Wow, best scuba diving teaching learning experience ever!! Highly recommend it :)Gary & Jen are really good instructors -- they are extremely personable and very fun, & they also are really competent and know what they are doing, so the entire time I felt completely secure and relaxed, even while trying to learn something totally new!Their teaching style is really good - they are able to break down concepts in a way that completely makes sense, and are able to give a lot of information without it being overwhelming. Also, the small class size feels really important -- it allowed for the experience to be completely individualized so I felt like I could go at my own pace and was always being challenged to my own preference level, and I felt really confident and secure because I knew that they were always nearby and able to give a lot of attention to whatever I was doing.I cant give them enough praise, really amazing experience and 1000% would recommend to anyone who wants to try scuba diving!

Gary is the man. Not only was the small group setting perfect for learning how to dive, he personally went above and beyond several times for the group to ensure that the whole experience was as safe, engaging, and informative as possible. You will be in very good hands if you train with Gary and I cannot recommend his classes enough.

Gary is a great teacher, the whole class went smoothly and at no point did I feel like i wasnt learning or getting it. The small class size is definitely the way to do this if you are unsure and Gary is definitely the guy to learn with. Cant wait for the next dive trip!

I’m so glad i chose to certify with SBA! Gary is an amazing teacher and so patient! He made sure we had fun, received individualized attention and he was focused on everyone’s safety. I walked away smiling—I felt like I gained a wealth of knowledge and also made some new friends! And his diver drops really work!! 🤪

Gary made learning scuba diving fun and accessible. He managed to teach all of us in class at our own level and to make sure everyone felt really comfortable in and out of the water. And his teaching doesnt end when class ends, hes constantly available to answer any questions and resolve any issues. He was accommodating to our needs (even when others might not be). He truly wants his whole class to enjoy the experience no matter what. When I had an issue with my mask that I bought, Gary made sure the Bamboo Reef refunded it. When we forgot our dive books, Gary made sure to make copies so that we could all have the full experience. Gary is the best teacher we could have hoped for. Thank you Gary!

Gary is simply the best! I was quite worried about my irrational fear of water and also my physical strength to carry out all the actions required during a dive. Gary has an amazing way of teaching that he gradually builds you up for things you need to know for the ocean test without making any part of the process seem intimidating. I learned many skills without even knowing I was learning or practicing them!During the ocean test @ Monterey, the cold temperature and the low visibility made it a hard dive, but with Garys clear and thoughtful instructions, fun teaching style, and amazing guidance, I was able to perform all the actions without any issue or fear. We ended up having a great time under wateru0010. Highly recommend!

Gary is an amazing dive instructor! He made learning fun and easy. Hes a really nice bloke and honestly cares a lot about introducing people to the world of scuba. Me and my roommate joined his class with just two other students. We took COVID precautions throughout training and felt safe. The pool classes were a lot of fun and we learned quickly. Diving in Monterey was life changing! I saw so many star fish, jelly fish, sea otters, and many types of fish. I was lucky enough to see a harbor seal swim in a circle above us! For weeks since, Ive been dreaming of diving. 100% recommend you learn to SCUBA and youd be a fool not to learn with Gary. The small class size means you can learn quickly and get all the knowledge you need to feel safe underwater. Plus you have a lifelong scuba buddy!

Taking my Open Water certification class with Gary was one of the BEST decisions Ive made this year! If youre looking to get scuba certified by a highly competent, personable instructor, look no further--youve found your guy! From the very beginning of the process, Gary was incredibly responsive to any questions and/or worries that I had and he made the whole process very very easy. He helped make sure that I had all of the required gear and sent us our study materials incredibly quickly. The small class size that Gary offers is truly unbeatable and for someone who was a little bit nervous going into the process, having only 4 students was a huge plus because we all got a ton of personalized attention and help.Gary led both our pool and open water sessions and eagerly made sure that everyone in our 4 person class felt comfortable the entire time. Instead of the required 2 days in the pool, Gary offered our class 3 days in the pool (at no additional cost) because he felt that it would better prepare us. And boy did it! Our group dove this past weekend in Monterey with Gary and the process was seamless. Even in somewhat rough water conditions, he made sure that we were all completely comfortable with all required skills and we were all so well-prepared that we actually spent most of the open water dives just exploring the area which was amazing!Do your certification with Gary, you wont regret it!!!

I highly, highly recommend Gary’s classes to everyone! I can say this with absolute confidence as this was actually my second attempt to learn diving. The first time (a few years ago in Egypt), I perforated my eardrum. Naturally, I was very nervous before starting my course at the Bay Area School of Diving. Gary was able to take my fear away immediately and soon replaced it with not only confidence but joy for diving. He is super knowledgeable and his class is extremely well organized! The small class size allowed Gary to supervise each student closely. He really cares about each of us. For example, my mask turned out to be suboptimal for the ocean dives and mid-dive Gary offered me his mask. This saved the whole day for me. Best diving instructor ever!!

Gary is a great scuba instructor, I couldn’t have asked for a better experience for my open water PADI certification. He is extremely knowledgeable about everything scuba and went above and beyond in teaching the required material and skills. His teaching style made the class fun and interesting and his calm demeanor made me feel more comfortable and relaxed while diving which I think gave me a huge jump start in my scuba diving ability. His class was a great first impression of diving for me and look forward to taking more specialty classes with Gary in the future. I would highly recommend him to anyone interested in diving.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND. If I could give Gary more than 5 stars I would! I took my PADI open water this past weekend with Gary and had a really great experience. Gary was super friendly, helpful, and thorough throughout the entire class from beginning to end in both the pool and the ocean. He is clearly very passionate about diving and teaching new divers and his passion really shows. For someone with zero dive experience, Gary made the whole process incredibly approachable and fun. He not only did a great job teaching our class all of the required PADI skills but he also shared a ton of personal tips and tricks from all of his years of diving. The small class size (4 people) makes Garys class really unique and he is still very competitively priced. Throughout the class, Gary maintained the perfect balance between being incredibly safety oriented and still encouraging us to all have a lot of fun.If youre looking to get certified in the Bay Area, go with Gary! You have many options in the Bay Area but I am certain that he is the best!

Gary is a fantastic scuba instructor! I’m very glad I took his class and obtained my Open Water Certification with him. From the very beginning, his program stood out from others with his small class size (usually at most 4 students at a time) and clarity and transparency with the schedule and costs. His small class size allows him to provide more personalized attention and be relatively flexible and adjust the course if necessary to help out students. His schedule is designed for students with work schedules and is relatively condensed (6am pool dives and open water checkout dives in 4 consecutive days), which I very much appreciated. He is very experienced in both diving theory and practical real-world practices.The best part of the experience was the final checkout dive in Monterey, where due to his experience and small class size, we were able to spend most of our time actually diving and checking out the marine wildlife. It was a fantastic experience. Gary is also constantly looking for ways to improve his class structure and give his students the best end-to-end experience, including establishing an alumni network for his students. Can’t recommend him enough!

I am still feeling energized after achieving my PADI certification with Gary Gardner last weekend. I went through the program with three other friends so it took us about a month to work with everyone’s schedules. Gary was flexible, patient, professional, extremely knowledgeable, and fun throughout the entire process! Our group had mixed levels of experience, and Gary accommodated everyone. He created a really safe space to be honest about our comfort levels. I look forward to putting my new skills to use ASAP! Thank you, Gary!!