Go deeper. Dive more confidently. Explore Caño Island beyond 18 metres. The PADI Advanced Open Water course runs over 2 days with 5 adventure dives inside Caño Island Biological Reserve. Deep diving, underwater navigation, and 3 elective dives. No exam. Maximum 4 students per instructor. Start the day after your Open Water certification.
The Advanced Open Water Diver is the next step after obtaining your Open Water certification and is designed to perfect your technique, gain confidence, and expand your limits as a diver. It qualifies you to dive to 30 metres and builds real confidence through 5 adventure dives at Caño Island Biological Reserve
During the 2 days of training, you will complete 5 specialty dives in the sea, where you will work on deep diving, improve your underwater navigation, and optimize your buoyancy control.
The course combines E-learning with real practice at sea, always accompanied by certified SSI instructors.
No exam. No classroom days. You learn entirely in the water, with a PADI instructor alongside you on every dive. The course takes 2 days and can start the morning after you complete your Open Water certification at Drake Divers.
Five adventure dives. Two mandatory, three your choice. All completed inside Caño Island Biological Reserve. Deep Diving and Underwater Navigation are required for all Advanced Open Water certifications. The three elective dives above are our recommended options at Caño Island. If you want to swap any of them for a different PADI adventure dive, send us a WhatsApp and we will work it out together.
Descend to 30 metres at Bajo del Diablo. Manage gas consumption, buoyancy at depth, and nitrogen narcosis in the most dramatic reef environment on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast.
Use a compass and natural references to move through the reef with precision. The skill that makes you a confident, independent diver on any site in the world.
Master neutral buoyancy and trim at Caño Island. Reduce air consumption, protect the reef, and make every future dive more controlled, efficient, and enjoyable underwater.
Learn to recognise the key species at Caño Island: reef sharks, eagle rays, hawksbill turtles, moray eels, and parrotfish. Your guide turns every dive into a marine biology session.
Move through Caño Island using natural currents with minimal effort. The best dive for spotting manta rays and eagle rays crossing through open water above the reef.
Five adventure dives across 2 days inside Caño Island Biological Reserve. Day 1: two dives covering deep diving and one elective. Day 2: three dives including underwater navigation and two electives of your choice.
Departure from Drake Bay at 7:30 AM both days. Back by 2:00 PM, afternoon free.
Times are approximate and may adjust to sea conditions. Safety takes priority over schedule.
PRICE: $490
No hidden costs. Everything you need for your Advanced certification, covered.
The Caño Island Biological Reserve has twelve documented dive sites. During the Open Water course we use the ones between 6 and 18 metres, with gentle currents and 15 to 25 metres of visibility.
Caño Island has been a protected marine reserve since 1978, with no fishing allowed. That is why the wildlife stays calm when divers arrive. Expect whitetip reef sharks, eagle rays, marbled rays, sea turtles, moray eels and dense schools of snapper and jack.
Green and hawksbill turtles feed on the reef and surface to breathe – often within metres of the group.
Resting on the sandy bottom, 3 to 8 metres below your fins. Seen on approximately 9 out of 10 snorkel tours.
Up to 3 metres across, gliding in formation directly beneath the surface.
The encounter that surprises everyone.
Wingspan up to 2 metres, crossing mid-water in pairs directly below the snorkel group. Common at both reef sites.
No fishing since 1978 – no fear of humans. Dense schools of parrotfish, snapper and barracuda move through you.
July to October only. The boat crossing to Caño Island passes directly through active humpback whale nursery grounds.
In our Google reviews, we are one of the highest-rated dive centers in Costa Rica.
Our community highlights our organization, professionalism and the personal touch that makes us unique. connection to this corner of Costa Rica — that’s what makes Drake Divers different.
No minimum number of logged dives is required. PADI only requires that you hold an Open Water Diver certification (or equivalent from SSI, NAUI, or CMAS). You can enrol in the Advanced course the morning after completing your Open Water at Drake Divers. The course is designed to build experience, not require it.
Your 3 elective adventure dives are chosen together with your instructor based on conditions at Caño Island and your interests. The most popular options are Peak Performance Buoyancy, Fish Identification, Underwater Navigation (as a third dive), and Drift Diving. Your instructor will recommend what works best given the currents, visibility, and marine life activity on your specific dive days.
No. The Advanced course has no pool sessions and no confined water practice. All 5 dives are in the open ocean at Caño Island. The physical demands are similar to a regular fun dive. The course focuses on developing judgment and skill underwater, not fitness or endurance. Most divers find it significantly more enjoyable than the Open Water because it feels less like training and more like real diving.
The deep adventure dive typically takes place at Bajo del Diablo or El Arco, where volcanic formations descend past 30 metres. You will cover nitrogen narcosis awareness, buoyancy at depth, and gas consumption monitoring with your instructor. The light quality, scale of the reef, and sense of space at 30 metres at Caño Island is something most Advanced students describe as the highlight of the entire course.
Yes. Any valid Open Water certification from any recognised agency (PADI, SSI, NAUI, CMAS, or equivalent) qualifies you to start the Advanced course with us. Bring your certification card, physical or digital, and your dive log if you have one. We will review your recent dive history with you before the first day to confirm the right sites and depth progression for your group.
Most dive centers in Costa Rica run Advanced courses in less protected environments with lower marine density. At Drake Divers, all 5 adventure dives take place inside Caño Island Biological Reserve, fully protected since 1978. Your deep dive, navigation dive, and 3 elective dives all happen surrounded by reef sharks, eagle rays, and sea turtles. The certification is identical. The experience is not.
Both, but the depth limit is the smallest part of it. The two skills that most divers say changed their diving permanently are Peak Performance Buoyancy and Underwater Navigation. Buoyancy control reduces air consumption, protects the reef, and makes every future dive more comfortable. Navigation reduces anxiety on unfamiliar sites. The 30 metre depth clearance opens up dive sites worldwide, but the judgment and technique you develop at Caño Island is what stays with you.
At least 2 weeks in advance during the dry season from December to April. In the wet season from May to November, one week is usually enough. The Advanced course groups are capped at 4 students per instructor and availability is genuinely limited. If you plan to combine Open Water and Advanced back to back, book both at the same time to guarantee consecutive dates.
Call or message us directly. Talk to one of our local instructors. We’ll listen to you and help you choose the best diving or snorkeling experience for your level.
