You don't need to do scuba discovery to take owd, however you need to be able to swim without any aid (fins, lifejacket, or any flotation aid) continuously for 200 meters and tread water for 10 minutes. If you cannot swim 200 meters then you have the choice of using fins, mask and snorkel and do a 300 meter snorkel test, but you still have to float for 10 minutes without any aid.

My advice is to take up swimming lesson first if you really cannot swim at all. But if you can do doggy paddle on your own that is good enough. Most instructors only want to make sure that you are comfortable being in the water.

I learn to dive with BSAC which have strict requirement for diving certification and I was so fat that time it was impossible to make me sink. I did doggy paddle for my swim test and it took some time to complete the 200 meters.

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Added on May 12, 2011, 4:07 amNot sure about cheapest way to get OWD cert, but if you only have weekends to spare I suggest you take a referral course which means you learn to dive in swimming pool first then continue your course elsewhere. You can find a dive centre/instructor in Subang Jaya that can train you the skills. This can be done in one day or two days, depends on how fast you learn the skills. Just make sure your instructor sign the forms properly.

Then you can go to any dive centre on any island and do 2 days open water dives with the forms that has been signed by your previous instructor. Just remember if you are flying, allow 18 hours after your last dive before you take your flight. Most dive centre will not allow you to dive on your last day if you have early morning flight the next day.

This post has been edited by scubagon: May 12 2011, 04:07 AM