How to Choose Your First International Dive Trip

The short answer: pick your first trip based on what you're looking for and what each trip requires, not just which destination has the prettiest photos. Newly certified and more experienced divers are often looking for different things, some group trips carry a minimum certification level or logged dive count, while others are wide open to beginners. Beginner-friendly dive sites can appeal to experienced divers too, it's just that newer divers specifically need to stick to the spots built for them. The gap between "I want to go somewhere incredible" and "I don't know where to start" is almost always a matching problem, not a motivation problem. Here's how to close that gap.

Three Dive Arizona divers relaxing on the boat rail between dives on a group trip — Good company on the boat is half the trip, this is what a Dive Arizona group looks like between dives.

Start With Your Certification Level, Not the Destination

Open Water certification or above is required to get in the water on any Dive Arizona group trip, but it isn't required just to come along. Many of our trips offer a non-diver discount, so a spouse or family member who doesn't dive can still join and enjoy the destination. The one exception is liveaboards, which don't offer a non-diver rate, so a non-diver pays full price there whether they dive or not. For the divers in your group, matching your certification and experience to the right trip still matters. A diver with a handful of open water dives under their belt is better served by a closer, simpler trip than by jumping straight to the most demanding destination on the calendar. You'll dive more comfortably, enjoy yourself more, and build the experience that makes your second and third trips even better.

Staying Close to Home or Going More Exotic

San Carlos, Mexico is a weekend trip from Queen Creek and it's where a lot of our divers take their first international dive. Short travel time, familiar logistics, and a group that's usually mixed experience levels, so you're never the only newer diver in the water. We wrote up exactly what that trip looks like in what it's like to dive San Carlos if you want the full picture before you book.

Plenty of divers choose to stay closer to home for a first international trip, and there's nothing wrong with going more exotic instead. We run beginner-friendly trips all over the world on a regular basis. Our last trip to Proco Island, Indonesia was beginner-friendly, and divers on their first trip out of the country were still getting phenomenal diving despite the distance. Destinations like Cozumel, Roatan, and Bonaire are solid beginner-friendly spots too, farther than San Carlos but nowhere near the distance of a trip like Indonesia or the Philippines. It comes down to your own goals and what you want to see, not a rule that closer is automatically better.

A Dive Arizona diver stepping off the boat's dive platform beneath island cliffs — Wherever you go on your first international trip, this is the moment you're working toward.

Group Trip or Solo Travel

You can plan an international dive trip yourself, and plenty of divers do. But for a first trip, a guided group trip removes most of the decisions that cause the overwhelm: which operator to trust, how many dives to book, what gear the boat provides versus what you bring, and who you'll even be diving with. A Dive Arizona trip leader handles the coordination and briefings, we keep our group sizes small on purpose for a fun, intimate trip instead of a large, chaotic one, and you're diving alongside people who started exactly where you are now. That's worth something on a first trip, even if you plan to travel solo later once you know what you're doing.

Two Dive Arizona divers underwater together on a guided group dive — Diving alongside a group who started exactly where you are now, that's the guided-trip difference.

What a First Trip Costs

Prices vary widely depending on destination, resort tier, and what's included, from a few hundred dollars for closer trips like Southern California up to several thousand for top international destinations. We broke down exactly what's included, what's never included, and how our payment plans work in our full trip cost guide, worth reading before you set a budget so nothing catches you off guard.

Certifications Worth Getting Before You Go

You don't need anything beyond Open Water to book a trip, but a couple of add-ons make your first international dive noticeably better. Advanced Adventure gets you comfortable below 60 feet and adds navigation and deep-diving practice, both useful on a boat dive in open water. A Nitrox certification extends your bottom time on multi-dive days, which matters more than people expect once you're doing two or three dives a day instead of one. Neither is required. Both are worth considering if your trip is more than a few months out and you have time to fit one in.

What We Handle, and What's on You

Most of our group trips include your accommodation, guided boat dives either with a Dive Arizona trip leader or a local guide, and dive briefings and group coordination. Meals and drinks are usually included too, though how much varies by destination. What's on you is personal gear, travel documents, and airfare on some trips, though that depends on the specific trip, so always check what's listed before you assume either way. The point of a guided trip is that the logistics you'd otherwise have to figure out alone are already handled before you land.

A Simple Way to Pick

If you're newly certified or haven't dived much since your course, start close. San Carlos or a similar nearby trip gets you real open water experience without a steep travel or cost commitment. If you've got a few trips behind you and want to go farther, our upcoming trips calendar lists everything currently on the books with the specifics for each one, so you can compare destinations against your own experience level and budget instead of guessing. And if you're still not sure where you land, that's exactly what a phone call is for.

Frequently Asked Questions

What certification do I need for my first international dive trip?

Open Water certification or above, to partake in any of the diving activities. Many trips also offer a non-diver discount so a non-diving companion can still join, except on liveaboards, which require full price either way.

What's the best first international dive trip for a new diver?

A closer, simpler destination like San Carlos, Mexico is a good starting point, short travel time, manageable cost, and a group that's usually a mix of experience levels so you're never the only newer diver. That said, beginner divers are also welcome on our larger, more adventurous trips if that's more your style, it just depends on what you're looking for.

Should I book a group trip or plan my first dive trip solo?

For a first trip, a guided group trip is usually easier. It removes the decisions that cause the most overwhelm, like which operator to use and how many dives to book, and puts you with a group and a trip leader instead of figuring it out alone.

Do I need Advanced Adventure or Nitrox before my first trip?

No, Open Water is enough to book many of our trips. Advanced Adventure and Nitrox are worth considering if you have time before your trip, since both make multi-dive travel days more comfortable, but neither is required for most trips. Please check each trip's specific certification requirements and chat with us, since we sometimes book more advanced dive trips that carry their own requirements.

How much does a first international dive trip cost?

It depends heavily on the destination, from a few hundred dollars for closer trips to several thousand for top international destinations. Resort tier, dive count, and what's included in the package all move the number.

Is airfare included in a Dive Arizona group trip?

It depends on the trip. Some packages include flights and others don't, so always check what's listed for the specific trip rather than assuming.

How do I know which trip on the calendar is right for my experience level?

Match closer, shorter trips to fewer logged dives and save the farther, more involved destinations for once you've got a trip or two of experience. If you're not sure where you land, give us a call and we'll help you figure it out.

Not sure which trip fits where you are right now? Give us a call and we'll help you pick one, or browse the upcoming trips calendar to see what's currently on the books.