CENTREFOCUS
Yoonseok ( right ) flying the BSAC flag
Coba Dive
LOCATION : Jeju City , Jeju Island , South Korea INSTAGRAM : CobaDivingSchool
Kristina Pedder meets BSAC Korea ’ s first coastal dive centre , and learns how our training has been adopted in this amazing country
PHOTO : SKJEONG
Yoonseok Kim , proprietor of Coba Dive , was a Seoul-based underwater cinematographer before beginning his BSAC journey . Back in 1995 he qualified as a BSAC Korea Novice Diver , in
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Jeju Island offers some of the best diving in South Korea
1996 he began instructor training and by 2018 he was a National Instructor . Some 25 years ago , Yoonseok moved to the holiday island of Jeju , an area previously unknown to him , to follow his love of diving . With
Jeju Island
South Korea support from the Representative of BSAC Korea JongSub Park , he set up BSAC Korea ’ s first coastal dive centre in Jeju City . I was able to visit Coba Dive in November last year and dive in the warm blue waters of South Korea ’ s favourite holiday destination .
What facilities does the centre offer ?
The centre is based at the Amoreaux Resort hotel , near the airport . This is just a few minutes drive , in Coba Dive ’ s dive truck , from the local marina and a popular shore diving site at Iho Tewoo beach . There is a dedicated three-metre deep diver training pool on site , alongside a cosy dive shop with a colourful collection of diving memorabilia and a compressor . The centre has 10 complete sets of scuba gear and a dive boat that takes up to 10 divers . Boats for bigger parties can also be arranged . The comfortable modern hotel where the centre is based offers discounted room rates to Coba customers .