Scuba Diving, Snorkeling & Sailing Guides!

Best Sailing Shoes for Walking in Comfort & Style

With summer around the corner, it’s time for mojitos, beaches, and boat shoes! Boat shoes are the perfect pair of ...
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Snorkeling in Hawaii – Is It Safe or Dangerous?

When you hear people talking about the amazing time they had snorkeling in Hawaii, Mexico, Belize, or any other tropical ...
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Best Snorkeling Sun Protection Against UV Rays

Imagine the gentle warmth of the sun as it envelops your skin in its embrace. Just thinking about it probably ...
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How to Use Your Mask, Snorkel, and Fins

If you've never snorkeled before, here are some quick tips on how to use a mask, snorkel, and fins. Snorkeling ...
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How to Clean and Maintain Your Snorkeling Gear

Just like any equipment that you plan to use for a long time, especially ones that are constantly exposed to ...
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Do You Need to Know How to Swim to Snorkel?

Have you ever wanted to try snorkeling while on vacation but didn’t because you think your swimming ability isn’t good ...
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Can You Snorkel Without Fins?

If you’ve never snorkeled before you might be wondering what equipment you need to get started. The most important pieces ...
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Snorkel Flotation Devices to Keep You Safe in the Water

So you’re just getting started with snorkeling and you’ve got yourself a mask, snorkel, and a pair of fins. Nice, ...
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What to Wear On Your Snorkeling Trip

If you’ve never snorkeled before, you might be wondering what kind of snorkeling equipment you need to bring. Thankfully, snorkeling ...
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Best Foul Weather Gear for Offshore Sailing and Fishing

When you’re doing offshore sailing or fishing, you need the best foulies to keep you dry and warm abroad. With ...
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Best Waterproof Dry Bags for Snorkeling

Dry bags do exactly what you think they do - keep your belongings dry. But let’s dive down into what ...
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Best Prescription Snorkel Masks for Glasses Wearers

Can you wear glasses while snorkeling? Unfortunately, glasses and sports are two things that don’t work well together, and this ...
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Best Short Fins for Snorkeling and Travel

Short fins or travel fins are much easier to pack for trips or vacations with your other snorkeling gear. It ...
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Best Snorkeling Fins for Wide Feet Review

It is a huge pain in the behind to shop for footwear when you have irregularly sized feet, especially if ...
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Best Water Shoes for Snorkeling Review

For those who are afraid of getting their sneakers wet, water shoes are shoes that are designed to be worn ...
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Best Neoprene Water Socks for Snorkeling Review

Do you hate it when your fins rub and chafe your skin? How about when you walk around barefoot and ...
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Best Wetsuits for Snorkeling Review

It can be tough to pick out the best wetsuit for snorkeling. You have to consider what thickness of neoprene ...
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Should You Wear Earplugs for Snorkeling?

Wearing earplugs for snorkeling or swimming in general can help you avoid a type of ear infection known as Swimmer’s ...
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Can You Snorkel with a Life Jacket?

If you are not a strong swimmer, you may be wondering if it is possible to snorkel with a life ...
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Snorkeling Tips for Non-Swimmers

Is it possible to snorkel if you don’t know how to swim? While the answer is potentially yes, in our ...
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Getting Started with Scuba Diving and Snorkeling

Most of our planet is covered in water, and thankfully we’ve figured out how to make the best of it for our benefit and enjoyment. Nowadays, people literally ride the waves and swim with the fishes, and you can do it too!

At OpenWaterHQ.com, our goal is to provide people with the knowledge they need to get into the water quickly and enjoy their favorite leisure water activities, whether it is scuba diving, sailing, snorkeling or kitesurfing.

Most of these hobbies require extensive knowledge to do properly and safely, and knowing what equipment you need is important. If you are snorkeling for example, you need to have a scuba mask, snorkel, and fins. Scuba divers need all of that and more, such as a properly-fitted wetsuit, oxygen tank, and dive knife.

Without any help, finding the gear you need and learning how to use them can get overwhelming fast. That is why below we have compiled a list of our latest articles on these topics to help beginners get started. Even if you’re a veteran, we’ve got some useful or interesting articles for you peruse as well.

Tips to Help You Pass Your Open Water Course

Just imagine how small you are in the vastness of the sea. The thought that, without your gear, there’s no possible way a human being could survive in this harsh environment for very long. And who knows what kinds of sea creatures you might encounter out there? As a beginner, the first time going out for an open water dive is nerve-wracking!

But don’t worry! As long as you are with other divers and a qualified instructor, it should be a fun and educational experience once you get over your nerves. And in a short time, you will be exploring the wonder that is the undersea world. Here are some tips to help you ace your Open Water Course.

Stay Calm

Don’t panic. In fact, do the opposite of that. Unfortunately, staying calm and relaxed is difficult for novice divers, but it’s crucial if you want to safely dive. Just know that almost everybody finds it scary the first time, and instructors expect it, but do your best to follow your training.

Pay Attention

Everything you are taught at an Open Water Course has a purpose, even if it is not immediately obvious. Don’t make the mistake of thinking certain tips are less important than others. Your instructor will generally tell you why something is important, and when you might need to use that knowledge could be during an emergency. So don’t neglect any details and pay attention.

Ask Questions

During an Open Water Course, your instructor will be doing lots of demonstrations and explanations. Perhaps your instructor is going too fast, or your brain is being overloaded with information, or something wasn’t explained very well, but when this happens don’t hesitate to ask for clarification.

This relates to the paying attention tip just above. Not understanding a concept is basically the same as if you missed that bit of information. Perhaps it was a crucial point that could save your life or somebody else’s in the future. So don’t feel bad about asking “dumb” questions. Don’t feel bad, don’t feel shy, and chances are you weren’t the only person with that question anyways.

It’s Not a Competition

Maybe you are a competitive person and like being the best. But when you are out in the open water, it’s a team effort and everyone should help each other out. People learn at different speeds, and if you or somebody else learns the concept first, it’s not a big deal.

When you are taking a scuba diving course for the first time, the goal is not to be the fastest at learning the theories; it is to give you the knowledge to excel on your first real dive. So as long as all the students (potential diving partners) understand the theory at some point, everything is peachy.

Don’t Give Up

Many students take the Open Water Course and think they know exactly what it is like to scuba dive. Yes, the course prepares you for it, but it is still not quite the real thing. For example, normally when diving you wouldn’t remove your regular and mask underwater and performing fin pivots.

The course will instill in you the confidence and skills needed to be a scuba diver. But if you’re unsure if diving is for you, get through the course first and then go for an open water dive for yourself after. That way, you can figure out if you enjoy diving or not once you’re not in an instructional environment.

Have Fun

Remember to stay calm and enjoy the experience. Don’t let the diving course scare you away from diving. Scuba diving is incredibly fun, and people enjoy it for a lot of different reasons. Once you’ve successfully finished the course and swim in the open water for leisure, you will know why diving is so popular.

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