Downbelow Marine and Wildlife Adventures

I undertook my divemaster internship during my summer break, and I can whole heartedly say that it was one of the most valuable experiences for me both as a PADI diver, but also as a person. The whole crew were professional and clearly well experienced. They warmly welcomed me on the first day and made me feel comfortable and at home for the whole experience. The style of teaching made it easy to learn and I didn't feel under pressure to not make mistakes. Instead, mistakes were looked at as a part of the learning experience and as a result, made the course a fun experience. The crew were always there and ready to answer any questions or doubts that I had and I felt like I was taken care of well.

The diving in general was also great, with various dive sites to make it an overall great time.

My time at Downbelow started in October 2017 and finished in January 2018. I started my internship as an open water diver. The instructors started me off by giving me an orientation of the facilities of the island on which the dive centre resides. I then had a refresher dive in which the instructor kept a close eye on me running me through some of the basic skills making sure I was confident in the water. After this there was plenty of fun dives to enjoy, seeing all of the sea life (turtles, sharks, morays, eagle rays) that inhabit the marine park in which Downbelow operates. From there I began my training to become a PADI Divemaster.
first completing the advanced open water followed by rescue diver and finally completing my divemaster course. The professionalism, friendliness and helpfulness of the staff was to such an extent that I knew that they genuinely care about the training they provide and the affect it has on your future career. Because of this I decided to continue my training after the divemaster internship and take part in the IDC to become a fully fledged instructor and I couldn't of imagined doing it anywhere else.
During my time in Borneo I was staying at Downbelow's inhouse accommodation which was modern, clean, air conditioned and run by the nicest, friendliest couple anyone could hope to meet. It's situated just outside of the centre of Kota Kinabalu within walking distance of the bustling waterfront with the usual bars, restaurants and an amazing seafood market so I was spoilt for choice in what to eat during my 3 month stay.

All in all I would recommend this experience to anyone whether you are an experienced diver or a complete novice because I can assure you it will be an experience you won't forget. Finally I would like to thank all the instructor's and staff at Downbelow who made my experience so enjoyable.

I completed a 3 month internship with Downbelow Adventures and can't praise them enough. Initial contact with the team was informative and helpful providing me with a tailored internship program at a price that was great value for money.

I stayed at the Adventure Lodge during my trip and found the accommodation sufficiently clean, tidy and comfortable. The lodge it is conveniently situated among many restaurants offering local and western cuisines that are, mostly, very reasonably priced.
I travelled on the boat to Pulau Gaya every day (10minute boat ride) where I was greeted by some superb local staff who are constantly enthusiastic and happy to see you. I truly consider many of the staff to be good friends of mine now whom I hope to visit again in the future.

The dive centre has all the facilities you'd expect from a 5 star PADI centre and all the staff are very knowledgeable about the recreational diving industry. If you have a keen interest in photography then I'd highly recommend coming here as both course directors have lifelong experience and interest in underwater photography and many interesting species of animals can be seen around the island as well as underwater.

My courses, rescue diver, EFR, divemaster and IDC were all superbly organised and my main instructor Oli made the experience 100000x better. Lots of laughter on a daily basis, challenging tasks throughout and over-exaggerated rescue scenarios that made lasting memories. The IDC itself was conducted over a 2 week period which gave us plenty of time for practice exams, revision, in water practicals and even spare time should we wish to take it. It seemed to be the perfect time frame for all the courses and I'd like to thank all staff instructors and course directors for their time and patience in preparing myself and other course candidates for success during the IE.

The diving around TARP ranged from good to superb. Yes, there were days of bad visibility and yes, sometimes the water temperature dropped to 26 degrees celsius but this is all part and parcel of scuba diving. Its often on those colder, poorer visibility dives that you see some of the most interesting and memorable species. Some of the marine life I witnessed included whale sharks, frogfish, yellow box fish, numerous species of nudibranchs, hawksbill & green turtles, blue spotted stingrays, ghost & banded pipefish, moorish idols, eagle rays, seahorses and many many more. Not to mention the vast array of soft and hard corals prominent around the 45 dive sites available.

All in all, I had a superb time making great friends, memories and improving my diving ability tenfold. I'd highly recommend Downbelow Adventures for anyone who wishes to learn or progress their diving abilities and equally to view some of the fantastic marine life that Borneo, Sabah has to offer.

Craig