SteveB48

We've had lots of problems as well. Unfortunately there is no contact for the webmaster to report these issues.

We were unable to select Explorer deck 6 on their deck plan page. It would show the previous deck. I just checked and it seems to be fixed. Our recent Alaska cruise just appeared on my Crown and Anchor page but all of my other cruises disappeared along with their points. We tried to book that cruise on line but had so many issues we had to book it over the phone.

Steve

The Stars at Sea folks already emailed me back. Being part of a school is not required.

Steve

This is GREAT! Thanks for posting it. The information request form at www.starsatsea.com has a school as a required field. Do the performers need to be associated with a school?

thanks,

Steve

Getting certified WAS my vacation. In our case my wife was recovering from surgery so my son and I were able to go off and do this while she rested. In addition, I didn't get my medical sign off until 11 days before we left. There were no classed offered by our local dive shop that fit our schedule. In most cases, I agree, get certifed before the cruise. In our case, it worked.

If anyone is thinking about getting certified on ship, go to the PADI web site and fill out the medical form. If you have to answer yes to anything, go see your Dr. to see if you can safely dive. Our instructor said a lot of folks come on board planning to dive only to find out they can't. My issue was over 45 with a family history of heart attack or stroke. My mother has had a stroke so I had to answer yes. The other thing that can give you some of your cruise time back is to borrow someone's PADI book and read it before the cruise. That will reduce the reading and studying time on the ship.

Steve

I tried to edit my last post but it timed out on me..any-whoo, I did some investigating and this is what I noticed. From the Royal Caribbean web site, it reads:

"Upon completion of the short course, you will be awarded the PADI Scuba Diver certification".

 

further down it reads:

"Throughout the course you'll learn the basics of diving through participation in pool dives, knowledge development sessions and 2 exciting open water dives in some of the best locations in the world".

 

Now, in addition to my book and pool work, I had to take a written test and do 4 open water dives with an instructor before I was given my Open Water C-Card. According to the PADI website, you have to have 4 dives to get a PADI Open Water certification. I am just not convinced this 'PADI Scuba Diver' certification is a full Open Water C-Card, JUST my opinion.

I just took both classes on Liberty last week. They offer both the Suba Diver Cert and the Open Water course although the later isn't listed on their web site and isn't available on all ships / sailings. On Liberty it's only only on the Western Caribbean cruises. The Scuba Diver cert limits your depth and you can only dive with an instructor. This consisted of the first 3 chapters of the PADI book, tests on each chapter, watching the PADI videos on each chapter pool work and 2 open water dives. During the dives, both pool and ocean, you have to demonstrate skills you have learned. I did ask my instructor if anyone fails and she said yes.

The Open Water Cert adds chapters 4 and 5, quizes, 2 videos, pool work, 2 more ocean dives and yes, the 50 question final to the list above. I missed 1, #7. Tricky wording. We had about 20 in the first class and 3 that went all the way to open water cert.

If you have any more questions I'd be happy to get out my log book and we could go over specific skills.

On the other thread that I started, I listed the schedule. It does take some serious time. We borrowed a book and read it before the trip but we still had to read and study outside of the classroom.

Steve

Hi all,

We just returned from Liberty and they offer both the SCUBA diver certification and the Open Water certification but only on the Western cruise.

I posted an update here http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=802887&highlight=padi with the schedule.

The Open Water Cert is not listed on the web site. If you haven't already, go the the PADI sight and look at the medical forms. If you have to answer yes to any question, you'll need a Dr's release before you can proceed. Our instructor said many people sign up and then discover they have a problem on board. The question that got me was are you over 45 and have a family history of heart attack or stroke. I'm 51 (as of the first day of our cruise) and my mother has had a stroke. I was able to get signed off before we left.

Check out the other thread for current comments and feel free to ask any questions.

Steve