Diving equipment - what do I need

The basic diving gear consists of mask, snorkel and fins. Supply in this area is huge and often overwhelming for beginners. Consulting your local dealer or seeking advice from an experienced diver is highly recommended. Since this basic gear needs to fit properly and can be used anywhere, buying your personal gear makes more sense than renting it from a dive shop.

Proper mask fit is important
The most important part of your gear is the mask which needs to fit your face properly. It must be comfortable to wear without pinching your skin and it must create a waterproof space around your eyes and nose. You can try the mask’s fit by putting it on and sucking in air through your nose. The mask should stay put without its headband. The field of vision needs to be sufficient and the mask should not have too high of an air volume. People with corrective glasses should try masks with embedded optical lenses, since wearing regular glasses underneath masks or using glued-in glasses has proven a failure.

Snorkel wihtout a valve
The snorkel with its mouth-piece and bent tube makes breathing easier while you are lying in the water looking down through your mask. It is important to have a properly fitting mouth-piece. A valve at the bottom of the tube is inadvisable, instead it is much better to practice blowing out right from the start and later on practice breathing in.

Open-heeled fins best for diving
There are open-heeled fins which are held to the foot by straps and close-heeled fins that fit like a shoe. Sometimes referred to as full-feet fins, these fins are designed to be worn on bare feet and are better suited for a dive in the pool or a snorkeling trip than for a proper dive. The combination of wetsuit boots with zippers and open-heeled fins with straps is best for diving, since wetsuit boots have a reinforced sole for walking and protect the feet on the way to the water. The size and stiffness of the appropriate fin depends on the diver’s skills and strength.

Wetsuits keep the body warm
Water quickly cools down the human body, therefore it is advisable to use a wetsuit made from neoprene. A so-called shorty wetsuit with short arms and legs is ideal for warm waters, a one- or two-piece and 4 – 8 millimeters thick wetsuit is ideal for cold waters. Whether it makes sense to buy further equipment like buoyancy compensators, bottles, regulator systems, dive watches, computers, gloves, knives, UW lamps, underwater cameras and a dive bag for transporting the equipment depends on whether you want to dive only during your holidays or throughout the entire year.


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