Gangga Island, located in North Sulawesi, is a popular diving destination known for its stunning coral reefs and rich marine life. Most of the visitors to the island come specifically to dive, and a number to learn to dive or upgrade their dive qualifications. For those divers that are ready to level up with some specialty diving there are a wide variety of PADI dive courses available that cater to different interests and skill levels. Let’s have a look at some of the most popular.

Dive Deeper

As an Open Water Diver you are able to dive up to 18 metres, and with an Advanced Open Water Diver certification up to 30 metres. To upgrade to 40 metres a PADI Deep Diver Speciality course is necessary. This course will give you the skills and knowledge to safely dive to depths most divers won’t ever see. It covers topics such as decompression theory, deep diving equipment, and emergency procedures. This course takes 2-3 days.

Upgrade Your Photography

If you have ever been frustrated by your underwater photo skills and want to be able to take beautiful photos of your dives, an Underwater Photography specialty course is for you. Over a couple of days Gangga Divers will cover topics such as choosing the right camera and lighting equipment, composition and framing, and post-processing techniques.

Dive Confidently in the Dark

Many divers are intimidated by diving after the sun goes down but it’s actually an incredible time to see marine life. A Night Diver Specialty Course will ease your nerves about diving at night and also teach you how to dive safely and effectively with night-time equipment, communication techniques, and underwater navigation.

Extend Your Bottom Time

The Enriched Air Specialty course teaches divers how to use enriched air (also known as nitrox) to extend their bottom time and reduce their risk of decompression sickness. It covers topics such as gas management, oxygen exposure limits, and dive planning.

There are also other specialty courses available on Gangga Island, such as Fish Identification, Peak Performance Buoyancy, and Drift Diver. To participate in any of these courses, you must already be a certified PADI Open Water Diver or have a higher certification level.

Levelling up in any skill is important to keep it fresh and exciting. Diving is no different so if you are ready to learn something new or get better at a specific type of diving, a specialty course is an excellent idea.

Have you done any of these courses to upgrade your diving? If you have, we’d love to hear about how it benefited your diving, so leave us a comment in the box below.