Open Water Adventures

The absolute best place to go to if you are looking for any gear and/​or certifications. Joe and OWA staff really care about you and are willing to work with you to fit your schedule and until you are completely comfortable. Also, all of the staff is extremely knowledgable and have tons of experience– so you always feel safe in the water. I can’t wait to continue working with OWA in the future!

This is s great place to get scuba certified and buy quality equipment. My husband and I originally signed up at another dive shop but had nothing but trouble getting scheduled, taking the course online, and finally decided that it didn’t bode well for the dive training experience and so cancelled.
Exactly the opposite experience at OWA. The staff were friendly and responsive and answered all our questions. We could tell right away that they were knowledgeable and would make sure we were well– trained. John H. was our trainer/​teacher and did a great job. Just before the trip I got nervous and Joe (the owner) got in the pool with me and we worked on it until I was ready.
OWA is committed to training safe divers and making sure people have a good experience. We are on our way back from our open water and night dive certifications in Florida and can’t say enough good things about Joe, Chris, John and the OWA staff! Looking forward to a trip with them in July!

They are very friendly here. Everything is a price premium — you will easily pay twice as much if not more to get certified (just the course is double, let alone the open water dives).
The shop doesn’t have much variety when it comes to gear and it is nearly impossible to find a price on anything. You have to spend a lot of time asking about prices — here is a tip: they are higher than online.
The people couldn’t be nicer but I don’t know if I make enough to support the pricing here. This gear can become very expensive very fast.

Took up scuba diving via the encouragement of a close friend. Fast forward 10 years later I decided to give it a try! I fell in love with it Day 1. Zan my dive instructer was and remains the best. He was very knowledgeable and patient. During our check out dives to Florida we had the opportunity to snorkel with manatee and dive in some really cool sink holes. 1) Blue Grotto and 2) Devil’s Den. Not to mention I meet some great people and made new friends. I highly recommend this great group of people. Zan, Joe, Chris, John and the rest of the staff are top notch. If you want to learn how to dive this is your dive home. For a nominal fee they will gear you up and let you try it out to see if it’s truly for you, but trust me once you start you can’t stop.
Doug T (now certified openwater diver)

Husband review time: I went here looking for some gear and a place to get Wifey trained up to SCUBA with me.
The staff is so helpful, they will spend as long as it takes to answer all sorts of questions.
They have flexible courses where you can on your own schedule (and working with your instructor) come in when you have the time, weekends too. You can get an individual experience (costs a bit more) or be in a small class of 4 people. You won’t feel rushed as 12 people around you zip past you and leave you wondering why you aren’t learning as fast.
The selection is modest, that is the biggest drawback here. Plenty of quality gear but nothing compared to those cavernous places you find at major dive hot spots.
The prices are reasonable and they have some discounts if you get your full kit here.
My favorite thing is that this is SSI and not PADI — although PADI is more numerous I like how SSI has more educational requirements and you get a better understanding of SCUBA.
I will have an update as soon as I take Wifey to this place. She can’t make it because on weekdays it closes at 6PM and she can’t even get home from work in time. That is a drawback.
Another issue not their fault is all the construction on the road out to this place. It is out of the way and a long drive. The construction slows things down and you have to drive a long ways to get a nice spot to turn around because the road is divided.

If you are looking for a good quality dive shop in/​near Charlotte, this is your place. Good people and a very nice facility, including a great pool built for training. I have shops closer to my home, but the drive is worth my time. The prices are in line, and staff will get you what you really need (not what they need to sell). Highly recommend checking OWA out if looking to get certified, get equipment serviced, or buy new gear.

This year I got my SSI scuba certification at Open Water Adventures. I was impressed by how flexible OWA was with me! I was working on a very tight timeframe, attempting to get certified while planning my wedding… in time to go diving on my honeymoon. All of my experiences with OWA were great. The first day I visited I got some great gear. The staff in the dive shop were extremely knowledgeable about the gear but never pushy. I took private lessons from Randall Hannah, and could not imagine getting better training. Randall gave me plenty of time and personal attention so that I could master the skills and feel comfortable as a brand new diver. All things considered, I think I got certified in about one month — that includes all my pool and classroom time and my two check-​out dives at a local NC rock quarry. Again, I was impressed with OWA’s willingness to work with me to ensure that I would be ready for some amazing dives during my honeymoon. They worked to fit all of my requirements into my busy schedule… and I had a great time doing it!