FREEDIVING MALTA
Take snorkeling to the next level and learn how to freedive!
Join us in our freediving courses in Malta and you’ll swim like a fish amidst Malta’s marvelous marine life.
Freediving in Malta will show you the best of Maletese underwater shipwrecks!
FREEDIVING COURSES
In this course you will learn proper breathing and relaxation techniques, hydrodynamic body position and proper equalizing techniques.
Duration: 1 full day
Depth: Up to 10 m
Statics: Holding your breath up to 2 min
Includes: Equipment, transport, SSI certification and fresh water.
Price: 110 €
The course is divided into 3 parts:
Theory: Access an online course which introduces you to all the basic freediving concepts.
Static: Very useful to improve your ability at holding your breath.
Dynamic: Implement the skills gained in the static session to complete a calm, enjoyable dive to 5-10 m.
The duration of this course will be a full day(7 – 8 h approx.) and once it’s done you will get an internationally recognised SSI freediving certification.
Duration: 2-3 days
Depth: Up to 20 m
Statics: Hold your breath for up to two and a half minutes.
Includes: Equipment, transport, SSI certification and fresh water.
Price: 250 €
Course description:
Theory: Access an online course which we recommend you complete before you come to Malta(then you can relax and enjoy your holidays without having to do homework).
Breathing and stretching session: Before going to the water, you’ll participate in a stretching/breathing/relaxation session to learn how to complete a routine to improve your lung capacity.
Statics: Each day of the course starts with a static session in shallow water, where you will experience new sensations which help you understand your body better and improve your dynamics.
Dynamics: On completion of the statics, we go to the open water to implement everything you have learned so far, diving calmly and safelyto depth. You will always be supervised by a certified instructor.
During these sessions in the wonderful, clear Maltese water, you carry out practical skills both at depth and horizontally in shallow water. You will learn and use the buddy system, rescue techniques and hydrodynamic body position.
Once all parts of the course are successfully completed, you will get an internationally recognised SSI freediving certification.
FAQs
What is freediving?
Freediving is defined as the discipline where you dive to different depths either in the sea or in a pool, holding your breath, without help from any breathing device.
What are the origins of freediving?
Freediving is known from as far back as 2000 years ago in Japan, where “Ama” divers collected pearls while diving up to 50 meters holding their breath.
In the Philippines the “Bajau” are the only people in the world who are known to have adapted their sight to be able to focus and see almost perfectly underwater in order to fish while freediving.
Thanks to the 1988 film “The Big Blue”, freediving got to be better known although lot of people today still don’t know much about the benefits of practicing this beautiful discipline.
Freediving as the discipline that we know today began in 2000 with the AIDA agency.
What are the benefits of freediving?
Freediving has a lot of benefits: physical, mental and environmental.
The first time you practice freediving, you visit a new world. All it takes is your own body and some water.
You will get to know your body in a way you never did before and you will realize how powerful your mind is. You just need to use it.
You will learn relaxation at levels you’ve never experienced before!
After doing your freediving course with Bezz Diving, you will want to achieve a healthier routine in every aspect, from doing a stretching session when you wake up in the morning, to enjoying a healthier diet.
Can I do a course even if I haven’t tried freediving before?
Of course you can!
It’s actually the best way to get to know this new world, as you start by learning the theory and physiology, which will set you up to succeed in the water session.
Most snorkelers have already tried freediving without realizing it. When you snorkel and dive below the surface (even 1 meter down) you are freediving.
While it seems easy, there is a lot to learn about this sport, especially in terms of safety, techniques and risks.
Freediving practiced without this knowledge can be dangerous. That’s why at Bezz Diving we recommend that you take a freediving course if you are interested in visiting this world.
We offer a range of courses from a Try-freedive to the more advanced SSI level 1 freediving course.
We focus on providing an approach that will best suit the individual student, because we know that everyone’s abilities are unique.
Why choose Malta to do a freediving course?
Malta is one of the best diving and freediving destinations in Europe.
Its crystal clear water and year-round great visibility (as much as 50 meters), the comfortable water temperature (27ºC maximum and 20ºC annual average), the ease of access to deep water from the shore and, most important of all, the huge number of shipwrecks and caves waiting beneath the surface make this little island one of the best places to practice freediving in Europe.
Freediving with SSI (Scuba Schools International)
We offer freediving courses through SSI. This agency has been providing diver training internationally since the 70s, and in the last decade their popularity has grown exponentially.
It’s an agency represented worldwide, so when you complete a freediving course with Bezz Diving you will get an internationally recognised freediving certification.
SSI focus on knowledge and experience; that’s why all courses consist of both a theory and a practical part. In addition, their philosophy is to be in harmony with the environment, offering all courses online, so you can complete the theory component from your tablet, laptop or smartphone. Let’s save some trees!
Can I combine freediving and scuba diving?
Of course you can! In fact this is one of the best ways to spend your holidays in Malta.
Many people think that freediving and scuba diving are incompatible but that’s not true; you just need to know HOW to do it.
Due to high concentrations of Nitrogen YOU CAN NOT FREEDIVE AFTER SCUBA DIVING, but no problem the other way around, FREEDIVE FIRST, THEN SCUBA DIVE.
Early in the morning, when you are fresh and relaxed, is actually the best time to freedive. After that, if you still feel strong, we can take you scuba diving immediately after.
Bezz Diving makes it possible to combine a day of freediving and day of scuba diving.
Just ask us by email and we will arrange the best package for you!
Is freediving dangerous?
Let’s say freediving is no more dangerous than any other water sport, as long as we comply with the number one rule:
NEVER FREEDIVE ALONE!
Whenever you practice freediving with another trained freediver there is nothing to fear.
During all freediving courses with Bezz Diving you will be supervised at the surface and underwater by a certified freediving instructor at alltimes.
During your course you will learn all about the buddy system and other safety techniques.
What happen if I don’t complete all the compulsory practical skills on the course?
At Bezz Diving we will go the extra mile to enable you to complete all the skills required for the Level 1 course in a safe and relaxed way.
If you can’t complete all the skills during the two days, we will give you a FREE extra day where we will focus on the skills that need additional work.
Do I need to have my own equipment to attend the course?
At Bezz Diving we know from experience that people freediving for the first time don’t usually have their own equipment. That’s why every course includes rental of wetsuit, mask, snorkel , fins and weights.
Of course, you are also welcome to bring your own equipment and use it during the course!
What are the different freediving disciplines?
There are 9 different disciplines in competitive freediving:
Constant weight (with or without fins): This is the purest discipline, as the freediver goes below the surface without any artificial help, wearing only the weight needed to be neutral. The freediver has to return to the surface with the same amount of weight.
Variable weight (with or without fins): The freedivermay use weight to go down, thenreturn to the surface without weight so the return is faster and easier.
Free immersion: The freediver can assist the descent and ascent by pulling ona line. Wearing weight is optional. This discipline is done without fins.
No limits: This is a controversial discipline. It has recently been retired from competitions due to high risk for the freediver. In this discipline the freediver descends and ascends at high speed helped by an artificial lift. Some freedivers go deeper than 200 meters ona single breath!
Dynamic (with or without fins): This discipline consists of diving horizontally in shallow water, and can be practiced in the pool.
Statics: The freediver breath-holds with the face submerged in water, either in a pool or in the sea.
ABOUT DIEGO SALGADO
Diego arrived in Malta in 2013 with dreams of becoming diving instructor. He began his diving career working as a divemaster with Bezz Diving and the following year he achieved his ambition; he became a certified scuba instructor.
In the summer of 2014, one of the top world’s freedivers came to Bezz Diving to carry out one of the most epic dives of Maltese history… Freediving to the HMS Stubborn submarine which lies 56m down in Maltese waters. While filming this MOVIE of the dive, Diego developed great admiration and interest in this amazing new world of freediving.
At the end of 2014, he did his first freediving courses and with a lot of dedication and hard work, a few weeks later he becamean SSI freediving intructor. Since then, Diego has freedived and scuba dived all around the world. He visited Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia and the Maldives before finally ending up again where everything began!
Now you can find Diego on this amazing little rock called Malta, spending most of his time in the water freediving or diving. If he is not in the water, you will be able to find him hanging from the cliffs of Malta rockclimbing!