Squalo Divers

This review is just for divemaster Gary Reinhart teaching my open water course.
Gary is awesome! He made sure I understood everything he was teaching and suprise tested me underwater. There’s nothing like a tiny bit of panic that your dive pal might be out of air to make damn sure you remember what to do. Yay! He did these kind of suprise underwater safety tests a few times, so now I don’t feel panicky at all. I simply do. Instead of the first day being in a boring pool, we went to a lake! It was awesome!!! Gary did not ever make me feel like he was rushing or going through lines. He taylored the course for me and went over procedures that I did not understand multiple times until he was satisfied that I really got it. For instance, I had a hard time taking off my mask and then putting it back on and clearing it underwater. It made me feel uncomfortable and panicky as hell. He didn’t make me feel stupid about it, he offered extreemly helpful sugestions, and made me do this more than anything in the course until it was no big deal. Anytime I felt interested in learning something that was not in the course, like chilling at neutral buoyancy upside down or understanding how to navigate underwater, he took the time to teach me. After taking this course with Gary, I taught my AOW certified boyfriend safety tips he never heard of. I really feel like I got the jackpot of scuba instructers. I feel confident and safe with all the wisdom Gary has bestowed upon me. My boyfriend and I are safer because of it! Plus, Gary has some awesome stories.

My son got his open water certification at Squalo divers last year. He was 11 years old at the time. Jack, his instructor, was great. Patient, fun, knowledgeable. My son had a great experience under his care and got his certification in no time. The dive store itself is okay. Their gear pries seem a bit high compared to other places in town. All in all, no complaints.

I came from NY specifically to get certified for Open Water. I found Squalo Divers through Unilocal,and it was a mistake.
First, the price that you are quoted over the phone does NOT include everything, and you get charged more for gear rental and are forced to buy other things before you even start.
We had 2 students coming for certification dives. We were taken to the beach for shore dives, as they couldn’t get a boat. Shore dives are not as good, because you need to carry all the gear, get all dirty in sand, and battle the surf and the waves — not the best experience for a beginner student. One student had an issue with that, and the dives were cancelled for both him AND me. I had an extra day before my flight back, so I didn’t give it much attention, although it would be nice if MY dives were not cancelled because of another student. But I was told that I will be able to do my certification dives on Day 2 & 3, so it still worked for me.
Day 2 of diving went well with Jack, a very good instructor and a pleasant person. Although, the timing was rescheduled for later in the day, and the boat we went on could only give us very limited time in the water. When I came back to the shop to schedule the next day’s dive to complete my certification, I was told by Sebastian (the owner) that I will need to pay $ 200 extra. What??? Sebastian said that the initial fee included 2 days, and that would be Day 3. Okay, but it is not my fault that they did not do my dives on Day 1! My Day 1 dives were cancelled because of another student! Now, I was bumped to do my dives on Day 2 and Day 3! But Sebastian kept repeating the same mantra «This is a different thing, this is a different thing, this is a different thing!..» like a parrot, refusing to even listen to me.
So, in short, your experience with Squalo Divers is not predictable, you will get charged more than you committed for in the beginning, your dives may not go as planned because of a variety of possible reasons, and you will need to deal with Sebastian, who will be up-​selling you and treating you below your dignity.

I purchased a groupon with this merchant and after trying to schedule a dive, the voucher expired. I spoke to the manager, Sebastian, and he was not only rude and did not want to redeem my voucher, he told me that the amount of money the voucher was for, could not be used towards any other class, which is against groupon’s terms and conditions, and that if I wanted to buy something, it would be on items he was willing to sell me for the money. Remember that this is credit I have and he wants me to spend it how he wants and chooses. Very very very bad experience and he was extremely rude. Will NEVER dive with them and I am taking legal action towards their violation of groupon. If you cannot adhere to terms and conditions, dont do business.

I highly recommend Squalo Divers. The staff is very friendly and highly informed about all things related to diving. They are awesome instructors, and also great dive guides. Pricing on equipment is also competitive, and they perform service in a timely manner. I cannot say enough about this dive shop-​you can’t go wrong with them for any of your diving needs.

I had the pleasure of doing my open water certification through Squalo Divers. Let me start by saying that the staff is helpful and knowledgable. They will guide you in purchasing the correct equipment for your needs and price point. I had Rick as my dive instructor and was only in a class with 3 other people. We had a lot of time to ask questions and he made sure each and everyone of us was comfortable before moving on to the next certification task. The open water dives were off of South Beach and were absolutely amazing.
I fully recommend Rick and the staff of Squalo Divers for anyone who is looking to become certified.

I’m really can’t say enough good things about Squalo Divers. I got my Open Water Certification last week and the process was smooth, pretty easy and very, very fun.
Holly administered my quizzes and exam, ensuring that I completely understood the questions I missed. She is very friendly and good for a laugh. Rick was the instructor for the diving portion of the program. Our class size was small (only 4 of us), which meant that we could all ask questions and get individual attention as needed. Rick made the somewhat boring material in the beginning a lot of fun while remaining informational and safe.
While I do agree with other reviewers regarding the brusque front counter workers, I disagree that they are rude or attempting to scam anyone. I see them as salesmen that are also looking out for everyone’s safety. They want to make sure you are prepared with the proper equipment, preferably from their shop. I don’t really see anything wrong with that.
If you’re looking to get your Scuba cert, I’d highly recommend you go to Rick or Holly here at Squalo.

Had a great experience getting open water certified at Squalo Divers. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and helpful and goes to great lengths to ensure that instructor to student ratio is kept to 1:4 or smaller.
They have a pool on site and utilize a nearby lake for part of the open water certification and skills training. It’s a lot less stressful than having to go out on a boat for your first dive when you’re trying to remember all of your newfound knowledge when you can just walk right into a lake and focus on skills.
For our ocean dive weather was not cooperating and Squalo worked with the students to get everyone rescheduled on future dives at no charge.
Highly recommend, will probably get advanced certification here.

Been here twice. The first time I went a really nice lady helped me choose a mask. The second time a not so nice guy helped me pick out a reg. Needles to say I didn’t buy it. They wont get my business anymore.

I got a groupon to get my scuba diving certification, I was terrified of the ocean yet i went for it because my boyfriend had been pushing it for months. GREAT EXPERIENCE! The staff is really caring and helpful, you can tell the owner loves what he does! Also, our instructor Rick was AMAZING! I really felt super safe with him and he also had a lot of patience with me! I really REALLY recommend this place to get certified!

Had an absolutely amazing experience with Squalo Divers, getting my Open Water!
Everyone on the staff is super friendly and goes out of their way to make you feel comfortable through every step of the process. Got all of my gear there as well, and they were very helpful & knowledgeable.
They were very thorough and understanding during the instruction, taking the time to explain any questions or concerns. They took us on some incredible dives that really make you appreciate the history of local area — both fun & informative! They also took so many great pictures and make them available to you for free!
Overall, it was a fantastic experience. Would highly recommend diving with them (I already have one friend that’s signing up!), and I’m looking forward to getting my Advanced sometime soon!

Informative instructor, Cool guy small groups.

I had been wanting to try scuba diving for a while when I saw a groupon for the Discover Scuba experience. I originally booked for a party of ten, but my group ended up dividing and I went with only two others. The staff was super friendly. I didn’t feel the least bit slighted because I was a discount groupon customer.
On the day of the training and dives, everyone on staff was fantastic! Besides loving what they do, they were patient and accommodating with a friend of mine who was very nervous and uncomfortable in the water.
I will be back. And I won’t even be searching the Internet for a steal deal because the service and experience is definitely worth the regular price.

My experience with Squalo Divers as a Diver needing tank fills has not been good. They are overpriced and not timely with filling and inspections of diver’s tanks. When they’re untimely and it’s clearly their fault for not having the tank ready as promised, they refuse to go the «extra mile» or make things right.

My partner and I had a GREAT experience with Squalo Divers! The staff was really kind, and friendly, and did an excellent job making us feel comfortable on our first dive.
They explained everything in an understandable way, and then on the dives themselves, it was an amazing experience. They brought us all around, made sure we were able to see different things, and even posted pictures of us later on flickr.
I highly recommend diving with them, it’s a great experience and you won’t be disappointed!