The Advanced Open Water diving course in Morotai builds on your entry-level certification with five adventure dives completed over two days, including a mandatory deep dive to a maximum of 30 metres and an underwater navigation dive, and it is the qualification that unlocks the island’s aircraft wrecks, steep walls, and drift sites. There is no final exam: each adventure dive is a guided introduction to a specialty, with a short knowledge review beforehand, which makes this the most enjoyable certification most divers ever take.
Morotai Diving schedules the course around your trip so the training dives double as real exploration: your deep dive can take place on a wall or wreck-zone site, your drift training in a genuine channel current, and your navigation work on a coral slope worth visiting in its own right. Instruction follows PADI standards, and the course is quoted as a package with or without accommodation.
What Does the Advanced Open Water Course Include?
The certification requires five adventure dives, of which two are fixed and three are chosen from a specialty menu. The structure is the same worldwide:
- Deep dive (mandatory): a planned descent beyond 18 metres, to a maximum of 30, covering gas planning, narcosis awareness, and depth-time management
- Underwater navigation dive (mandatory): compass headings, natural navigation, and distance estimation
- Three elective adventure dives selected from the options available locally
- Knowledge reviews for each dive, completed via eLearning or on-island study
- Certification processing on completion, with the new 30-metre qualification effective immediately
Minimum enrolment age is 12, and the only prerequisite certification is Open Water Diver or a recognised equivalent.
Which Adventure Dives Can You Choose in Morotai?
Morotai’s mix of wrecks, walls, and channels supports a wider elective menu than most small islands, and choosing electives that match the island is what makes taking the course here worthwhile. Popular selections include the wreck adventure dive on a WW2-era structure, the drift dive in a current-swept channel, peak performance buoyancy over fragile coral, the night dive on a sheltered reef where nocturnal critters emerge, and fish identification or underwater naturalist dives on the biodiverse slopes near Dodola and Kolorai. Photographers often pick the underwater imaging dive, using the same shallow, bright reefs that make Morotai friendly to non-professional cameras.
How Is the Course Scheduled?
Two days is the standard timeline, structured so the deep dive comes early and the night dive, if chosen, closes day two:
| Day | Programme |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Knowledge reviews, deep adventure dive on a wall or wreck-zone site, navigation dive on a coral slope |
| Day 2 | Two elective adventure dives by boat, optional night dive in the evening, certification paperwork |
The course slots neatly into a longer trip: divers on a five-day itinerary typically train on days two and three, then spend the remaining days using the new qualification on the deeper sites.
Why Take the Advanced Course in Morotai Specifically?
Because the sites you train on are the sites the certification is for. Morotai’s aircraft wrecks sit mostly in the 20 to 35 metre band, exactly the range the deep dive prepares you to visit, and the island’s channels and northern walls give genuine, useful drift experience rather than a token current. Divers planning wreck-focused trips get immediate value; the historical sites described on our morotai ww2 wreck diving page are the practical payoff for the depth qualification. The certification also satisfies the entry requirement most boats set for multi-day routes, which matters if a cruise is on your horizon; see our morotai liveaboard cruises page for how those requirements work.
What Does the Course Cost and Include?
Course-only pricing in Morotai typically falls in the USD 330 – 480 range per diver, covering the five adventure dives, boat fees, equipment use, instructor time, knowledge review materials, and certification processing. As with all our products, package versions bundle accommodation, meals, and transfers by tier, and the full inclusion list arrives in writing before you pay a deposit. Combining the Advanced course with a dive package in one booking usually prices below the two booked separately, and we state the combined figure explicitly in your quote.
Not Certified Yet, or Long Out of the Water?
If you hold no certification at all, start with the entry-level course; the padi open water morotai programme takes three to four days and can run back-to-back with the Advanced course in a single week, taking you from beginner to 30-metre-qualified in one trip. Certified divers returning after a long break, generally more than 12 months out of the water, should add a refresher session before the deep dive; it takes half a day in a sheltered bay and is quoted as a small add-on rather than a separate course.
Book Your Advanced Open Water Course in Morotai
Send your travel dates, current certification, logged-dive count, and preferred electives, and we will confirm the schedule and send a complete written quote. Message us on WhatsApp at +62 811-3941-4563 or email bd@juaraholding.com to reserve your course dates.
Frequently Asked Questions
How deep can I dive after the Advanced Open Water course?
The certification qualifies you to plan dives to a maximum of 30 metres, up from the 18-metre limit of Open Water Diver. In Morotai that difference is decisive: the island’s aircraft wrecks sit mostly between 20 and 35 metres, so the Advanced rating is what turns the historical sites from off-limits into your regular itinerary.
Is there an exam in the Advanced course?
No. The course has no final exam; each of the five adventure dives is preceded by a short knowledge review, completed through eLearning or on-island study, and assessed through performance in the water. Most divers find it more relaxed than their entry-level course, since the focus is applying skills on real sites rather than drilling fundamentals.
Can I do Open Water and Advanced back-to-back in Morotai?
Yes. The combination takes five to six diving days in total: three to four for Open Water, then two for Advanced, with electives spread across wrecks, drifts, and reefs. One week on the island covers both comfortably, and finishing the pair means you leave qualified to 30 metres with nine to eleven training dives already logged in Morotai conditions.
How many logged dives do I need before enrolling?
PADI sets no minimum logged-dive count beyond holding the Open Water certification, and the minimum age is 12. That said, divers with very few dives get more from the course after a short warm-up, so we often schedule one relaxed reef dive before training starts. Tell us your logbook total and we will sequence the trip accordingly.