SSI Scuba Skills Update (refresher) in Dahab
The SSI Scuba Skills Update is a short refresher for certified divers who have not dived for a while. In about 2–3 hours you review your skills in shallow water with an instructor, so your first dive back is relaxed instead of stressful.
- Minimum age
- 10
- Duration
- 2–3 hours
- Dives
- 1 confined-water session, usually followed by an easy reef dive
- Max depth
- 5 m during the skills session
- Prerequisite
- Open Water Diver certification from any recognised agency (or an SSI Open Water student).
- Certification lets you
- Not a new certification: it refreshes the skills of the card you already hold.
What the Scuba Skills Update is
It is SSI's refresher program. You go back over the skills from your Open Water course with an instructor, in calm water no deeper than 5 m, until they feel natural again. There is no exam and no fixed program. The session focuses on the skills you feel unsure about.
It does not give you a new certification. Your Open Water or Advanced card is valid for life, but skills fade when you don't use them, and a couple of hours in shallow water brings them back.
Who it is for
Certified divers who have not dived for a while, feel nervous, or only dive once a year on holiday. SSI does not set a fixed cutoff. A common rule in the dive industry is to refresh after about six months without diving, and certainly after a year or more. Many dive centers ask for a refresher before guided dives if your last logged dive is too old.
It is also useful if you are new to warm-water diving, are trying new gear, or simply want to practise buoyancy before the Blue Hole or the Canyon.
Any agency works: SSI, PADI, CMAS, BSAC, NAUI or others. The minimum age is 10.
What is covered
Gear setup and a pre-dive safety check, so you remember how everything connects. Descending and ascending under control.
The core skills: clearing a flooded mask, removing and replacing your mask, recovering and clearing your regulator, sharing air with a buddy using an alternate air source, and a controlled emergency ascent practised safely in shallow water.
Buoyancy and trim: hovering, fin pivots and finding the right amount of weight, which is the skill that makes the biggest difference to how much you enjoy a dive. We also review dive computer use and the hand signals you will use with your guide.
How it works in Dahab
Morning: a short chat about your experience and anything that worries you, then gear setup on the beach at Lighthouse, Dahab's house reef in town. The skills session happens in the shallow, sheltered bay where you can stand up.
Then, when you feel ready, we swim out over the reef for an easy, relaxed dive on the Lighthouse slope or nearby Eel Garden. By lunchtime most divers feel like they never stopped.
From the next day you are ready for guided fun dives, including the Blue Hole, or to start an Advanced course.
What's included, prerequisites and medical
Your instructor, the skills session, tanks and weights. Gear rental, the optional reef dive and the SSI digital review materials are confirmed when you book.
Bring your certification card, physical or digital, and your logbook if you have one. Your certification can also be checked online with SSI or your agency. If you have your own mask or computer, bring them, since the refresher is the perfect time to get used to them again.
SSI offers an online review in the MySSI app with five short academic sessions. It is optional but worth 30 minutes on the plane.
You need an entry-level certification, and you fill in the WRSTC diver medical questionnaire before getting in the water. If your health has changed since your last dive, for example new medication, surgery or a heart or lung condition, answer honestly. A yes answer means you need a doctor to sign the physician form first, so check it before your trip.
Already PADI certified?
Then this is the right refresher for you too. SSI and PADI entry-level certifications follow the same international standard, and the skills are the same. PADI calls its version ReActivate. Mohamed teaches both the SSI Scuba Skills Update and PADI ReActivate, and your PADI card is accepted as the prerequisite.
Signs you should book a refresher
You cannot remember how to set up your regulator on the tank, or which hose goes where. You are not sure how many kilos of weight you need. The idea of taking your mask off underwater makes you tense. You have changed something important since your last dive, such as a new wetsuit, a new computer or a big change in weight.
Or you simply feel nervous. That is completely normal after a break, and it is the best reason of all. Anxiety uses more air, makes buoyancy harder and takes the fun out of a dive. A calm session in shallow water, with nobody waiting for you, fixes most of that in one morning.
A refresher before the Blue Hole or the Canyon
Dahab's most famous dives need good buoyancy. The Bells is a narrow chimney you descend through to around 27 m, the Canyon is a gorge in the reef with an overhead section, and the Blue Hole wall drops far below recreational depth. These are wonderful dives when you are comfortable, and stressful ones when you are not.
That is why a refresher at Lighthouse is the smart first day of any Dahab trip after a long break. Your guide sees how you dive, you get your weighting right, and the deeper sites are planned for the second or third day, when you are ready to enjoy them.
Price
The price depends on your dates and whether you add a reef dive afterwards. Send your dates and Mohamed will reply with an exact price.
💬 Get the exact price for your dates
Next step after your refresher
Feeling good again? Start the SSI Advanced Open Water course, formerly Advanced Adventurer, and go on to The Bells and the Canyon. Or simply book a few days of guided dives around Dahab.
SSI Advanced course in Dahab →
Questions
Do I need a refresher dive in Dahab?
If you have not dived for six months or more, it is a good idea, and many dive centers will ask for one before deeper dives like The Bells or the Canyon.
How long does the SSI Scuba Skills Update take?
About 2–3 hours, and there is no fixed duration. Add an easy reef dive and it fills a relaxed morning.
Can I do the SSI refresher with a PADI certification?
Yes. Any recognised Open Water certification is accepted.
Does my diving certification expire?
No. SSI and PADI certifications do not expire, but your skills fade without practice, which is what the refresher is for.
How deep is the refresher?
The skills session stays at 5 m or shallower. An optional reef dive afterwards stays within your certification limits.
Is the Scuba Skills Update a new certification?
No. It is a skills review, and your existing card stays the same.