Want To Get Certified In Scuba Diving? Think Fiji (Some Of Best Scuba Diving In The World)

Fiji is made up of 333 tropical islands whose 1.3 million square miles of surrounding blue waters offer the perfect place to learn to dive and advance your diving skills. There are 1,200 types of reef fish, 466 marine protected area, over 390 types of coral and over 75 vulnerable shark and ray species–making underwater adventure in Fiji unparalleled.

“Fiji is one of my all-time favorite diving destinations and a place I recommend everyone to go,” says Julie Andersen, Global Director of Brand for PADI Worldwide.“No matter what skill level you are in diving, you are sure to have once-in-a-lifetime diving experiences in the place where happiness comes naturally.”

As the world’s largest purpose-driven diving organization, PADI (Professional Association of Dive Instructors) is a massive leader championing marine conservation and education to create positive ocean change around the globe. In fact, Fiji is a perfect place to learn how to scuba dive or if you’re already certified, there are plenty of PADI dive centers where you can get your advanced open water dive certification. There are over 150 PADI Dive Centers and Resorts in what is dubbed the Soft Coral Capital of the World. With a thriving marine eco-system and world-class dive sites Jean Michel Cousteau called it paradise.

Scuba Diving in Fiji

Known as one of the best shark diving spots in the world, Fiji a world-class dive destination.

Wall dives, swim-throughs, caverns, canyons, along with incredible blue water encounters like bull sharks, wahoo and the occasional manta or whale shark make diving in Fiji an unforgettable experience. Are there certain parts of Fiji that are better for diving? “All 333 islands throughout Fiji offer some sort of incredible diving experience beneath the surface, with the ability to also learn to dive on almost any island you are staying on during your holiday,” says Andersen. Some of PADI’s favorite regions for diving in Fiji include diving in the Suncoast, the Yasawa Islands, the Great Astrolabe Reef near Kadavu and Beqa Lagoon–the epicenter for having the dive of your life with bull sharks!”

Sustainability When Scuba Diving in Fiji

Plan your diving adventure on PADI Travel and mitigate your own carbon footprint, with the option to make a donation to planting seagrass or mangrove habitat restoration–which is done through PADI’s partnership with The Ocean Foundation’s Seagrass Grow Program.

Talk to your PADI Dive Resort or Dive Center about helping them with their own citizen science research or helping them plant coral with their resident marine biologist.

Make sure you check out the Shark Marine Reserve (one of the world’s most sought-after diving destinations) in Beqa Lagoon—in which diving that is done here finances shark research and compensates local fishermen for lost income due to the creation of no-take zones. It’s a win-win-win for sharks, divers and the local population! Sign up for an adventure there with PADI Dive Center Beqa Adventures. They are one of PADI AWARE’s grant recipients , receiving funds to support the reserve’s biodiversity assessments/ fish counts and bolster the ecosystem health through both coral restoration and restoration of the giant clam population.

Is it Worth Getting Advanced Scuba Certification in Fiji?

Getting your PADI Advanced Open Water certification is not a must to dive in Fiji, but it certainly opens up the opportunity to dive deeper into more adventure there–especially if you want to dive with sharks. The Advanced Open Water Diver course is all about advancing your skills. You’ll practice navigation and buoyancy, try deep diving and make three specialty dives of your choosing (it’s like a specialty sampler platter). For every specialty dive you complete, you can earn credit toward PADI specialty certifications. Here are a few of the many options: Deep, Digital Underwater Photography, Dive Against Debris, Dry Suit, Enriched Air Nitrox, Fish Identification, Night, Peak Performance Buoyancy, Search & Recovery, Underwater Naturalist, Underwater Navigation, and Wreck Diver.

As a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver, you will have the skills to dive deeper than 18m/60ft, have enhanced buoyancy (so that you don’t disrupt the marine life or coral) and confidently navigate your way through epic underwater adventures.

You can start your course ahead of your trip to Fiji, so you can maximize dive time while on holiday. You will do so through the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver eLearning includes interactive lessons on 13 popular specialty dives to choose from: altitude, boat, digital underwater imaging, drift, dry suit, fish ID, night, buoyancy, search and recovery, underwater naturalist and wreck diving. You’ll study deep and navigation diving plus three specialties of your choosing. Make sure to allow for 6-8 hours to complete–which can be done anywhere where you can access wi-fi.

Once you are in Fiji, your PADI Instructor will do five dives with you–which will match the five specialty dives you completed for the eLearning. This will be over a span of 2-3 days and is a great way to become a better diver and explore new places at the same time.

Why Dive with PADI?

As the world’s largest diving organization and issuing more than 29 million scuba diving certifications to date, PADI empowers people to experience, fall in love with and then take meaningful action to save the planet. As a PADI Diver you will be joining the world’s largest community of underwater adventurers who are creating ocean change.