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PADI Specialty Course · OTA Scuba & Swim · Katy, TX
PADI Deep Diver
Specialty
Four dives. Down to 130 feet. The credential that opens the door to technical diving.
Course Price
$599.95
+ boat surcharge & lake admission
billed separately
billed separately
The Deep Diver specialty is one of the most purposeful certifications in recreational diving. Not because 130 feet is a destination — most dives don't go there — but because the training forces you to understand what changes at depth: how gas behaves, how narcosis builds, how your body responds to pressure, and how to plan a dive that leaves you a margin for error. Divers who complete this course come up different.
It is also the prerequisite for PADI Tec 40, the entry point into technical diving. If you have ever looked at a twin-set rig and wondered what it would take to go further, this course is where that path begins.
At OTA, we teach this course at Lake Travis — real open water, real depth, and conditions that will make you a better diver than any wall or reef ever could. The lake is deeper than most people expect, the boat puts you over structure that matters, and the silt at depth will tell you the truth about your buoyancy in ways that open water never can. The lake tells no lies — kick up that silt and you will know it instantly, and you will have to swim through it. That cloud hanging in the water in front of you is the same thing as the coral you would have just damaged on a reef. The lake teaches that lesson for free. If Lake Travis is where your schedule lands you, this is a legitimate course in a legitimate environment. That said — if you want to do it on a wall in 80-foot visibility with a triggerfish staring you down at 100 feet, we have Mexico trips for that. Book the trip and the course together and we will knock $100 off the class.
Save $100
Not feeling a lake dive?
We get it. This course can be completed at Lake Travis or Mansfield Dam — and it will be done right either way — but there is nothing quite like earning your Deep Diver certification on an actual wall in clear blue water. The Deep Diver specialty can be taught on almost all of our group trips, and if your schedule doesn't line up with a group departure, we can arrange a private course for far less than you would think. When you book the trip and the course together, the class is $499.95 instead of $599.95. Call us for more details.
Call Us About Trip OptionsFour Training Dives
What You'll Do Underwater
Dive 1
Gas Planning
You and your buddy plan and manage your gas from the surface down — determining turn pressure, ascent pressure, and reserve. You establish your no-stop and dive time limits, practice controlled descent and ascent rates, and observe how color changes as depth increases. The dive computer stops being a gadget and starts being a tool you actually understand.
Dive 2
Effects of Pressure & Navigation
You document what pressure actually does to three physical objects at depth — not in a textbook, in your hand. You also run a compass navigation exercise with your buddy: one diver navigates away from the reference line, the other navigates back. At depth, with reduced visibility and elevated workload, navigation gets honest fast.
Dive 3
Gas Narcosis & Emergency Decompression
Controlled exposure to narcosis — you compare task performance on the surface versus at depth and learn to recognize your own threshold. All gases are narcotic; oxygen is actually more narcotic than nitrogen, which means Nitrox does not reduce narcosis. This dive also includes an 8-minute simulated emergency decompression stop at 15 feet, with one minute breathing from an emergency air source. You leave this dive knowing what to do if the plan changes underwater.
Dive 4
Full Deep Dive
Everything comes together on a full underwater tour of the site — up to 130 feet. Controlled descent, underwater navigation, a proper safety stop, and a debrief that closes the loop on everything covered across the four dives. This is the dive that earns the certification.
Course Price Includes
What You Get for $599.95
✓PADI Deep Diver e-learning (digital course materials)
✓All four training dives with PADI instructor
✓PADI Deep Diver certification fee
✓Weights and weight belt — no charge
✓Max 4 students per instructor — no exceptions
Additional Costs to Plan For
Not Included in Course Price
—Full scuba kit rental — $100/day. Includes BCD, regulator, cylinder, and dive computer. Divers taking this course should own their own equipment — if you need to gear up before enrolling, we can help with that.
—Mask, snorkel, fins, boots, wetsuit — personal fit items, not available for rental. A wetsuit is required year-round; water temperature drops to 60°F or colder at depth regardless of season.
—Nitrox fills — optional. We can dive Nitrox, but be aware: Nitrox limits your maximum depth to 100 feet, with an absolute maximum of 110 feet. If your goal is to reach 130 feet, dive air.
—Mansfield Dam admission — $5/day cash only, paid at the gate. Day 1 is shore diving at Mansfield Dam on Lake Travis — maximum depth 95 feet from shore.
—Boat surcharge — Day 2 — $65–$130/diver depending on group size, plus gratuity. Day 2 we board the Giant Stride, which takes us to the deeper sections of Lake Travis. Not applicable on OTA trips.
—Food and water — the site is remote. No vendors on site. Bring everything you need for the day.
A note on local vs. trip pricing
Both days of this course are at Lake Travis. Day 1 is shore diving at Mansfield Dam — $5 cash at the gate, maximum 95 feet from shore. Day 2 we board the Giant Stride to reach the deeper sections of the lake — add the boat surcharge and gear rental and you can see how the all-in cost adds up quickly. If your budget and schedule can flex at all, book the course and a trip together through OTA and the class drops to $499.95. You get a better course, a better experience, and you come home with a certification you actually remember.
Contact us to book a trip and course together — group departures and private options available.
Course Format
What to Expect
Two-Day Course Structure
Day 1
E-learning + two training dives from shore. Complete your PADI digital coursework before arriving. Day 1 is shore diving at Mansfield Dam on Lake Travis — $5 cash at the gate, no boat charge. Maximum depth from shore is 95 feet. PADI standards limit training dives to three per day maximum.
Day 2
Two training dives aboard the Giant Stride. Gas narcosis and emergency decompression procedures, followed by the full certification dive to depth. Debrief and certification processing.
On a Trip
Schedule adapts to the dive site. On a Mexico or Caribbean trip, dives are integrated into the regular dive schedule. This is the format the course was built for.
All schedules subject to conditions and site availability. Contact us to confirm current dates.
Why OTA
How We Teach This Course
Four Dives, Full Standards
PADI requires four training dives for this certification. We do four. Not three, not "three with a checkout dive." Every dive counts, every skill gets covered, and no corners get cut to fit the course into a single day.
Maximum 4 Students
Four students per instructor is an OTA standard, not a PADI requirement. PADI allows significantly larger groups with assistants. We don't. At depth, supervision matters more than anywhere else in recreational diving. Small classes are not a marketing point here — they are how we choose to teach.
Instructor-Led, Not Divemaster-Led
Every training dive is led by a PADI instructor, not a divemaster. The person in the water with you at 130 feet is the same person responsible for your certification. That is how it should work.
The Gateway to Tech
If you have ever thought about technical diving, this is the card you need. PADI Tec 40 — the entry point into decompression diving — requires the Deep Diver specialty. We are ready to talk about what comes next.
Common Questions
Before You Enroll
What certification do I need to take this course?
PADI Adventure Diver or higher — which includes Advanced Open Water. If you completed your Adventure Diver, AOW, or equivalent with SSI, NAUI, SDI, or any other recognized organization, that qualifies. You must be at least 15 years old.
If you hold only an Open Water certification, you would need to document proof of certification beyond entry level — at least two certifications total — plus 20 or more logged dives with documented experience in deep diving and underwater navigation. In practice, the clean path is Adventure Diver or AOW. Not sure where you stand? Contact us and we will sort it out.
Nitrox certification is not required but worth noting: if you plan to dive Nitrox on this course, your maximum depth drops to 100 feet with an absolute maximum of 110. If reaching 130 feet is your goal, dive air.
Does this course count toward Tec 40?
Yes. The PADI Deep Diver specialty is a direct prerequisite for PADI Tec 40 — the entry-level technical diving course. Without it, you would need to document at least 10 logged dives to 100 feet or deeper to qualify, which most divers cannot demonstrate on paper. The card is the clean path.
Tec 40 also requires Advanced Open Water, Enriched Air Nitrox, Rescue Diver, and a minimum of 30 logged dives. If technical diving is your goal, come talk to us and we will map out the full progression.
Why is the local price higher than the trip price?
We train locally at Mansfield Dam on Lake Travis. Day 1 is shore diving — $5 cash at the gate, no boat charge, maximum depth 95 feet. Day 2 is aboard the Giant Stride: $65–$130 per diver depending on group size, plus gratuity. Add gear rental and the local version adds up quickly.
Book the course and a trip together through OTA — group or private — and the class is $499.95 instead of $599.95. Contact us to put it together.
Do I need my own gear?
All scuba equipment — BCD, regulator, cylinder, and dive computer — is available to rent as a complete kit for $100/day. Weights and a weight belt are provided at no charge. Mask, fins, boots, and wetsuit are personal fit items and are not available for rental — you need to own these.
That said, divers enrolling in the Deep Diver specialty should ideally own their own equipment. If you are at the point in your diving where you want a Deep Diver certification, your own gear means better fit, better buoyancy, and one less variable at 100+ feet. If you need to gear up before taking this course, come talk to us — we would rather help you get properly equipped than have you rush into it on rental gear.
One more note: we can dive Nitrox on this course, but Nitrox limits your maximum depth to 100 feet with an absolute maximum of 110 feet. If reaching 130 feet is your goal, dive air.
How deep does the course actually go?
PADI standards require training dives between 60 and 100 feet minimum, with a maximum of 130 feet. You do not have to reach 130 feet to earn the certification — but the goal is to get you comfortable at the full recreational depth limit under supervised conditions. The final dive typically reaches the deepest point your site and conditions allow.
On a trip, reaching 130 feet on a wall is straightforward. Locally, Day 1 is shore diving at Mansfield Dam — maximum 95 feet from shore. Day 2 aboard the Giant Stride puts you over deeper structure where full depth is achievable. Your instructor will brief you before every dive.
Can I do my Deep Diver on the OTA Red Sea Eclipse trip?
Yes — and that might be the best possible way to earn this certification. The 2027 Red Sea solar eclipse trip is an OTA group booking, which means the $100 trip discount applies. The Red Sea offers wall diving, exceptional visibility, and the kind of depth that makes this course feel like what it is. Contact us to discuss how to add the specialty to your trip registration.
What does the certification depth mean for future diving?
After completing the Deep Diver specialty, you are certified to dive to 130 feet when diving with a buddy. That covers the full recreational depth range — there is no deeper recreational certification.
In practice, when you dive with a guide on any organized trip, the guide covers the depth. You do not need to present your certification card to go on a deep dive with a professional. But having the card demonstrates that you have been trained at depth, which matters to serious dive operations — and to your own safety.
Ready to Go Deeper?
Four dives to 130 feet. The standard recreational depth limit. And the first step toward technical diving, if that is where you want to go.
ENROLL NOW — $599.95
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