Aquanauts Success Stories

Visa Manner

• Aquanauts Non-Diver to Instructor Intern 2001-2002
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor – Dec. 2002

Visa first came to Aquanauts in 2001 as an uncertified diver. He left his internship not only a skilled Open Water Scuba Instructor, but with the real-world experience that allowed him to open his own dive shop in Thailand in 2005.

"I don't remember how I first found Aqunauats," Visa said. But he did know why, after returning to a cold, snowy Finland for a few months, he came back and signed up for the instructor internship with us. "When you find something good and are happy with it, you stick with it."

Today, Visa still uses the Aquanauts dive boat for his own Mask & Finns dive business. "The Aqunauts boat is one of the best around. It's clean and well-maintained and of course all the people are great."

Simon & Sally Rathbone

• Aquanauts Advanced Open Water to IDC Staff Instructor Interns 2007
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructors – Aug. 2007
• Certified Msster Scuba Diver Trainers -- Nov. 2007 (Scheduled)
• Certified IDC Staff Instructors -- December 2007 (Scheduled)

Simon and Sally's journey to become PADI instructors began on their honeymoon in 2006. The English couple had dreamed about it for years separately, but decided that to Go Pro together would set a solid foundation for their lives together.

Four months after booking with Aquanauts, "we were immediately both out on the boat diving everyday and experiencing Pattaya’s wrecks, marine life and Wii the cook’s fantastic cooking. Having arrived as Advanced Open Water divers, we soon started our Rescue Diver course and then completed our Divemaster course under the direct tutoring of Gary Tytler, a Master Instructor and co-owner of the company. After what had seemed to be only a couple of months – in fact it was four – we were starting our IDC."

"We were so pleased with our internship at Aquanauts that we are staying to do our MSDT course, and are also doing our IDC Staff Instructor here. We feel that we will get the best possible instruction by staying with Aquanauts."

Read Simon and Sally's full, first-person story here.

Steve Lonsdale

• Aquanauts Advanced Open Water to Tec Instructor 2006-2007
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor – May 2006
• Certified Msster Scuba Diver Trainer -- July 2006
• Certified Tec Deep Instructor & Tec Trimix Instrutor - 2007

Even before Englishman Steve Lonsdale became an instructor in 2006, he had talked about eventually living and working in either Australia or the Caribbean. But he wasn't ready to make that move until he could become the best, most-qualified instructor he could. Well, it took him more than a year, but when Steve left Aquanauts for good in the spring of 2007, he had reached his goal: PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer plus DSAT Tec Deep and Tec Trimix instructor.

When he landed his job in the Turks & Caicos Islands (see photo at left), the dream was fulfilled.

"I arrived on the first night in Thailand with lots of apprehension at the complete lifestyle change that I had decided on," Steve recalled. "I was quickly put at ease when I met up with Gary Tytler, one of the owners and a Master Instructor. From that moment on my time with Aquanauts was a fantastic experience."

Steve said all the training and skills polishing needed to pass the Instructor Development Course and Instructror Exam could have been very stressful, but at Aquanauts, he felt very comfortable. "This was due primarily to the confidence I gained in my own abilities from the training provided by the two Course Directors, Roger Smith and John Taylor, and Gary," he said.

However, he added, what made the whole experience "a truly fun time was the friendship and camaraderie that existed between all the interns that were also pursing similar goals. I gained some fantastic friends from all around the world."

Chad Peacock

• Aquanauts Interns 2007
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor – June 2007

Canadian Chad Peacock was the second Peacock to join Aquanauts for a Diving Instructor Training internship. A year earlier, his older brother Nathan completed his instructor training at Aquanauts. When Chad decided he wanted to go into diving, big brother knew where to send him and, after it was done, Chad was a happy new instructor.

"My time in Thailand was great, the people were awesome, and the instructors were good," he said. "Thailand itself is something everybody should experience. You can live like a rock star for about $10 a day and there's no better place to do it than in Pattaya.

"As for the IDC, you are so well prepared for your instructor exam you fly through it thinking it was a warmup for a bigger test. All in all, Aquanauts prepares you well to teach anywhere in the world."

Chad's diving career took off immediately. He went to work in Australia on the Great Barrier Reef for two different dive centers, a fish farm, a hyperbaric clinic, a salvage company and then landed a contract for commercial diving in Nigeria.

Anna Londre & Jonas Olssen

• Aquanauts Interns 2006
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor – Aug.. 2006
• Certified Divemaster August 2006 (Jonas)

Anna Londre and Jonas Olssen came to Aquanauts after learning to dive in the cold, dark water of Sweden. They were pretty sure they wanted to do diving full-time, but didn’t know how far they’d go until they arrived in warm, sunny Thailand.

Jonas, who suffers from dyslexia, decided to stop at Divemaster while Anna went all the way to instructor.

“I couldn't have been better prepared to start instructing,” Anna says, "which I believe having at least one course director or master instructor present during my entire education, as well in the classroom as on any ordinary day at the boat, is the great contributor to."

"When working as a Divemaster today I feel truly privileged of all the experience I've gained during my internship with real people in real-life-situations," Jonas said. "With my dyslexia I must admit I was a bit worried before I came to Aquanauts, especially about the about the theory required to become a Divemaster. However, I soon realized there wasn't anything to worry about. At Aquanauts every intern is an individual and is able to evolve at their own pace."

“We both had one of the best times in our lives during our stay with Aquanauts and we'd do it all over again and again and again.”

After four months of diving nearly every day in warm, sunny Thailand, Anna and Jonas figured to be in for a big shock the first time they went diving back home in Sweden. “The moment we stepped on the plane that would take us back to Sweden, we started questioning our decision not to stay longer, or even forever,” she said.

“The diving in Sweden is a lot different from Thailand in many ways and, unfortunately, most of the dive-related incidents here are due to people not being able to adapt to the more challenging circumstances in Sweden when they return from warmer and gentler seas abroad.” However, she said. “we're having no difficulties at all to get along in the dark and cold waters of Sweden. The Aquanauts way to dive works everywhere!”

Terry Magin

• Aquanauts Novice to Instructor Intern 2006
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor September 2006

Terry Magin came to Aquanauts without any diving certification. But after a stint in the military and experience working and traveling around the world, he knew what he wanted: to become a PADI dive instructor. Six months later, he was.

I would like to say thank you for the experience of a lifetime.  I am so glad that I choose Aquanauts and went to Pattaya to begin my diving career,” Terry said. “I had looked at many different places to become an instructor, but I just couldn't find anyplace that could beat the value and the environment that Aquanauts offer.”

Arriving in a new place alone and embarking on career training for something he’d done virtually none of admittedly left Terry with a case of nerves. “But any reservations I had about the choice I had made was quickly erased the first night I arrived and the rest of the interns came to my room and made me feel at home,” he said. “I think that is what is so special about Aquanauts: It’s a place to become a serious diver and find great friends.

“The training was excellent and it would be hard to find instructors who put into the program as much as the two course directors and master instructor,” he said. “Just being on the boat helped build my confidence and learn a lot about diving.  One of the things I liked most the program was the flexibility of it: It allowed me to explore that part of world, while working on my diving.”

Overall, Terry said, “there are a lot of dive schools but at the end of day Aquanauts was the perfect mix of serious diving and family atmosphere.  I'll never forget my experience there and I owe it to everyone who is a part of Aquanauts who go out of their way to help the Interns have the best experience possible.”

Grant Fellows

• Aquanauts Advanced Open Water to Instructor Intern 2006
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor April 2006

Grant Fellows could hardly wait to get started teaching.

A gifted diver when he entered the Aquanauts Diving Instructor Training program in January 2006, Grant zoomed through his Rescue Diver, Divemaster and Instructor courses in just 3 months. But the hurried schedule certainly didn’t result in a subpar instructor: He passed the PADI Instructor Exam with 100% marks on his academics and perfect scores of 5.0 on his confined water and open water skills tests. Then, just days after blowing away the IE, Grant was jetting back to Australia to start his new career.

“Throughout the three months I was with Aquanauts I had the time of my life,” Grant said. “The professionalism of the instructors, Staff Instructors and Course Directors was second to none, which made my instructor internship a lot easier then I imagined.”

“My three months went by so quickly because I constantly had the opportunity to do any specialty that interested me and was given responsibilities every day during my Divemaster course to take out customers on the boat and lead dives, which was really good experience.”

But Grant said the final month, during his instructor course, was where Aquanauts' professionalism really shined through.

“Having two Course Directors for our IDC was excellent,” he said. "All seven interns from Aquanauts who I completed my exam with passed with nearly perfect scores.

 “Aquanauts not only got me through the Instructors Exam with flying colors, but also made me ready to pursue my diving career once I’d finished my internship.”

Tommy Germany

• Aquanauts Divemaster to Instructor Intern 2002-2003
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor – Dec. 2002
• Certified IDC Staff Instructor – Dec. 2003

After not having dived in nearly 30 years, American Tom Germany rediscovered scuba in 2001 when he came to Pattaya on holiday. In that he decided upon Aquanauts for an internship that would take him to IDC Staff Instructor. “Aquanauts was really the best shop for what I wanted to do,” Tom said. “And I really liked how committed Roger (Smith, Aquanauts managing director) is. He was always professional and gave the right and relevant answers to all my questions.”

Having finished his internship several years ago, Tom is now a highly successful independent instructor. He captains his own yacht and has standing offers around the world to teach classes and lead dives whenever he makes port, be it in the Caribbean or Southeast Asia. “The great thing is you don’t have to be 19 or 20 to do this program,” Tom, now in his 50s said. “You can start at 49 like I did. It isn’t that hard.”

Damian Jordi

• Aquanauts DM to OWSI Intern 2005
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor Oct. 2005

Spaniard Damian Jordi was a man on a mission when he first contacted Aquanauts on Aug. 25, 2005. He was so impressed with Aquanauts, he enrolled and paid for his Divemaster to Instructor internship just four days later, made his first dive in Pattaya on Sept. 7 and was certified an Open Water Scuba Instructor Oct. 27 with the highest score of any candidate on that month’s instructor exam.

Moving that quickly was only possible “thanks to a clear schedule established in conjunction with my instructors, the quality of the instruction I received and the availability of facilities,” Damian said. “To be more specific, the whole diving operation – the logistics, the comfortable boat, the variety of dive sites and the interaction with instructors and other trainees) – was a great help. An instructor was always there to help me personally.”

Damian also said that Aquanauts larege and modern dive boat also helps with training. “Having a spacious boat, where assembling and donning the equipment, entering and exiting the water is easy, where there is space to sit or lie comfortably and where there is plenty of room to study does make a difference,” he said.

Continuing Aquanauts’ tradition of training dive entrepreneurs, not just instructors, Damian has set up his own dive business in Spain. For him, training and working in real world situations with real customers got him ready to go into business himself.

“Basically, every type of customer that an instructor could think of is present on the Aquanauts boat on a daily basis, “Damian said. “That has for sure helped me to become a better instructor.”

Annigje "Anni" Franssen

• Aquanauts Divemaster Intern 2005
• Certified Divemaster - Dec. 2005
• Certified Emergency First Response Instructor - Dec. 2005

When Annigje Franssen looks back on her Divemaster internship, she remembers the one thing she didn't like -- the fact she had to go back home to the Netherlands after only 10 weeks. While here, however, she made the most of her time.

“In total, I made exactly 100 dives and got 13 certifications: Divemaster, 10 PADI specialties, Emergency First Response Care for Children and Emergency First Response Instructor,” she said. “I couldn't have done it any faster, I was on the boat almost every day!”

Explaining that Aquanauts Personalized Training System goes beyond just the time in the classroom, Anni said "diving on the boat was very special for me. Every day the cook made a special meal just for me because I'm a vegetarian."

Unable to travel for a while, Anni decided to take her IDC in Holland, but not without regret. “If only I could have stayed one month longer, than I would be an instructor now,” she said. “I would certainly recommend diving with Aquanauts because of the people working there and the good dive training.”

Joerg "George" Blickensdorfer

• Aquanauts Advanced Technical Diving Intern 2005
• Aquanauts Divemaster to OWSI Intern 2005
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor September 2005

Switzerland native George came to Aquanauts in early summer 2005 looking to take on the challenge of Aquanauts Advanced Technical Diving Traineeship, but extended his stay and became a full PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor, with an eye toward becoming a Master Scuba Diver Trainer and tech diving instructor. "Aquanauts has a very good instructor-to-student ratio and offers very personalized and tailored training," George said. "And Pattaya is a great dive-training ground."

George said the highlight of his internship was the "family" environment. "It's a very nice group of like-minded people, both interns and employees, but yet still very diverse." George is now traveling and advancing his tech diving skills and instructing in Malaysia, Japan and Mexico.

Petri "Pete" Keskitalo

• Aquanauts Rescue to Instructor Intern 2004
• Certified Open Water Scuba Instructor November 2004
• Certified Master Scuba Diver Trainer July 2005

Fluent in Finnish, Swedish, English and Danish, Pete has parlayed his internship training at Aquanauts into a multinational diving business in Scandanavia. Training with Aquanauts was key to that, he said. "You really know about the business of diving by the time you're finished," Pete said. "At Aquanauts, you grow into taking on more responsibility in bits and pieces until you are running the boat yourself."

One reason Pete chose Aquanauts was the all-inclusive nature of the training package. "At Aquanauts, it's all included and they are very upfront about everything."

Derek Lennon

• Aquanauts Open Water to OWSI Intern 2005

American Derek Lennon quickly earned the title of the Ironman of the Aquanauts internship program, taking full advantage of the unlimited diving. At one stretch, he dived every day for 4 weeks. "The best part was being under water everyday. Just the amount of dives made me become very comfortable and confident in the water," he said.

"I felt I got much more from the internship than I paid for," Derek said. "I gained lots of valuable diving experience that helps me as a dive professional."

Derek, a professional ski instructor as well, left Aquanauts as winter set in the mountains of Denver, Colo. and plans to return to teaching scuba students once the ski season ends.

Caroline Taylor

• Aquanauts Technical Diving Intern 2005

British-born Caroline came to Aquanauts in summer 2005 having recently earned her Divemaster certification and hungry to try something new. For her, Aquanauts, the most advanced technical diving centre in Thailand, was the obvious choice. “My internship was a fantastic experience,” she said. "The best part was definitely having the chance to meet so many lovely people, as well as hitting the that 50 meter mark!”