Slickrock Adventures

• Slickrock offers plenty to the outdoor sportsman visiting Belize. For scuba instruction, Slickrock is affiliated with PADI, offering the shortened "Discover Scuba" course. Completed in a half day's time, Discover divers can dive as long as they are accompanied by a more seasoned, licensed diver. As of 2010, the course costs $125 per person and includes all related scuba gear rental. Kids no less than 8 years old can participate in the Bubblemaker program ($125), allowing them to dive with a PADI dive instructor. More adventuresome divers can take the two-day Scuba Diver course ($335), which allows dives up to 40 feet in depth, but the diver must be under the instruction of a dive master at all times.
  
  

White Sands

• The dive shop of White Sands offers a complete palette of PADI instruction to would-be divers. Those with some scuba instruction and experience can brush up on their skills by taking the Refresher Course ($160). Once completed and skills are demonstrated, divers take to the warm waters of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve; price also includes a snorkeling excursion at Shark Ray Alley. The Resort Course ($160) is offered much like the Discover Scuba program for those wanting the base level of instruction. For those looking for the full package, Open Water certification programs ($475) are offered over the course of three to four days and include all scuba gear rentals, plus four open-water dives in the Caribbean.
  
  

Seahorse Dive Shop

• Setting up shop in 1994, Seahorse is the area's longest-running dive operation. Also a noted and recommended resort, the Seahorse is another PADI affiliate that lets divers begin their scuba journeys by selecting which course appeals to their sense of adventure (and budget). The Seahorse offers the same PADI courses as many of the other affiliated operators, although at more competitive rates: The basic Resort/Discover Scuba course is available for $125, while Open Water certifications run around $375.
  
  

Diving Belize

• Renowned for its tropical serenity, Belize offers the beginning and novice diver who have recently obtained their certification the chance to dive some of the world's best underwater environs. Depending on the instructional dive package selected, divers can take in the world famous Blue Hole, a 300-foot circular indenture 60 miles off Belize's coast. The second-largest barrier reef in the world is located just off of Belize and open to certified divers.
  
  

About Certification

• Whether the new diver chooses the basic Discover/Resort package or the more inclusive Open Water programs, the wonders of Belize's famed offshore coastline are open to the diver. Typically, classes cover the basics of scuba equipment operation, how to breathe using the equipment and what to do in basic emergency situations. Longer courses such as the Open Water certification, or "C" Card, expand on the basics to include more emergency procedures and effects of diving pressures on the body. All licensing agencies (PADI, NAUI and Scuba Schools International, or SSI) cover this information in their respective classes. Despite taking the courses in Belize, new divers can take their newly learned skills to other resorts the world over.