PADI Rescue Diver Course
Become the diver everyone wants on the boat. €420 · 3 days · the most rewarding course PADI offers.
PADI Rescue Diver is the course every diver remembers. You learn to anticipate problems, manage stressed divers, run a missing-diver search, and perform a real surface rescue with rescue breaths and a tow back to the boat. Pre-requisite is PADI Adventure Diver (or any agency equivalent) plus a current EFR / first-aid + CPR card within the last 24 months · we run the EFR refresher on the morning of day 1 if you need it. Hard, varied, and the foundation for going pro.
- Duration
- 3 days
- Dives included
- 4
- Minimum age
- 12+
- Price
- €420
What you'll do
Three intensive days. Two confined-water sessions covering the ten Rescue Skills · tired-diver tow, panicked-diver-from-below approach, exit techniques, regulator recovery on a struggling diver. One open-water day running the four assessment scenarios · including a missing-diver lift from depth and a full surface-rescue scenario timed against the clock.
Prerequisites
- PADI Adventure Diver or higher (or equivalent from SSI, SDI, BSAC, CMAS · we accept any major agency)
- Current EFR Primary + Secondary Care (or equivalent first-aid + CPR) within 24 months · we run the refresher on day 1 if needed
- Min age 12 (Junior Rescue Diver) · 15 for adult certification
- Doctor sign-off if any check on the PADI medical questionnaire
01 · Day 1
Self-rescue + first 5 confined skills
Morning: review rescue mindset and self-rescue from the manual. Afternoon: 5 of the 10 confined-water skills · tired-diver tow, panicked diver from the surface, exit assists. We pause to debrief each rep so you feel the difference between rushing in and reading the situation.
02 · Day 2
Skills 6-10 + scenarios 1 + 2
Morning: skills 6-10 in confined water · regulator recovery on a panicked diver, search-pattern setup, panicked-diver-from-below approach. Afternoon: open-water scenarios 1 and 2 · tired diver and panicked diver, run on a sandy plateau.
03 · Day 3
Final two scenarios + debrief
The big day. Scenario 3 is the missing-diver lift from depth (10-12 m). Scenario 4 is the full surface rescue · unconscious diver at the surface, in-water rescue breaths, tow to the boat, exit and oxygen. We debrief on the way back, sign your card.
✓ What's included
- PADI-certified instructor + an assistant for scenarios
- All scuba equipment for 4 days
- 10 confined-water skills + 4 open-water rescue scenarios
- PADI Rescue Diver eLearning code + instructor support
- Rescue Diver certification card
- Boat fees, lunch on board, hotel pickup
Not included
- EFR Primary + Secondary Care course (€90 if you need it · most students do)
- Pocket mask (€18 · keep yours for future rescues)
- Wreck-based rescue scenarios (request only)
“Best decision of our trip. Got my Open Water in three days with Karim, then we did two daily-dive days · the captain picked the sites and we ended up on quiet reefs with almost no other boats around. Pickup was on time every morning.”
Maria R. · EN
“Finally a dive center that does exactly what it says. My guide spoke perfect German, small groups, well-maintained gear. Abu Nuhas was a highlight.”
Thomas K. · DE
“A genuinely international team. No deposit required, transparent prices, and a different dive site every day. We'll definitely be back next year.”
Sophie M. · FR
Common questions about the PADI Rescue Diver Course
Reasonably fit. The hardest part is the timed in-water rescue breaths · 30 seconds of swimming and breathing for an unconscious diver while keeping their airway open. We run the swim-tow drill on day 1 to set expectations · if you struggle we add fitness pointers and reschedule the assessment. Nobody fails for being slow.
Because it changes how you dive. After Rescue you stop seeing dives as solo experiences and start seeing the whole boat as a system you're part of. Buddy checks make sense. Briefings make sense. You notice when something is off before it becomes an incident.
If your EFR or equivalent first-aid + CPR card is older than 24 months, yes. We run the EFR Primary + Secondary Care course in 5-6 hours on the morning of day 1 · €90 extra. If you have a current card from any major provider (Red Cross, St John, AHA), bring it · no need to redo.
Two paths: Master Scuba Diver (the highest non-pro PADI rating · five specialty courses bundled) or PADI Divemaster (go pro · 14-21 days with us). Both routes start with Rescue.
Yes. About a third of our DM candidates do Rescue first, take a week off to log fun dives (you need 60+ logged dives at certification), then start DM. Plan 4-5 weeks for the combined trip.
We extend a day at no charge. Rescue is the one course where rushing breaks the learning. If you are not solid by day 3 we add a fourth day to nail the assessment scenarios.
Does this fit you?
Set it once · every card below then tells you whether it fits you.