Dive Systems Malta

Dive Systems Malta is a family-run dive centre on the seafront at Exiles Bay in Sliema, a short walk from the hotels, cafes and shops of the town's promenade. It has been trading since 1978 and calls itself the largest dive centre in the Maltese islands, with a full range of training, guided diving, boat trips, kit hire and technical services under one roof.

For a UK visitor the practical appeal is simple: you can learn to dive, join guided dives or service your own equipment at a single base that sits beside the sea, with a wreck sunk just outside the centre. On VisitMalta.co.uk it is listed under diving equipment suppliers in Malta and dive centres in Malta.

Four decades on the water

The centre points to more than forty years of experience in Maltese waters and is a founding member of the Malta Professional Diving School Association. It became a TDI dive centre in 2018, has partnered with Beuchat since 2000, and is now an SSI Diamond Dive Centre, so its recreational teaching follows the SSI system. It is also a fully insured Divers Alert Network centre and can sell short-term dive insurance to visitors who arrive without cover.

Sliema's seafront position matters for how a day runs. Because Malta is compact and the centre is central, instructors can reach sites around all three islands by road or by boat, and courses start without a long drive. Sessions that begin from the shore use the bay in front of the building, where a wreck has been scuttled, so even a first training dive can include something to look at.

Groups are kept small, whatever the size of the party, so that each diver gets proper attention. Equipment is tested and maintained regularly and sanitised after use, and the instructors are chosen for being careful, patient and familiar with the sites. English is spoken by everyone at the centre, and instructors are available in other languages.

The team also takes environmental work seriously. It organises regular clean-up events around the islands with the NGO Zibel, avoids single-use plastic and gives customers refillable aluminium water bottles to fill as often as they like.

Learning to dive with SSI

Complete beginners can start with SSI Try Scuba, a session of two to three hours in shallow, confined water. You learn basic skills such as clearing your mask and recovering your regulator, with no more than four people to each instructor. The minimum age is eight, the price covers basic equipment and instruction, and the session earns credit towards the SSI Scuba Diver course (two full days) or the SSI Open Water course (three full days).

A full-day Basic Diver experience adds two open-water dives, one of which may be in a marine reserve or on a historic wreck, depending on weather. Two people trying it together can take the couple offer, which is €220 for two instead of the usual €270 and includes briefing, kit and a guided dive to 12 metres.

Beyond the introduction, the centre teaches intro, advanced and professional courses, SSI specialty combinations that lead to Advanced Open Water, and freediving courses and tours. Course theory can be completed online before you fly, which leaves more of your holiday for the sea. Remember to allow at least 12 hours between your last dive and your flight home, and to complete the medical questionnaire, since a doctor's certificate is needed if any answer is yes.

A typical first-timer's week might begin with the Try Scuba session, move on to the Scuba Diver course over two days, and finish with a guided shore dive once you feel at home. Ask about what is practical for your dates and whether the SSI online theory can be done before you fly.

Guided dives and the boat Simo

Certified divers can book accompanied dives singly or in packs. Printed prices include road transport, a guide, cylinders and weights for shore dives, with full kit as an option. Four dives cost from €232 to €272, fourteen from €742 to €826 and twenty from €1,020 to €1,120, depending on whether kit is included.

Guides plan dives so that the group stays together and the route suits the least experienced diver present. If you prefer a particular style, whether reefs, wrecks or caves, say so when you enquire and the team will suggest sites that match. Individual items of kit can also be rented if you only need a few things, such as a regulator or a torch for a night dive, and full kit hire covers a mask and snorkel, full suit, hood, fins, buoyancy jacket, regulator and weight belt.

Supplements are settled at the centre once your dive plan is agreed. A night dive with torch and batteries is €25, a day trip to Gozo by road and ferry is €30, a single boat dive is €30, a double boat dive is €35 and a long-distance double is €45. Nitrox up to 36% adds €5 a dive and a twinset or sidemount configuration adds €10. Bring a towel, a swimsuit and dry clothes, because wet kit is not allowed in the vehicles.

Boat trips use Simo, a hard-bodied dive boat introduced in 2018 that carries up to 14 divers and has a toilet, a sheltered dry area and a sundeck. Simo is also available for private dive or leisure charters around Malta, Gozo and Comino. Typical highlights include the Um El Faroud wreck, Cirkewwa Marine Park, the Blue Hole and the Inland Sea. Our guide to Gozo and our Blue Lagoon guide are handy for planning the topside part of the trip.

Technical diving and workshop services

Technical training runs from entry-level tec courses up to instructor level, on both open circuit and closed circuit rebreathers. If you already dive with twinsets or sidemount, the centre can fill them and add the supplement at the time of booking, and qualified divers can combine technical courses with guided trips.

The centre also works as a service point for equipment. It offers equipment hire, air fills and gas blending, cylinder testing and inspection, and servicing of regulators and other kit. It operates retail outlets for diving gear and takes on light commercial diving work, which is unusual for a holiday dive centre and speaks to its technical depth.

Sliema, facilities and non-diving companions

Exiles Bay is easy to reach and the centre welcomes people who are not diving. Friends and family can use the facilities and relax on the beach in front of the centre, and a public garden and children's playground lie within about 200 metres, with restaurants and snack bars nearby. The team holds informal non-diving evenings for clients and staff, including night barbecues and boat trips.

Sliema is close to Valletta and to the nightlife of St Julian's and Paceville, so it fits well into a wider stay. Our Valletta guide, things to do in Malta and Malta weather guide help you plan, and visibility is described as up to 30 metres even in winter.

The centre lists accommodation help and airport pickups among its hospitality services, so if you are bringing bulky technical kit, mention it when you ask about transfers, because a standard taxi may not hold it all. If you book your own hotel, the centre suggests staying near Sliema or St Julian's, since morning traffic across the island can be heavy.

Dive holidays and how to book

The centre can assemble dive holiday packages for individuals and groups, covering recreational or technical diving, and can arrange airport transfers, which are best pre-booked if you carry lots of luggage. Before you travel, compare flights from the UK to Malta and see where to stay in Malta.

To ask about courses, guided dives, a charter or kit hire, use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to Dive Systems Malta.