Skydive DeLand, Inc. — Local services in DeLand

I completed my AFF (Accelerated Freefall) training at Skydive DeLand, and I can honestly say this drop zone sets the gold standard for safety, professionalism, and overall atmosphere. From the very first day, the instructors made it clear that safety was always the top priority — every briefing, gear check, and jump was done with precision and care.

The instructors are world-class — patient, highly skilled, and genuinely invested in helping you succeed. They don’t just teach you the technical skills; they give you the confidence to push yourself while keeping everything within safe limits. Their calm, clear communication in freefall and on the ground made every jump both exciting and reassuring.

Equally impressive is the support staff. From manifest to gear techs to the packing team, everyone works together seamlessly to make sure the day runs smoothly. They create a welcoming, encouraging environment that makes you feel like part of the family from day one.

The facilities are top-notch, the aircraft are well-maintained, and the overall operation runs like clockwork. Whether you’re here to do your first tandem or to work through advanced training like I did, you’ll be in the best possible hands.

Completing my AFF course here was an incredible experience — not just because I earned my solo skydiver status, but because I was able to train with some of the best people in the sport. Skydive DeLand isn’t just a drop zone — it’s a community that truly cares about every jumper’s safety, progress, and enjoyment.

Highly recommended to anyone looking to skydive in Florida — or anywhere, really. I wouldn’t have wanted to do my training...

In all fairness I have to split the review into two parts.

The jump itself was great, they didn’t try to up sell me on better packages and they only made a passing attempt at selling me the video package. The instructors were great and I felt as comfortable as one can feel plummeting toward the earth at 120mph.

The business process, however, had a significantly negative impact on the customer experience. I had an 11:00am “scheduled” time for check-in although I have a completely different expectation of what that means than this company. I arrived at 11 and watched a short video and then spent another 5 minutes filling out paperwork. I was told that I could wait outside or in the restaurant until my name was called for my lesson and then we could go up for our tandem jump. We then waited for three and a half hours for no apparent reason before we got our lesson and our jump. The business model is apparently to queue up paying customers to make sure they there are enough people to keep the process running, but they have no problem making you wait forever while they do God knows what. They are desperately in need of a Kaizen event or a LEAN evaluation of their process flow. This could have been a 100% great rating but I have to take away at least one star for wasting so...

WOW. For my 21st birthday, I was scheduled to dive at Skydive Palatka, about 40 minutes from where I live. Unfortunately due to the weather, they were not flying that day. Though I understood, I was disappointed because it was the only thing I planned on doing the day of my birthday. After calling around for an hour, we found Skydive DeLand. They understood that I live about 2 hours away, and promised they would have a spot available for at 3pm that day. We drove the two hours there and were taken right in. JR was my jump instructor, and he was literally the best. We joked all the way up, and I never got nervous. Ryan was there as well as the videographer. I seriously cannot thank the two of them enough for the most amazing 21st I could have ever asked for. The jump was more than I could've hoped for, the weather was perfect, and it was an experience I will never forget. They took what could have been a sad day and made it the best birthday ever. It may be two hours away, but I'm planning my next jump with them with my mom, and recommend them to absolutely anyone who mentions to me they want to go skydiving. Thank you...