold water.

It’s not as famous as Southeast Asia, but divers who have experienced both say Korean waters have a charm all their own.

Temperatures vary widely by season and coast. The East Sea runs 0–5°C in winter (January–February, ice diving season) and 20–25°C in summer. The South Sea is warmer year-round. In summer (July–August) a 5mm wetsuit is enough; winter requires a drysuit. We provide all the gear you need, so there’s nothing to buy before you start.

Yes. Korea offers excellent diving in every season, but the experience changes dramatically. Winter brings exceptional visibility (15–20m in the East Sea), ice diving opportunities, and a dramatic cold-water ecosystem. Spring and fall offer moderate temperatures and active marine life. Summer is the warmest and most accessible season for beginners. Each season has its own character and reward.

Korean waters hold surprising diversity: nudibranchs, octopus, sea urchins, large schools of fish, cuttlefish, rays, and in the East Sea, occasional large pelagics. Winter brings unique cold-water species you’ll never see in tropical diving. It’s not as famous as Southeast Asia, but for divers who’ve experienced both, Korea is often the real surprise.

Scuba diving is a very safe activity when you’re properly trained and dive within your certification limits. Diving accidents almost always involve untrained or unqualified divers, divers exceeding their limits, or divers ignoring safety procedures. PADI training exists precisely to establish those safe limits and habits. NB Divers has maintained a zero-accident record across 10,000+ certifications since 2000.

Decompression sickness (DCS) occurs when nitrogen absorbed during a dive forms bubbles during ascent, usually from ascending too fast or exceeding recommended depth/time limits. Prevention: follow PADI dive tables or a dive computer, ascend slowly (max 18m/min), complete a 3-minute safety stop at 5m, and dive within your certification’s depth limits. These habits are trained from your very first dive until they’re second nature.

Your buddy is the first person who can help in an emergency, from a simple mask leak to an out-of-air situation. At NB Divers, the buddy system is a core skill taught from your very first pool session.

Yes. NB Divers is a PADI Career Development Center, the highest tier of PADI professional training facility. We take you from Divemaster through PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor (OWSI), on to Specialty Instructor, and ultimately to Course Director level. Founder Charlie Jung, a PADI Course Director, personally trains every professional candidate.

To become a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor: PADI Advanced Open Water + Rescue Diver certifications → EFR certification → PADI Divemaster license → Instructor Development Course (IDC) → PADI Instructor Examination (IE). NB Divers offers every step of this path. The full journey typically takes 12–24 months depending on your starting point and commitment.

Yes, approached correctly, absolutely. The global diving industry keeps growing, and PADI instructors are in demand from the Maldives to Mexico. In Korea especially, the diving community is expanding fast with a growing expat population and rising interest in adventure sports. NB Divers trains not just your diving skills but the business and marketing skills you need to build a sustainable teaching career.