Sailing Club/Octopus Diving

Sailing Club Divers is a well established company and is owned by the same man who owns the popular Sailing Club bar and restaurant. Octopus Diving is exactly the same company and is staffed by the same people. You can find their offices on the main beach road, Tran Phu St, and the main road in the backpacker part of town. The staff there are a mix of experienced Vietnamese and Western divemasters and instructors who know where to find the best animals on the reef. The company offers all PADI and SSI courses up to instructor along with first time Discover Scuba Diving experiences and fun dives. Several languages are spoken by the staff and the manager has a wealth of knowledge about the local dive sites and marine life. Also, a big plus point in my book is that instead of the soft cheese sandwiches usually on offer, if you dive with Octopus Divers you get chicken curry, bread, cake and fruit which goes down a treat between dives.

Sailing Club Divers also has the diving contracts for the 5 star Ana Mandara and Vinpearl hotels.

Rainbow Divers

Rainbow Divers is the biggest dive centre in Nha Trang and has been around for years. They offer much the same service as Sailing Club/Octopus Divers with highly experienced staff and quality instruction. They also have course directors on the staff so can do in house IDC's. Rainbow Divers also have a shop in the main backpacker area of town with an attached bar for a few post dive drinks.

A word of warning...

There are many other dive operators in Nha Trang, probably too many, and the competion to drop prices has unfortunately caused an equal drop in quality. As you walk around town you might see signs for offers like an ultra cheap two day open water course - not advisable! The reason it's so cheap is that corners are being cut. On the same note, several dive centres will give you photocopied course materials to save themselves money. As well as this being a rip off for you, if they are willing to break PADI standards in this area, they probably will in others.

The two companies i've recommended above are a little more expensive but there's a good reason for this. If you're a experienced diver you'll know how to look after yourself underwater but getting a good guide will make for a far better dive, and if you're new to the sport or doing a course i'd definately suggest paying a little more for high quality, safe supervision.