Working draft. Pricing carried over from current rescuediverready.com plus council recommendations. Verify with Natalee. Photography is Unsplash placeholder.
Rescue Diver Ready Day · The flagship event

Two days. One hundred divers. The training that changes how you dive.

Twelve months from now, you can be the diver your buddies are quietly grateful is on the boat. PADI Rescue Diver certification at festival scale, with real instructors, real scenarios, and real victims to practice on. Tigertail Lake, Florida.

The basics

DatesSep 19–20, 2026
VenueTigertail Lake · Dania Beach
Capacity100 divers
Format10 stations · rotating
CertPADI Rescue Diver
Reserve · from $399
Festival format 10 stations
Instructor ratio 1 : 8 max
Founders rate $499
PADI eLearning included
Refresher option 1 day
Who it's actually for

Anyone who dives is welcome here.

The mom who dives twice a year on family trips. The retired teacher who just wants to be useful. The friend who's been certified for twenty years and never re-took the class. The solo traveler. The DM-aspirant. The 50-something woman who feels rusty.

If you can hold a regulator, this is for you. Bring your buddies.

What you actually get

It's a weekend. It happens to leave you certified.

Most rescue courses are a classroom and a pool. This one is closer to a festival than a class. You leave with the cert AND the community AND the confidence AND a few stories worth telling.

01 · The reputation

Become the diver everyone wants on their boat.

The dive buddy your group is quietly glad showed up. Reputation built in one weekend, lasting every dive after.

02 · The community

100 serious divers, one weekend, one place.

Florida dive shops, instructors, vacation divers, future Divemasters. Bring your buddies. Make new ones. Find your next trip crew.

03 · The gear

PADI, DAN, Garmin. Try before you buy.

Hands-on gear demos from the brands that show up. Sponsor pavilion with regulators, computers, lights, and the things you've been meaning to upgrade.

04 · The capability

Real scenarios. Real practice. Twice.

You won't read about rescue. You'll DO every move. Tired diver tow. Panicked diver. Missing buddy. Boat-deck calls. By the end you've done each one. Twice. Under pressure.

Plus the things that don't fit on a card. Meals together. Sponsor swag. Photos of the weekend worth posting. The kind of weekend that makes you the friend who texts everyone "you have to do this next year."

What you'll actually do

Ten stations. Real scenarios. Repetition until calm.

Each station is a different rescue situation, run by a different instructor team. You rotate through all ten over two days. By the end, you have done the move. Not read about it. Done it. Which is the difference.

01

Tired or panicked diver at the surface

Tow technique, talking them down, reading body language.

02

Approach and exit

How to reach a struggling diver without becoming the second victim.

03

Unresponsive diver underwater

Bringing them up, controlled ascent, ditching weights.

04

Emergency action planning

Who calls 911. Who runs to the boat. Who counts heads.

05

Oxygen administration

Setup, delivery, monitoring. Real O2. Real masks.

06

Communication and signaling

Surface signals, light protocols, lost-buddy procedures.

07

Equipment problem-solving

Free-flowing reg, BCD failure, mask flood, alternate air.

08

Search patterns

U-pattern, expanding square, missing-diver protocols.

09

Boat-based rescue

Throw-bag, ladder recovery, in-water shore exit.

10

Post-rescue care and handoff

Stabilization, EMS handoff, documenting what happened.

Pick your path

Four ways to be in the room.

Pay in full or in 4. Affirm + Klarna available at checkout on every ticket.

2 days
Rescue Diver Ready Course
$599or $499 founders rate (first 50)
  • Full PADI Rescue Diver cert
  • PADI eLearning included
  • All 10 scenario stations
  • Instructor coaching + feedback
  • Sponsor pavilion access
  • Food + beverage included
Prereq: Advanced Open Water + EFR As low as $125/mo with Affirm Reserve this ticket
1 day
Rescue Diver Refresher
$399already certified, want to stay sharp
  • Skills review + update
  • 1-day scenario rotation
  • Updated rescue techniques
  • Instructor coaching
  • Sponsor pavilion access
Prereq: Current Rescue Diver cert Or pay in 4 with Klarna Reserve this ticket
1 or 2 days
Diver Victim Experience
$99or $149 for both days
  • Be the rescue scenario "victim"
  • Underwater perspective on all 10 stations
  • Sponsor pavilion access
  • Lunch included
  • You learn more than you'd think
Prereq: Advanced Open Water recommended Reserve this ticket
Add-ons · for divers already Rescue-certified

Stack these onto a Refresher or attend as add-on-only. Both certs run alongside the main event.

Add-on cert

EFR · Emergency First Response

CPR + primary + secondary care. Required prerequisite for Rescue.
$199 Add
Add-on cert

O2 Provider · Emergency Oxygen

Setup, delivery, monitoring. Real O2, real masks, real practice.
$249 Add
Add to your order · official event merch

Wear it home. Or in your kit bag forever.

Event Tee Cotton. Black. The dates and the bench across the back.
$35 + Add
Rashguard UPF 50+. Long sleeve. Diver Ready logo on the chest.
$45 + Add
Insulated Water Bottle 32oz. Stainless. Keeps cold for 24 hours. Logoed.
$25 + Add

One-tap add at checkout. Ships with your registration packet or pick up at the event.

Bringing a dive club or shop group?

Bulk pricing for 10+. Custom prerequisites coordination. We'll build you a group lane.

Request group pricing
Beyond the training · founding partners

A festival. Not a course.

Three brands the dive industry depends on chose to show up from day one. PADI as our Training Partner. DAN as our Safety Partner. Garmin as our Technology Safety Partner.

PADI · Training Partner

The certification engine behind every cert issued at the event. eLearning included with every ticket. Curriculum aligned. The standard the industry runs on.

PADI

DAN · Safety Partner

On-site safety oversight. Oxygen administration training. The organization the whole industry calls first when something goes wrong, here from the start.

DAN

Garmin · Technology Safety Partner

Hands-on with the Descent series. Real dive computers in your hand for the weekend. Felt difference between watching tutorials and using the gear.

Garmin Descent

See the full sponsor lineup and named partner positions →

One thing to do first

Download the PADI Diver Medical Form before you reserve.

If you answer "yes" to anything on page 1, your physician needs to sign before training. We'll send you the form, the prereq checklist, and reminders as the event approaches. No spam. Just what you need.

Common questions

What you're probably wondering.

I haven't dived in a year. Will I be in over my head?

No. The Refresher track is built exactly for divers in your spot. You'll be in a small group with people at the same level. By the end of day one, you'll feel sharp again.

I'm a 55-year-old woman. Will I feel out of place?

You will not. Our community skews wider than the dive-shop stereotype. Every age, every gender, every body type. The point is being the person your friends count on, and that has nothing to do with what you look like in a wetsuit.

What's the actual schedule?

Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday morning is dry skills + EFR review. Saturday afternoon and Sunday are in-water rotations. We finish by 5 each day so you can have dinner and sleep.

What if I have to cancel?

Tickets are transferable. If you can't make it, give your spot to a buddy. Refunds available up to 60 days before the event.

What about lodging?

Tigertail Lake is in Dania Beach, 10 minutes from FLL airport. We have a partner hotel rate (sent with confirmation). Drive-to divers in South FL: easy day trip both days.

Last thing

The next dive trip is already on the calendar. The question is what kind of diver you'll be on it.

Reserve your spot · from $399