Some people take a simple resort course that involves a morning in the hotel pool going over the basics of their equipment. By the afternoon they are in the water, diving with an instructor. They may continue to dive for the rest of the trip, but always with a dive master. Others complete the required certification dives at sites near home, ranging from beach dives off Queens, N.Y., to quarry dives in Indiana, to cool dips in Puget Sound. Certification gives the diver the ability to go off paired with a buddy to plan dives at depths appropriate to their skills.
Diving is a worldwide hobby.
Australia, South Africa and Japan are all diving centers. In the United States, divers head for California, Florida, Hawaii, the Great Lakes, the Gulf of Mexico. The Caribbean also is popular. Dive shops arrange tours and travel agents offer package deals. Delta and American are the two major U.S. airlines serving the Caribbean.