Welcome to the Freedive Academy Panglao!
Being an SSI Freediving Instructor Trainer, SSI Swim Teacher Trainer, Molchanovs and AIDA Instructor Trainer, RAID World Series of Freediving instructor, and a former competitive depth freediver, I know that proper education and training are vital for the enjoyment and safety of the sport. Luckily, I’m based in Panglao, Philippines, where we have with our education center direct access to the best freedive spot in Asia – and arguably in the world.
I’m also fortunate to call freedive mecca Dahab in Egypt my home away from home, and I have been fortunate to be doing depth training there – and here in Panglao, with some of the best freedivers in the world.
As a pro freediver, I know that finding proper guidance in training, finding buddies, and developing plans and goals can be complicated when you only want to explore the sport and dive deep.
We made the Freedive Academy Panglao a freediving home with highly skilled professional instructors for all levels, from beginners up to Instructors and Instructor Trainers. We make freediving education and training fun, accessible and easy.
We hope to see you soon in tropical Panglao, Philippines.
Vincent Sparreboom
Freedive Academy Panglao Founder & Owner,
International Business Developer, Instructor Trainer
World-Class Education Center for Beginner Freedivers to Instructors.
You better get ready! Freediving in Tropical Panglao will be an Experience of a Lifetime!
Maybe you want to learn how to freedive, do a beginner freediving course, and try freediving for the first time – great! Amazing! You will love freediving! Maybe you are a freediver already, and are you ready to take your freediving to the next level by becoming a Master Freediver or a Freedive Instructor? Fantastic!
The Freedive Academy always has something nice to offer. We have beginner and intermediate courses starting pretty much every day of the week. We are running at least two SSI Level 3, AIDA 4, or Molchanovs Wave 3 courses each month, and each month, we have at least one SSI Instructor Course, AIDA Instructor Course, and or Molchanovs Instructor Course. If you are a Master freediver, jump in and join our master training program at any time; we have buddies ready to join you on the buoy year-round.
We have a large and inviting dive center in Panglao with a warm and friendly atmosphere. The beautiful bamboo bungalows and outside hangout area create the tropical experience you want. The academy has its own private 25-meter pool and is fully equipped with high-quality materials and premium gear designed only for freediving. We are located 300 meters from the ocean with the most fantastic coral wall and massive drop-off at only 8 meters from shore. We can dive at any time of the day without using a boat directly from the shore. Panglao island is covered by palm, banana, and coconut trees. With the clear tropical blue waters of the Philippines and incredible year-round diving conditions, we know you’ll enjoy the flip-flop freediver lifestyle in Panglao.
We have been teaching freediving since January 2014. Over the years, we’ve specialized in our unique freediving packages and long-term development programs like the freediving internships and freediving zero to hero programs.
We’ve seen it many, many, many times! Learning How To Freedive can be Life-Changing!
If you want to be part of an amazing freediving group and community with a great family and laid-back atmosphere, a fully equipped world-class facility with an incredible dive location.
If you want to learn how to freedive, hold your breath and dive deep – don’t hesitate – you have to join us in Panglao!
Our team is some of the most experienced in the world – we can let our numbers speak for themselves. Learn freediving from true professionals and have a fantastic vacation. Join us in tropical Panglao for a beginner course, a week, a month, or a year, and have an experience of a lifetime!
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Let us take you on an underwater experience you’ll never forget!
Please feel free to get in touch with us any day of the week or fill in this form for more detailed information.
Here you will find more information about Freediving in the Philippines.
Directly from Panglao, the Freedive Academy Panglao iMagazine
Freediving, Traveling, the Oceans and a whole lot of Awesomeness!
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Spectacular Freediving, Training and Coaching in Panglao!
It truly is. Taking a freediving course in the Philippines is simply spectacular! Panglao is a beautiful green island that is perfect for learning how to freedive or further develop your freediving skills. From our freediving center, we have access to the best freediving location in Asia, perhaps in the world! This, plus you will be surrounded by coconut, palm, and banana trees, makes Panglao Island the ultimate dream location for freediving and perfect for Beginner Freediving Courses and advanced courses. We teach all possible levels in freedive education, including all instructor and specialty instructor levels!
We access the ocean with a comfortable 2-minute scooter ride, our shuttle car, or an easy < 10-minute walk. We have a spectacular reef, fixed -50, -80, and -130 meter dive lines at swimming distance, and we always have fish around. With near-perfect conditions year-round, we can bring you to the dive lines any time of the day and any day of the year. Because we have easy access to the ocean and training lines, we can offer the lowest training rates for masters and fellow instructors in the industry, starting at only $350 a month, while you are diving at the best freedive location in Asia!
This is how it is to Freedive with us in Panglao!
Please note; this video was shot at our first location. We still dive at the same reef, but we moved about 300 meters down the road to a brand new Freediving Center with Sports Resort and 25-meter pool.
Whether you are a beginner freediver or a Master Freediver, with us, you start your training in Panglao, and you continue your Freedive Training at home via an online community and online coaching – the training consists of in-water, dry-training, fitness, and nutrition. Furthermore, whether you want to get back at depth, improve your dive time, or go deeper, as most of us want! We have the Master Instructors and Trainers to help you reach your goals.
But let’s be honest here; you are traveling to Bohol, and you want to enjoy the freediver flip-flop lifestyle, too, and life on Panglao is perfect for this. Shorts, flip-flops, riding around the island on a scooter, palm trees, and greens everywhere, white sandy beaches, enjoying the many, many great restaurants with as many fresh juices as you want—Panglao is a tropical paradise!
The same goes for the ocean! Near-perfect diving conditions year-round with a water temperature of 26 – 31C. You’ll have, via a short swim, easy access to unlimited depth with 30 to 40-meter visibility. You will always be surrounded by tropical fish, and while it’s rare, at the dive lines, we’ve regularly seen whale sharks, pilot, minke, and grey whales, manta’s and rays, dolphins varying from 2 or 3 to pods of 80 to 100, and twice we even had a blue whale (!!!) at the lines – the Philippines waters have it all!
Check out the Freedive in Panglao page, and contact us with your goals, plans, and wishes. We’ll tell you everything you need to know, and we can help you plan your trip to the Philippines.
We hope to see you soon in the tropical clear blue waters of Panglao, Philippines!
The Best Service in the Industry and Developing Skilled Freedivers!
2019 was, for us, a year of many changes! A New Philosophy and Direction!
We came to Panglao in 2015, started teaching immediately, and had our ‘official’ start in February 2016. But many things have changed over the years. Panglao has developed into a full-grown tourist destination with an international airport, large ferry terminal, incredible restaurants, nightlife, and high-level accommodation for all budgets. Panglao and Bohol have become must-visit destinations for everyone visiting the Philippines.
We changed, too. In mid-2019, we had to rethink our vision for the dive center in Panglao. We no longer wanted to be the biggest freediving center in the world. This ambition brought us a lot, but we knew all along that this was not what we wanted.
September 1st, we moved into a new dive center in Panglao, right smack on the only access road towards the single most famous dive spot on the island, Napaling Reef, with the sardines and massive drop-off perfect for freediving. We are now based about 300 meters from the ocean entry with an incredible building to support our philosophy: WE WANT TO BE THE BEST EDUCATION CENTER IN THE WORLD!
Saying ‘you Want to be the Best’ is Easy. Becoming the Best is Not so Easy… 🙂
We extended our pool to a two-lane, 25-meter private pool with a shallow water area for static training. We have a bamboo-covered yoga deck for yoga, pranayama, and stretching sessions. We started equipping a small outdoor gym for apnea training with cycling and rowing machines for apnea training. We’ve built luxury bamboo bungalows and a large outdoor terrace for relaxing and chatting with your colleague freedivers. We invested heavily in premium diving gear, convenience, and safety, and all our classrooms are equipped with anatomical models of the ears, sinuses, and alveoli, smart TVs, diving models, oximeters, and spirometers.
Only 200 meters down the road from us, close to the entrance of Napaling Reef, our office team provides customer support, media, and sales. This is also where our Bohol Tour company, our transport, and paddleboard and kayak rental business are located. We are now further developing the Adventure Center into something really special with eateries and more office space. It’s going to be something the freediving world hasn’t seen yet! Stay tuned!
Our goal is not just to be the best freediving center in the world. With the new incredible freedive academy, the Adventure Center just down the road, the latest equipment and tools, and more sessions, training, and guidance, we hope to achieve the highest course passing rates in the industry without making the courses any easier. We want to be the only real option for people who really want to learn how to freedive, for those who want to dive deeper, stay down longer, or get a better breath hold.
Our Mission Statement: The Freedive Academy Panglao is and needs to be an education center at the highest level for all recreational and professional freedivers.
You can breathe again – it’s official! We just won another Travellers Choice Award!
We’re thrilled to share some incredible news with all of you! Once again, we have been honored with the prestigious TripAdvisor Travellers Choice Award 2024, marking our 6th travel award!
Thank you to all our amazing customers for your unwavering support and glowing reviews. This recognition means the world to us and motivates us to keep delivering unforgettable adventures.
We extend our heartfelt appreciation to TripAdvisor for acknowledging our commitment to excellence. We’re genuinely grateful for this recognition.
Join us as we celebrate this remarkable achievement together. The dives, vibes, and experiences await you!
Thank you for being a part of our journey. To many more unforgettable moments!
Please continue sharing your feedback and photos on TripAdvisor, Facebook, Google, and don’t forget to give your instructor or coach some kudos. It will make their day for sure!
Recreational Courses and Professional Freedive Development
From Beginner to Instructor Trainer and all sorts of Specialities – we can offer it all!
We are a true professional freedive development center with 3-month internships. In exchange for helping out, we offer our interns a big discount on the courses, free housing, and free lunches.
The Freedive Academy Panglao is the only freediving center in the world (!) that offers Internships, Freediving Zero to Hero programs, and Professional Development programs, with the possibility of becoming a Swim Teacher or Mermaid Instructor!
Recreational Courses:
SSI Try, Basic Freediving & AIDA 1
SSI Level 1, AIDA 2 & Molchanovs Wave 1
SSI Level 2, AIDA 3, Molchanovs Wave 2
SSI Level 3, AIDA 4 & Molchanovs Wave 3
SSI Speciality Freediving:
In Panglao, we offer all possible freediving specialities like; Monofin, Training Tables, Free Immersion, No Fins, Scooter/DPV Diving, Variable Weight, React Right and Diver Stress & Rescue.
Professional Development:
SSI, AIDA & Molchanovs Instructor Courses and Instructor Cross Overs
Complete (Zero to Hero) Beginner to Freediving Instructor Programs
Competitive Freediving:
Molchanovs Wave 4 (Coming Soon)
AIDA Competition Freediver & Safety Freediver
Master and Training Programs
We teach our freediving courses in the following languages. However, we also regularly work with translators, so please feel free to contact us anytime to check if your classes can be taught in your language.
Regardless of which SSI, Molchanovs, or AIDA freediving course you want to take, we’ll encourage you and help you boost your confidence in the water. Learn to freedive with our fantastic team of professional instructors who will help and motivate you throughout your course. Our freediving courses are designed to give you the most enjoyable and safest freediving experience possible. Learn and love freediving with us!
Read more about the possible Freediving Courses.
Directly from Panglao, the Freedive Academy Panglao iMagazine
Freediving, Traveling, the Oceans and a whole lot of Awesomeness!
Once every two weeks, directly in your mailbox – all the cool stuff we only share with our Premium members.
With this free subscription (which you can cancel anytime with one click), you will receive all the goodies you won’t immediately find on our social media. With the Freedive Academy Panglao’ club’, you will be the first to get the goodies and exclusive invites, and you’ll be the first to read about news and trends about freediving in the Philippines.
After subscribing please check your mailbox, we took measurements against spam, and we want to know you are real.
A Dive Center for Everyone! From Beginner to World Champion!
We received many, many visitors over the years, but this is what some of the best freedivers in the world had to say about the academy and our freediving family in Panglao!
Alexey Molchanov – World Champion CWT & CNF and 16x WR holder
I like it here a lot! Super nice conditions for deep diving, very friendly people and super professional instructors – after I taught them :p I will definitely come back for more adventures!
Şahika Ercümen – World Record Holder
The Freedive Academy was much more than an amazing freediving center. It was like a family. It was my first time in the Philippines and after my first training with Freedive Academy, I already started to plan my second visit and after 1 month I am now coming back to this beautiful centre. We only swim 20-30 meters from the shore to train, water is warm and calm most of the time and everybody is full of positive energy. What can I ask more? It is definitely one of my favourite destinations. I am so grateful to the Freedive Academy Panglao family. See you soon.
Evren Orhon – Coach of the Turkish National Freediving Team
I came to train to with the Freedive Academy Panglao in December 2015 and stayed there for four months. The strongest part of the Freedive Academy is its location. You don’t need a boat to go diving. The depth is just right next to you!! The club’s location is so good that in four months I only had two non-diveable days. The pool next to the club building offers great static opportunity, even at night time. The staff is so helpful not only in the water but on anything you need about your stay or moving around. The Freedive Academy Panglao is a must-visit point for all freedivers. The only concern is you can get hooked and may not like your next freediving destination as much.
Elliot Hyomin Kim – Korean National Team Coach and National Record Holder
I have been training for a long time all over the world from Asia to Europe, including four world championships as an athlete and coach. The freediving location is very important from beginner to deep diver. Here at the Freedive Academy, you can approach all the buoy’s from beginner to 150m deep within 200m from shore. Weather is also fantastic as I am staying here for two months from June to July. I have not had a single day on which I could not dive due to the weather conditions. The person here in charge of the center, Vincent, is a super nice person who loves the ocean and will welcome everybody with the best hospitality. If you have not yet tried the Freedive Academy Panglao. I strongly recommend you to TRY.
Davide Carrera – World Champion and World Record Holder
I spent the first two weeks and a half of this January at Freedive Academy Panglao for training. From the first mail, I understood that Vincent was a very kind and generous person, at that time he wasn’t there cause he was in India to improve his yoga. Still, his Team welcomed me, and I felt at home from the beginning.
The depth is just in front of the dock, 300 meters walking from the school and 45 seconds from my room 🙂 warm water and normally not much current, perfect conditions and the team is smiling all the time, very kind, responsible, professional and always ready to go in the water and make you feel safe and part of the team.
In few minutes by scooter, it’s easy to find fresh and local fruits and vegetables and other good food, Philippines people are very lovely people, I always felt nice vibes everywhere I went, also in town, everybody smiling and ready to help you….I loved this place very much, and I’m missing it, I hope to come back soon…Thanks again, everybody!
Vincent Mathieu – World Champion Static
You cannot say anything less about the Freedive Academy Panglao than that it’s a simply magical environment. With the perfect training conditions – visibility of 30m and a similar 30 degrees Celsius at the moment – in a calm sea, you have all you need to progress from 5 to 95m of depth.
I certified 9 minutes + static in the swimming pool at the Academy. I recommend training by the colours of the sunset or during the evening with the mood lights on and the stars shining down.
And what to say about the drop-off… You would believe it was made especially for freedivers. Lying down on the 25-meter curbed edge you can admire the corals from underneath, spectacular colour changes and incredible species that will delight both biology amateurs and underwater photographers. Did I already mention the family of sardines who form an essential element of the ecosystem at this part of the drop-off? Not to be missed are the hunting fish and the hungry needlefish around.
If you want a great freedive centre, this is the place to go ;-)!
Thanks to Vincent, and Sebastian for their kindness and hospitality. I look forward to seeing you again soon.
Sendoh Wang – Chinese NR Holder & Asia Continental Record Holder in all Depth Disciplines
Freedive Academy Panglao is a really nice and fantastic place to learn freediving and train. It’s not only about the setup, high-quality gears using for teaching, the great 25m pool, but also the professional and friendly instructor and owner here.
With their support, I can keep my training routine every day, even in quarantine time. They provide safe conditions for study and training freediving. Highly recommended if you want to come to Panglao.
Do you want to see more testimonials? Have a look at this page! 5 Star reviews all the way!
Click here for more about Freediving in the Philippines
Action-Packed Adventure Vacations in South East Asia!
Freediving is so much more than going up and down the line!
Yes, freediving is much, much more! Freediving is making new friends from all over the world, discovering new places, seeing the most amazing sunsets imaginable, trying out new dishes in exotic restaurants, falling asleep on the sounds of geckos, playing with whale sharks and dolphins, dirty shorts and worn-down flip-flops, cruising around the island on your scooter, freediving is a way of life. You come to visit us to improve your freediving skills – naturally! But when you have the time, Panglao and the Philippines have so much more to offer! At the Freedive Academy Panglao, you can take a Swim Teacher course or a Mermaid Instructor course. As a future SSI Freediving Instructor, AIDA Instructor, or Molchanovs Freediving Instructor, this is a golden opportunity to expand your market. If you are looking for more leisure and exciting times, Panglao and the province of Bohol won’t disappoint! It’s more fun in the Philippines!
