Freediving school · Playa del Carmen

Freediving courses in Playa del Carmen

AIDA 1 to AIDA 4, from your first breath-hold to thirty-two metres. Theory and pool on day one, then the cenotes of Tulum, Puerto Morelos and the Ruta de los Cenotes. Small groups, three languages, and a progression built on relaxation before depth.

Scuba is a separate track — different gear, different certification, different pace. See the scuba track.

AIDA 1 → 4
12 to 32 metres
Three languages
Español · English · Français
Since 2023
94 students certified
A freediver descending into a cenote, photographed in black and white
Cenote, Riviera Maya

The AIDA standards

What AIDA International requires before it issues each certification, quoted without interpretation. Theory is 75% or above at every level from AIDA 2; AIDA 1 is certified on safety practices, not on a dive.

LevelDepth, bifinsStaticDynamicTheory
AIDA 1No requirement, 10 m ceilingNo requirementNo requirementSafety practices
AIDA 212 m CWTB2:0040 m DYNB75%
AIDA 324 m CWTB2:4555 m DYNB75%
AIDA 432 m CWTB3:3070 m DYNB75%

Before you book a freediving course

  • Theory — Theory and pool on day one, then the cenote days. The exam comes at the end of the course.
  • Water — Pool sessions in Playa del Carmen, open water and depth in the cenotes.
  • Minimum age — 17 with parental consent for the beginner course, 18 for AIDA 3 and above.
  • Standards — Every level is examined against AIDA International's own requirements: the dives, the breath-hold and the distances it lists, and 75% on the theory paper.
  • Medical — A questionnaire before the water; tell us about ears, sinuses or asthma early.
  • Group size — Small groups only, so every dive is watched.
  • Languages — Español, English, Français.

Excursions

Not every day here is a course. The days out have their own page, all in one list: freediving photoshoots in the cenotes beside the scuba days on the reefs and wrecks, Cozumel and the bull sharks. Each line says which discipline it belongs to.