Ocean Academy

Tucked into Goyang-si, South Korea, Ocean Academy is a PADI 5 Star IDC dive centre staffed by three PADI Instructors — a setup that suits divers who want to learn in a structured, instruction-led environment.

Courses and dive sites

The headline course is the PADI Open Water Diver Course, run in Sokcho and Goseong, Gangwon, over roughly five days and starting from USD 373. Divers explore 금강산, where the marine life on offer ranges from sharks, whales and turtles to molluscs and crustaceans, corals, anemones and jellyfish, eels and echinoderms, plus mammals and reptiles.

On site you'll find an onsite classroom, air conditioning, free Wi-Fi, a retail shop, food and drinks, and parking. The centre also offers scuba equipment sales and rental, a dive club, travel, and conservation activities. Instruction is delivered in Korean, making this a natural fit for divers learning locally.