Earn Your PADI Thresher Shark Diver Specialty on Malapascua Island
Malapascua is one of the only places on Earth where thresher sharks can be reliably seen visiting a cleaning station. The PADI Thresher Shark Diver Specialty gives you the knowledge, dive skills, and shark etiquette to make every encounter count — and to understand the conservation context that makes protecting these animals so important.
Learn to dive in paradise
About the Specialty
Four dedicated dives at Monad Shoal combined with in-depth shark biology and conservation training. One of the most unique specialty certifications available anywhere in the world.
- Duration: 2–3 days
- 4 specialty dives at Monad Shoal
- PADI Thresher Shark Diver certification
- Small groups, early morning departures
Course Overview
The course has two main components:
Knowledge Development
Thresher shark biology and behaviour, the role of cleaning stations in shark ecology, responsible dive etiquette at Monad Shoal, and the conservation threats facing thresher sharks globally. You’ll finish knowing far more about these animals than most divers ever will.
Dive Briefings
Before each dive, your instructor briefs the group on that morning’s conditions, current shark activity, positioning at the cleaning station, and the specific behaviour guidelines that protect the sharks and maximise sighting quality.
Specialty Dives at Monad Shoal
Four early-morning dives at Malapascua’s famous shark cleaning station at depths of 20–30m. Thresher sharks arrive just after first light. Sightings are frequent but never guaranteed — this is wild marine life behaving naturally, and that’s exactly what makes it special.
Study Materials
The PADI Thresher Shark Diver specialty manual covers the full biology, ecology, and conservation context of thresher sharks in detail. Included in the course price.
Your instructor may recommend additional reading about shark conservation at Monad Shoal and the Thresher Shark Research and Conservation Project.
Prerequisites
Prerequisites
PADI Open Water Diver certification (or equivalent) required. Minimum age is 10. Advanced Open Water is recommended but not required — dives reach 28–30m and divers comfortable at that depth will have the best experience.
Download medical exam formYour Instructors
Thresher Shark Divers has been operating at Monad Shoal since the dive site was first developed. Our instructors and divemasters know the cleaning station, the sharks, and the behaviours to look for better than anyone.
Thresher Shark Conservation
Ask about combining the specialty with our shark conservation dive programme — a citizen science effort that contributes to ongoing thresher shark population monitoring at Monad Shoal.
Proceeds from conservation dives support the Thresher Shark Research and Conservation Project on Malapascua.
Combine Courses
The Thresher Shark Diver Specialty pairs perfectly with the Advanced Open Water + Nitrox package. All three together make for an outstanding multi-day diving programme and leave you significantly better equipped for Monad Shoal’s depths and currents.
Inquire about this course
Inquire about this course
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