Divers Down, United Arab Emirates

The best dive operators in the UAE

From the moment you walk into the Dive Center, you're greeted by friendly staff and if you come in on a busy day, you'd be surrounded by people who are passionate about diving. Never once did I feel like I was dealing with a business, but with a group of people that really care about you, about giving you a good experience and you also get a sense of that passion for diving I mentioned earlier. The owner, Paul, is a great chap and I've always enjoyed chatting to him and listening to his jokes. He's got a great team behind him, and they seem to be like a little family group. They're incredibly well organized, and their almost military style dive briefings are idiot proof. Safety is paramount with these guys and they're far more concerned about your well being than your money. My SO recently did her OW with them, and the training was so well done, even I learned many new things just observing. Her instructor, Fergus, is a wonderfully patient chap and overall great guy. We now know him as a friend (as with the rest of the DD crew). They've got 2 speedboats that you have to swim to from the shore, and their equipment is in very good condition (best I've ever seen) and you can tell that everything is regularly maintained. The only downsides I've found with Divers Down is that they can be a little understaffed when things get busy. They also seem to head out to the same spots and I think they could do with some variety. You need to swim back and forth from the boat to shore with new tanks for every dive you do, which can be a bit tedious, especially if the sea's a little active. Also, this isn't a massive issue seeing as you can always just yell a bit, but the seating on their boats makes it a little difficult to be social sometimes. All in all, I couldn't recommend these guys enough if you want to dive with people who are genuinely passionate about the sport and are really good at doing what they do. I now dive exclusively with them and have never had a bad experience ever, even when the viz is shit.

Pleasant diving with a professional attitude

Very friendly dive center located near Khor Fhakkan