Pan Aqua Diving — Local services in New York

Just started diving about 2.5 years ago, and these guys are the greatest. Let’s talk about why:

1. CLASSES. I took my open water with them, dry suit, a quick EFR class, and am taking navigation and search and recovery. Oh, and shark specialization, underwater photography and drift diving. So, yeah... I like their instructors. It’s nice that they have the pool right upstairs.

2. TRIPS: have signed up for three and probably will sign up for a fourth. Their Grand Cayman trip was really just perfect. Kathryn the trip leader was a blast, and super helpful. A great mix of beginner divers, middle of the pack divers, and super-experienced divers were on the trip with me. Didn't know any of them going in, and now consider them friends. Honestly can’t think of anything I’d have changed. Price was great... in fact I priced out going back there by myself, and it would have cost more for 3 days by myself than it did the 6 days I had with Pan Aqua. My next trip is to Fiji, and the trip leader is Frank, who seems equally as awesome.

3. GEAR: I’ve rented stuff from them and it’s been perfect. I’ve bought stuff from them and the prices match anyone else’s. I’ve not bought anything used, so I can’t speak to that.

4. CUSTOMER SERVICE: this is where they really stand out. Plenty of folks there so you're not waiting for help. Yet they’re not all over you either. I was actually talked out of fins that were twice the price (I liked the pink color... but it was true that they just weren’t the right fin for me.)

Everyone here is a ridiculously experienced diver, which is not the case with all the shops in town. Not to name names, but let’s just say the dive store that rhymes with “Seizure Slow” is basically a call center fulfillment and none of the salespeople there even dive.

I haven’t shopped at every dive shop in NYC, but after dealing with PanAqua— I really don’t need to.

CONS: Pan Aqua refuses to heat up the entire Atlantic Ocean, forcing me to travel elsewhere if I want to dive in tropical waters. ...

After several years of not having the opportunity to scuba dive, I needed to reactivate my diving skills with a refresher course. My instructor Lisa McIntyre is simply the best, and her passion for scuba diving is quite evident. Lisa is extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and, most importantly, patient. After spending the first forty-five minutes setting me up with a properly fitting mask, snorkel, fins, and wet suit, she then showed me what to look for while inspecting a tank; including how to ensure the air is fresh and what the pressure gauge should read for a correctly filled tank. We then covered attaching the tank properly to the BCD, connecting the air hose to the regulator, and inspecting that the mouthpiece was working before reviewing the remaining apparatus on the BCD. Once in the pool, Lisa quickly had me relax underwater by breathing slowly and rhythmically as she put me through the refresher checklist, which included mask clearing, clearing the regulator, buoyancy floating, removing and reinserting weights, out-of-air exercises, and so much more. I can’t reiterate enough how outstanding of a teacher Lisa is, and I was thrilled how quickly my underwater skills returned after about 90 minutes in the pool. Thank you, Pan Aqua, and thank you, Lisa, for giving me the confidence to...

Wonderful scuba shop that offers classes, trips, rentals, and equipment. I was first introduced to pan aqua as i was researching for a scuba certification class and they were in the area. They offer PADI certification courses with classroom time and pool time all on premise as the Manhattan plaza health club is next door with a pool. Took the course with Peter as a instructor and he was very knowledgeable and gave ample one on one student time to each student. The written exam is at the end of the course and you have the option to take your open dives at Dutch Kills which they offer trips to. They also have trips to exotic places for scuba trips. I've also rented dive computers here for my scuba trips to the Caribbean at great rental prices and all equipment was top notch and worked well on my trips. They also have various scuba equipment here and all were at great prices. Purchased fins and a mask here and was satisfied with my purchase and customer service. The service was wonderful and offered knowledgeable advice. They also offer refresher 1 hour courses here for anyone who has a PADI cert but needs a refresher for a new scuba trip at a great price. For all my scuba diving needs i would definitely visit Pan Aqua and recommend...