Click to open expanded view
Product information
OTA Scuba & Swim · Katy, Texas · PADI 5-Star Center
PADI Advanced
Open Water
Five dives. One weekend. Everything changes about how you dive.
Course Price
$399.95
Regular $599.95
Save 33%
Your Open Water certification got you in the water. Advanced Open Water is where you start to actually dive. The difference is real — deeper, more deliberate, more capable — and it happens fast when the instruction is good.
The course is five adventure dives over one weekend. Each dive is purpose-built around a specific skill: deep diving, navigation, buoyancy, wreck exploration, and DSMB deployment. By Sunday afternoon, you'll have done things you couldn't do Friday morning, and you'll understand why.
Prerequisite is an Open Water certification from any accredited agency. If you learned to dive somewhere else and want to continue your training with us, you're welcome here.
The Five Adventure Dives
What You'll Actually Do Underwater
Adventure dives are selected based on experience, goals, and dive site. We'll talk through the specifics when you book — every group is different.
Adventure Dive 1
Deep Diving
Dive to up to 100 feet. Learn how depth affects your air consumption, your buoyancy, and your judgment — in conditions where those things actually matter.
Adventure Dive 2
Underwater Navigation
Compass work and natural navigation — how to know where you are and how to get back without surfacing to look around. A fundamental skill that most recreational divers never learn properly.
Adventure Dive 3
Peak Performance Buoyancy
The dive that separates divers from swimmers. Precise control at any depth, proper trim, correct weighting. This is the skill every other skill depends on, and we dedicate an entire dive to it.
Adventure Dive 4
Wreck Diving
Texas lakes have more submerged structures than most people realize — drowned towns, intentional reef structures, concrete and steel underwater. Safe exploration techniques and situational awareness for diving on and around man-made structure.
Adventure Dive 5
DSMB Deployment
A Delayed Surface Marker Buoy is how you tell the boat — and the world — exactly where you're surfacing. It is standard safety equipment on every serious dive destination on earth. You need to own one, and you need to know how to use it correctly.
About the DSMB Requirement
Every diver at every level who dives with current, boat traffic, or open water needs a DSMB. Cozumel. Roatan. The Flower Gardens. The Red Sea. These are not suggestions — dive guides at serious destinations expect you to surface with one.
You will need to bring your own DSMB to this adventure dive, or purchase one through us. This is not gear rental — it's safety equipment you'll carry for the rest of your diving life. Come in or contact us and we'll help you choose the right one.
What You Get
Everything Included. No Surprises.
As with every OTA course — the price is the price. Certification fee included. Nothing extra at the finish line.
✓
PADI Advanced Open Water e-learning (complete on your schedule)
✓
All five adventure dives with full instructor guidance
✓
BCD, regulator, and cylinder rental for both dive days
✓
PADI certification fee — your Advanced Open Water card, issued directly
✓
Free PADI Club membership (a $55 value)
✓
Maximum four students per instructor — no exceptions
Not Included
What to Bring
Personal dive gear is yours to own — we don't rent mask, fins, or exposure protection. If you need to gear up, we're here to help you do it right.
–
Mask, snorkel, fins, and boots — personal gear we do not rent
–
Wetsuit (required). Water temperature at the surface varies by season but drops to 60°F or colder at depth at both lake sites — year round. Rental available for $25 per day. Previously purchased a wetsuit from OTA? We'll provide the thicker suit at no charge.
–
DSMB — you will need your own for the DSMB adventure dive
–
Dive computer (mandatory — without one, deep dives are limited to 20 minutes by table limits). Rental available for $20 per day. Don't have one yet? We can help you choose the right one before your course.
–
Lake admission — $20 per person per day at Mammoth Lake; $5 per person per day at Mansfield Dam (cash only)
–
Boat surcharge for Lake Travis dives — $65–$130 per diver depending on group size, plus gratuity for the captain
Both lake sites are remote — plan to bring snacks, lunch, and plenty of water. Diving is more physically demanding than it looks and there are no food or drink vendors on site. Questions about fees or what to bring? Contact us and we'll walk you through everything before you book.
The OTA Standard
Why This Course Is Different
Four Students Per Instructor
Not a marketing line. Four students per instructor is the standard, no exceptions. When we dive Lake Travis we bring additional instructors where possible — which also helps keep the boat cost down for everyone.
Skills That Transfer
The standard isn't whether you pass. It's whether a dive guide in Cozumel, Roatan, or the Red Sea — someone who has never met you — can tell from watching you enter the water that you were trained right.
No Hidden Costs
$399.95. That is the number. E-learning, five dives, gear rental, certification fee, and PADI Club membership. Nothing else arrives on checkout day.
Taught by People Who Dive
Between Morad and Jeanne Hassan, our team brings over 20 years of professional diving experience each — including four years instructing and guiding in the Sinai, Egypt. Advanced Open Water was the course that started most of those stories.
Course Schedule
One Weekend. Five Dives.
Advanced Open Water — Course Timeline
Before
Complete the PADI Advanced Open Water e-learning — finish at your own pace before the weekend. Review the adventure dive materials for your five selected dives. Most students take 4–6 hours total.
Saturday
Three adventure dives — morning through afternoon. Site and order confirmed at booking based on location and conditions.
Sunday
Two adventure dives — completing your five-dive certification requirement. Debrief and certification processing same day.
Exact dive sites and daily schedule are confirmed when you book. We dive at locations including Lake Travis and Mammoth Lake depending on time of year and conditions. Dive schedule is subject to change based on site availability — we'll communicate any adjustments well in advance.
Included With Your Course
Free PADI Club Membership
PADI Club
Every OTA course includes a complimentary PADI Club membership — a $55 value — activated when you register for your certification.
Discounts on future PADI courses
Digital certification card access
Exclusive member digital content
Dive trip planning resources
Already a PADI Club member? Contact us before purchasing — we will instruct you on how to get your discounts.
Common Questions
Before You Enroll
What certification do I need to take this course?
Open Water certification from any accredited agency — PADI, SSI, NAUI, SDI, BSAC, and most others all qualify. If you're unsure whether your certification counts, contact us and we'll confirm. No minimum number of logged dives required beyond what your agency required for Open Water.
Do I need my own gear?
BCD, regulator, and cylinder are included in your course price. You need to bring your own mask, fins, boots, and wetsuit — these are personal equipment and we do not rent them. You will also need a DSMB for the DSMB adventure dive, which you can purchase through us. If you're still building out your kit, come in before the course and we'll help you get properly equipped.
Why do I need a DSMB? Can I borrow one?
A DSMB is personal safety equipment — the same way you wouldn't share a wetsuit, you shouldn't share a surface marker. More importantly, you need to own one because you'll need it for the rest of your diving life. Every serious dive destination in the world expects divers to carry one. It is one of the most important pieces of gear you will ever buy.
What kind of SMB do I need — and does any surface marker buoy work?
Not all SMBs are DSMBs, and for this course the distinction matters. A DSMB has a reel and the hardware to connect it — a clip or D-ring at the base of the tube that accepts a line. Some basic SMBs, including many inexpensive ones, are tube-only with no attachment point and cannot be rigged with a reel at all. Those work as a last-resort visual signal from the surface. They are not suitable for a controlled deployment at depth.
Because you'll be deploying from underwater, your DSMB also needs an over-pressure relief valve — a release mechanism that vents expanding gas as the buoy ascends. Without one, the air inside expands as pressure decreases on the way up and the tube can rupture. This is not a theoretical concern.
What you need: a tube with an over-pressure relief valve, a reel, and a line. If you're not sure what you have, bring it in before the course and we'll take a look. If you need one, contact us and we'll point you in the right direction.
Where do we dive? Lake or ocean?
Advanced Open Water is conducted at Texas lakes — primarily Lake Travis and Mammoth Lake depending on season, schedule, and conditions. We'll confirm the exact site when you book. We know both dive sites extremely well, and every adventure dive is designed to make the most of what those environments offer — including submerged structures for wreck diving that most divers never expect to find in a Texas lake.
Prefer to do your Advanced Open Water in the ocean? We can arrange that. Contact our travel coordinator and we'll plan a private trip to Mexico for you, your dive buddies, or your family. There is no better way to earn your Advanced card than on a reef.
Can I dive to 100 feet after I'm certified?
Your Advanced Open Water certification depth is the maximum depth you reached during training. If your dives reached 100 feet, you're certified to 100 feet diving with a buddy without a professional present.
In practice this rarely matters. If you're diving with a guide — on a trip to Cozumel, Roatan, the Red Sea, or anywhere else with a professional leading the dive — the guide covers the depth. You don't need to disclose your training depth, and you can do that 100-foot wall dive without any issue.
What does the certification fee cover exactly?
Everything. $399.95 includes your PADI Advanced Open Water e-learning, all five adventure dives, BCD, regulator, and cylinder rental, your PADI Advanced Open Water Diver certification fee, and your free PADI Club membership. Nothing else to pay. That is the OTA standard across every course we offer.
Ready to Dive Deeper?
Five adventure dives. One weekend. The standard isn't whether you pass — it's whether a dive guide who has never met you would know you were trained properly.
ENROLL NOW — $399.95Recommended for You
- Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.
!