While there may be many fascinating corners of this earth, the undersea realm is one of the most wondrous. This is what draws so many people to the sport of scuba diving. It is the ease of placing a mask on your face and gazing through this window into another world, a silent world filled with fascinating creatures swimming just inches from your face.

If you have been intrigued by the thought of scuba diving but are a bit nervous about it, consider this: diving is statistically safer than being a hog farmer in Iowa. Contemporary scuba diving equipment is both highly dependable as well as comfortable. Scuba diving used to be the realm of the young, tough and macho, but today diving has become a family endeavor, one that can be easily enjoyed by men, women, couples and their children. When you've finally made the decision to learn to dive, seriously consider the Cayman Islands as the ideal destination to make your first plunge.

In the Cayman Islands you'll find crystal clear waters blanketing healthy shallow reefs sloping down to meet awe-inspiring vertical walls. Couple this intensely beautiful marine world with a large number of highly professional dive operators and wide range of accommodations, from budget to five-star. This is the ideal dive destination.

There are several ways to learn to dive. If you just want to test the waters, try a Resort Course. This is a mini-course - a couple hours of instruction and an instructor-accompanied dive on a shallow reef. This provides a great way of experiencing the underwater world and seeing if scuba diving is for you.

Once you've made the decision to earn your full dive certification, you have several options on how to go about it. You may choose to maximize your dive vacation and do a full certification - academics, pool work and certifying dives - at home. Option two is to do your academics and pool work at home and then do your certification dives in someplace pleasant like the warm waters of the Cayman Islands. Your third option is devoting your vacation to learning to dive, doing your entire scuba certification on-island.

Dive instruction is a three-tiered process. The first step is the classroom work. This is not difficult; it is simply understanding how air acts in your body under pressure. The numbers and formulas are simple and are well explained both in the text and by your instructor.

Step number two puts you in the water, normally in a swimming pool. First, you will accustom yourself to the mask, snorkel and fins; then to the inflatable buoyancy compensator that you wear like a vest and the regulator through which you breathe. After you get used to breathing underwater, you learn to move underwater with the gear. The sensation of weightlessness you feel is akin to floating in outer space.

Step number three involves your four open-water certification dives which may be done, as mentioned earlier, near your home or in a tropical destination like the Cayman Islands. 

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