Divemaster Program 2016 – A Year in Review
2016 has been a fantastic year for our Divemaster program here at Sairee Cottage Diving on Koh Tao, Thailand. We are really pleased to have certified 67 brand new PADI Divemasters in the last 12 months of running our divemaster program, which is a huge increase on the 39 we certified the year before. What is even more pleasing for me is that a large percentage of the people we certified were either friends of people who had already done the course with us, or had done other diving courses with Sairee Cottage Diving and enjoyed themselves so...
read moreMaster Scuba Diver
How do you stand out from the crowd when trying to land your dream job as a Divemaster? What can you do to make yourself an even better diver, even when you have become a PADI Dive Professional? How do you go about getting the skills to do even cooler dives than you are already doing, like going deeper than ever before, diving inside shipwrecks, or even becoming a dive Ninja?! It’s easy! You become a Master Scuba Diver!! While becoming a PADI Divemaster puts you on the first rung of the professional diving ladder, becoming a Master Scuba...
read moreSail Rock Saturday – Diving the best dive site in the Gulf of Thailand
After being on Koh Tao for over a month and hearing incredible things about the famous Sail Rock Saturday trip with Sairee Cottage Diving, I decided it was time to experience what all the fuss was about. This trip is considered a special one as the majority of dive shops on Koh Tao that visit the site only take the plunge once a week. We had to get up earlier than usual to arrive at the dive shop before dawn, which for me was rather difficult, but it was worth it to be the first boat at the dive site dubbed “the best in the Gulf of Thailand”,...
read moreKoh Tao Activities – What To Do On Koh Tao When You Are Not Diving
It’s not all about diving when you do your PADI Divemaster course with Sairee Cottage Diving. The flexibility of the schedule means you can give your self plenty of time away from being under water (if you want to), and explore the many other Koh Tao activities on land. One of the most common of the many Koh Tao activities you will see divers partaking in when they aren’t in the water, is drinking. It’s not difficult to see why when there are so many beautiful settings for sipping a cold one. You can choose from beach bars such as Maya or...
read morePADI Divemaster Trainee a – A Day in the Life of a DMT
Two weeks is all it has taken for me to fall into a rhythm on Koh Tao. It’s an island where thousands come to relax in the sun and enjoy the incredible diving the area has to offer. Life as a PADI Divemaster trainee at Sairee Cottage Diving is not that much harder and definitely no less enjoyable. If I’m going diving on the morning boat my day usually starts at the crack of dawn, with the longtail boat that carries tourists and employees alike to the dive boat leaving shortly after 7am. I’m not a morning person, waking has always...
read moreMapping a Divesite Project – Divemaster Course Snippet
The PADI Divemaster course combines practical assessments, theory sections, workshops, lectures, eco projects and much, much more. One of the practical assessments is the ability to map a new divesite during the mapping project and evaluate its potential for customers of all levels of diving experience. Around the world PADI Divemasters are responsible for finding new divesites, in fact almost every divesite that you have dived was most likely mapped primarily by a divemaster for the first time. Mapping is one of the most rewarding...
read moreSkill Circuit Practice during the Divemaster Course
Doing the PADI Divemaster training course is not only a fantastic once in a lifetime experience (especially if you do it on a tropical paradise island like Koh Tao in Thailand), and the opportunity to become qualified to get paid to take people diving, but it is also the first step towards becoming a PADI Open Water Instructor. In order to be a dive professional you need to know and be able to demonstrate every skill required for dive training. If you aren’t sure if you want to be a PADI Instructor yet, being a PADI Divemaster still gives you...
read moreWe’re on a boat – Sairee Cottage Divemaster Boat
Read about the joys of having a dedicated Divemaster Boat! To embark on a PADI Divemaster Course in Koh Tao, Thailand is one of the most rewarding experiences of a lifetime. Not only are you able to live in an exotic, tropical environment, wearing nothing more than a pair of shorts or a bikini 90% of the time (depending on personal preference). You will also be involving yourself with a large quantity of in-water and out-of-water activities. Here at Sairee Cottage Diving Koh Tao we aim to provide the pinnacle of resources to you from the get...
read moreKoh Tao Divemaster – Why settle for second best?
Choosing the right Koh Tao Divemaster program can be tough. Whether it be Plane, Train or Automobile, the journey to Koh Tao, Thailand can be tiresome. Regardless of your method of travel you are guaranteed to take a 2 hour ferry ride to get to the tropical island paradise that awaits. Did you travel all that way to settle for the bare minimum? At PADI 5 Star IDC Center, Sairee Cottage Diving we already assume that your answer is NO! This is why we as a dive center have gone above and beyond to offer you the best and most comprehensive...
read moreMassaman Curry – The Massa-Man’s Diary
Diving is great and all that but if we’re being totally honest, TOTALLY honest, we all know that a steaming bowl of Massaman goodness is what really gets our loins excited. But it seems like every man and his dog is selling it, so here’s a few of my favourites and a few to avoid. This is, ‘The Massa-Man’s Diary’ Photo credit thaisq.com Massaman Curry from various restaurants on Koh Tao Coffee Boat – Like a belligerent boat captain taking you to the wrong dive site, these boys will cook you something that looks vaguely like a curry and tell...
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