Islands Tec Dive

Islands Tec Dive is a small, instructor-led dive centre in Marsalforn, on the north coast of Gozo, run for divers who prefer personal attention to a crowded boat. It teaches and guides everyone from first-timers to technical divers, and it works privately: beginners are taught alone or with their own friends and family, never in a mixed group. For a UK visitor that means a try dive or a course that moves at your pace.

The centre is an SSI school, holds Malta Tourism Authority licence DIVE/G/0002 and belongs to the Professional Diving School Association. On VisitMalta.co.uk it appears in our directory of dive centres in Malta. Most dive sites are reached from the shore, and the team drives clients to them, picking you up from your accommodation in Gozo or from the ferry terminal.

The team behind the centre

Manuel Morvan, from France, is Director of Diving and Operations Manager. He has logged more than 4,000 dives and over a decade of international experience in dive centre management, guiding and instruction. He is an SSI Assistant Instructor Trainer and Platinum Instructor, with technical credentials up to Extended Range Hypoxic Trimix Instructor, and he speaks English, Spanish and French.

Sarah Kompatscher, a marine biologist by training, is Director of Diving and Diving Safety Officer. She has more than 3,000 dives, a BSc in Diving Safety Management and SSI Platinum Instructor status, and she teaches technical diving up to Technical Extended Range Trimix. She also dives sidemount, and she speaks German, English and Italian.

Between them the instructors and guides work in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian. The centre has more than 20 years of experience behind it, and two dogs, Ares and Odin, act as guard and gardener at the shop.

Try diving and first steps underwater

The easiest way in is a private try dive. Basic Diver costs €100, or €110 for one person on a private session, and runs for three to four hours with equipment included and no extra fees. It is open from age 10 with no prerequisites, goes to a maximum of 12 metres and can be credited towards your first certification. Try Scuba, at the same price, takes place in confined water to a maximum of 5 metres, again from age 10.

Children can join too. Kids Diving, from age 8, costs €100, with training limited to 3 metres in a protected area and taught only by specially trained instructors. The programme includes pickup at your accommodation in Gozo or at the ferry terminal, and the dive takes place at one of the island's sites, so you see real marine life. A certified friend or relative can come along.

Safety paperwork is part of every booking. Each participant completes a diver medical questionnaire, available in several languages, and nobody can take part in in-water activities until fitness to dive is confirmed. Anyone who answers yes to an item on it needs to see a doctor first. SSI theory can be done online beforehand, which leaves more of your time on the water.

Guided dives, prices and equipment

Fun diving is for certified divers. Prices are per diver and include transfer, weights and an 11 litre tank: a single dive is €70, a double dive €100, four dives €195, six €290, eight €380 and ten €460. A night dive costs €99 for a minimum of two divers. A GoPro in a housing can be rented for €20 if you want footage.

A typical morning is two shore dives from the same area at different sites: meet at 07:30, first dive at 08:30, second dive at 11:00 and transfer back at 12:30. The early start avoids the summer heat and the crowds.

Full equipment, meaning mask, fins with booties, regulator, buoyancy device and wetsuit, is €23 a day or €105 for five days. A drysuit rental is €19 a day, sidemount equipment is €30, a backplate wing is €12, a DPV scooter is €49 and an 11 litre nitrox fill is €8. Single items such as a computer or torch are €8 a day. Neoprene drysuit rental is a particular strength, subject to sizes, and it makes the cooler months far more comfortable.

Gozo dive sites and conditions

Gozo's reputation rests on caves, arches, tunnels and wrecks more than on shoals of colourful fish. The centre's sites include Ras Il Hobz, Reqqa Point, Cathedral Cave and the MV Karwela wreck, along with the Blue Hole at Dwejra, which is about 5 metres across, reaches 15 metres and has an archway into open water at 9 metres. The collapsed Azure Window has become the Azure Boulders, a newer playground for marine life. Common sightings include octopus, cuttlefish, moray eels, sea breams, amberjack and barracuda, and with luck seahorses or conger eels.

Diving is possible all year. May to September gives the warmest water and longest days, while winter brings fewer crowds, good visibility and ideal conditions for drysuits. Visibility can reach 40 metres and the sea does not fall below 15 °C. Our Malta weather guide shows what each month feels like above the surface.

Boat trips can be added to a dive holiday. Comino, the small island between Malta and Gozo, is best known on the surface, and our Blue Lagoon guide covers it, and our guide to the best beaches in Malta suits surface days.

Courses and technical diving

Teaching is unhurried: time is taken to master each skill, and students learn about the impact divers have on the underwater world, so environmentally friendly habits are part of the lesson. The centre teaches SSI courses from beginner to advanced, specialty, emergency and professional levels, plus courses without diving, with online theory so classroom time stays short. Courses are taught one to one or to a private group, and can be built into all-inclusive packages.

Technical diving is a speciality. Extended Range Foundations costs €350, or €385 for a private course, from 24 logged dives. Extended Range Sidemount is €530, and technical DPV diving is €325 with two dives. Extended Range Nitrox is €590, Extended Range and Extended Range Trimix are €790, Technical Extended Range is €850 and Hypoxic Trimix is €950, which trains for depths of up to 100 metres. Private versions cost more and prerequisites rise at each step, from 24 logged dives to 100 total dives and 20 staged decompression dives.

Guided technical dives are €100 for a single dive, €120 to 60 metres and €150 to 80 metres or more. Full technical equipment is €45 a day, with double regulators, a tech computer, a DPV and a GoPro all available. Highlights include the MV Karwela, Cominoland and MT Hephaestus wrecks, Reqqa Point and Ras Il Hobz walls, and Tal Barba and Billinghurst caves.

Planning a dive holiday in Gozo

The centre arranges dive holidays for individuals, groups and dive clubs, covering Malta airport transfers, car hire, accommodation and boat trips. Our guide to flights from the UK to Malta helps you reach the islands, and our guides to hotels in Gozo and where to stay in Malta help you choose a base.

Non-divers in your party can use our Gozo guide and our overview of things to do in Malta. Sidemount diving, where tanks are carried at the sides, is a popular choice here, and the centre offers fun exploratory dives as well as full SSI sidemount and technical training, with DPV-supported dives and full rental gear. Divers can arrange accident and travel insurance through a partner, and entry-level students in scuba and freediving are enrolled free of charge on its starter plan.

Getting in touch

The centre is at Alex Flats on Qbajjar Road in Marsalforn, and its phone is staffed in English, French and Spanish or in English, German and Italian. It does not publish fixed opening hours, so the best first step is a short message saying what you want, your experience level, your dates and whether you need transfers, hire or accommodation.

Use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to Islands Tec Dive, who will reply to you directly.