Go Freediving Testimonials

Scroll down the page for testimonials from our freediving courses, trips and holidays. We are so proud of the service we provide our students and love hearing about their experience

 

I have done freediving casually and I wanted to start getting some qualifications. I wanted to start building up some real instruction.

I chose Go Freediving because someone I know recommended it.

I have discovered that there is a ton I still need to learn. I liked that everyone is willing to take things at your own pace and you feel comfortable and safe. It is great for fitness and it is very relaxing.

The free breathing optimisation class helped me prepare for the course. I think as a one off it’s a good way to punctuate some stuff that you’ve done in your own time.

I would absolutely recommend this course, the people are lovely. – Alex

My son has been talking about freediving for a while and we found it and booked it!

I chose Go Freediving because there was availability and they had good reviews. I wanted to make sure it was a professional course. It appealed having a quarry to practice in rather than out in the open sea. I have discovered that freediving is very demanding!

In a way, it is harder and easier than you think. I think a lot of it is about your attitude and if you can do it, you can do it. It is much more psychological than it is physical.

I enjoyed touching that plane on the third dive. Everyone is doing this at their own comfort level and somebody will do it on their first dive and someone will do it on their tenth and the feeling they get will be the same. But doing that and feeling quite relaxed, that feeling at the bottom.

The benefits are relaxation, breathing technique and being safe in the water.

The free breathing optimisation class is very good and I wish I had booked this a month ago then I would have done more of the videos. It definitely helped prepare me for the course.

I would recommend this course because I think safety is clearly paramount here and I would really recommend it for people who are up for a challenge. We are being pushed at the right level for someone who has come for a challenge but not at the right level for someone who has come for a bit of fun. – John

I love marine life and I want to be able to dive down in the sea a bit and have confidence in the sea. My water experience is just lots of swimming in the sea.

Go Freediving was closer than the other ones and the website looked really good and professional. I have discovered that I can’t equalise and I’m actually a lot more nervous in the water than I thought I was and a lot more panicky.

I have enjoyed using the fins and finning, I find it really satisfying.

The benefits of a freediving course are having confidence in the water, opening up to a new sport and opening up to a new community.

I would recommend this course for anyone interested because I think it’s quite friendly to new people and it starts off slow and if you’re not completely confident then you can take things at your own pace. – Vishal

I saw the Big Blue a few years ago and the time was right so I thought I’d give it a go. I did a PADI scuba diving course once – that is all the water experience I have.

I chose Go Freediving because of their online presence and good trust pilot reviews. I had a look around and nobody had a bad word for it so it seemed like a good option.

I have discovered the wetsuits are warmer than I thought. My biggest fear was that it would be freezing cold and it has not been like that at all. It’s harder than I thought, it is more technical but I think it’s been really good fun.

I have enjoyed the amount of time we spend in the water, I was worried it would be a lot of sitting in a classroom doing theory but I think we covered all that in the online learning.

The benefits are good confidence in the water. It is something you can do without forking out loads of money for equipment which is a huge plus compared to scuba diving. It is a very different mindset going into the water with the aim to relax rather than exercise.

The free breathing optimisation class helped me appreciate the idea of preparing a bit more than I had been. It was good to learn all the different techniques, it is not just one technique that we cover. There is a lot more to breathing than I thought.

I would recommend this course, it has been a really good experience. I have learnt loads of stuff and met some really good people, had a really fun weekend. I think it is one of those things, until you try it, you are never going to know and I think anybody who feels okay in the water is going to enjoy this. – Steve

I had a fear of water as a child so I wanted to do a freediving course. I have done surfing but never gone under the water.

I have discovered that it is pretty scary because I think the course is designed for people who generally have tried because yesterday I wasn’t able to do much but today was a huge improvement. Emma was literally watching me do the first step in the water.

I enjoyed the distraction from everyday life and I got it definitely, with a lot of things going on with work and family it is good to get that.

The benefits for me were confidence. It was a huge improvement for me today and if I do it more I can do much better. Relaxation is also a benefit. I feel I can control my anxiety which is a huge step as well. And you meet really nice people.

I would 100% recommend this course. If you feel comfortable in daily life, you don’t get stressed which is very rare then just get on with life but freediving is something that you can benefit from if you have a pressured life. – Eugenia

Freediving is something I have wanted to do for as long as I can remember so I got it as a 40th birthday present. I have done lots of snorkelling, quite a bit of diving but many years ago.

I chose Go Freediving because my husband found the course but I was supposed to dive with Emma in 2005.

I have discovered that I need to relax more and be more patient and calm.

I have enjoyed being in the water with  the instructor, it’s very reassuring and calming and I feel like you give really good advice to help me progress.

The benefits are being calm, breathing and being more confident in the water.

I thought the free breathing optimisation class was excellent! Breathing in ways I’d never thought of before, I wish I could have done more of them but it is difficult to fit them in.

I would recommend the course because the instructors seem really qualified and make you feel really safe and confident in the water. – Carmel

I have been around diving and freediving for a long time and it was about time that I started freediving because I’ve done a bit of snorkelling, I’ve done a bit of duck diving and I went on a blue whale trip at one time and I was duck diving and getting quite deep. I felt that my technique wasn’t right, I could’ve got further, I could have equalised more easily and got deeper and got some better photos because photos is what I love doing. And that is why I thought it was probably a good idea that I started freediving.

I chose Go Freediving because I already know the people that do it because my girlfriend does it and she instructs for Go Freediving and also, I’m a friend of Emma’s and I thought it would be a nice friendly environment in which to do the dive training.

I have discovered that it is not so cold when you’re in a freediving wetsuit. Freediving is actually fun, I thought it was just waiting around on the surface for quite a lot but it isn’t. You can actually spend quite a long time underwater if you’ve got your technique right.

I have enjoyed the whole chilled out atmosphere.

The benefits are that it improves your breath hold as a scuba diver, it gives you time under water when you don’t have to prepare your equipment, there is a limited amount of equipment and you can come to Vobster and dive with a group of like minded people who also enjoy freediving.

I would definitely recommend this course, it’s not only of benefit to scuba divers because the breath holding and the training of your diaphragm and how to breath, etc, is very useful but it’s actually another way to be in the water because as a scuba diver you’ve got a limited amount of time. If you can freedvie you could actually go on a trip where you’ve got both scuba diving and freediving options so obviously you can’t mix the two during the day but there’s no reason why you can’t mix the two on a trip. So it gives you a little extra that you can do when your dive kit’s in for service. – Rob

I came back to learn how to freedive properly and overcome my equilisation issues.

I have discovered I am still not as patient as I should be, I am learning more about myself the more times I come here!

I enjoyed the different instructors’ input. You learn something different from each instructor. Sometimes when you go to do courses, you find instructors are all taught to teach the same way whereas here, instructors are individuals and you pick up something new from each instructor. The benefits of coming back are that you will learn something new. Familiarity, it is nice to be in a familiar setting, it just helps you relax a little bit more.

The free breathing optimisation class helped me learn to relax and how my body feels when it’s relaxed and then I can translate that into the water.

I would recommend coming back, it helps you build confidence. – Claire (Returning Student)

I came back because I love diving with Go Freediving, having compared it with other groups, it is so much more relaxing, it is just fun!! Everyone has got such a nice attitude and atmosphere about it, there is no pressure, it’s not competitive, it’s just about doing what you want to do which is lovely.

I have discovered that lock down has not been kind and I need to do a lot more training but again, it’s that comparison thing, having done stuff before I’ve come back as a returning student with other people, it just marks this group up much higher.

This time I am much more relaxed and I know it doesn’t matter if I don’t get it done, I can just go with the flow and it’s all good. I like being in the water with everybody else.

The benefits of coming back is it keeps building your confidence but also it gives you the confidence to say I need to stop, I need to do that again. You can self direct yourself a lot more, you are not entirely in someone else’s hands all the time.

The free breathing optimisation class helped me, particularly with the breath up. It is just routine now, I don’t even think about it, I just do it. And also, it is quite good that when you get to the bottom and you start to think I haven’t got enough oxygen, I just think I’ve held my breath longer than this on land, it’s easier in the water, I’m fine which is good. – Jude (Returning Student)

I wanted to learn how to freedive in my first course but got interrupted. 

I have discovered that I am having to relearn the lessons that I was learning the first time round, I had just forgotten.

I enjoyed getting back into the water and I like the methodical educational approach that Go Freedving takes whereas other places you say right, just go in the water, duck dive, go see that and there’s no method, there’s no measuring.

The benefits of coming back is advancing. You need more and more experience otherwise it’s dangerous. And getting out of London is a benefit too!

I have done the free breathing optimisation classes quite a lot and I really enjoyed them. I think they helped me enormously because now I’ve learnt that when I do go down I know that I can stay down and I’m not going to run out of oxygen.Iit’s much easier to take a breath in and I’m not panicking and I’m not breathing with my upper ribs, I’m filling my belly which I knew already but it’s that practice.

I would recommend coming back because I like the teaching method and I like the lake, I like the setup and it has showers! – Olivia(Returning Student)

I used to do a bit of shallow water spearfishing in Italy so I have always been interested in freediving. I just wanted to understand more and learn how to do it properly.

Go Freediving looked like the safest course and it is! I was looking for safety.

The course is amazing because it is very related to yoga. It has been really nice to be in a safe environment where you are not actually pushed to do anything but are actually encouraged to listen to what you are experiencing.

The community around freediving is amazing and all the tutors are great and very supportive so I really enjoyed being part of it.

The benefits of this course is that you will definitely improve your lung capacity. You also learn how to overcome your fears and doubts and generally be calmer.

I did the free breathing optimization class and it is very helpful, especially the Mammalian dive reflex part. I found it really useful for the course – I feel I got much more oxygen.

I would recommend this course because it is safe and because all the tutors are amazing and it is a lovely location! – Claudio

I did the freediving course about two years ago and then went to Tenerife which I really enjoyed and just felt like I wanted to keep going and become more confident and more competent and be able to do a bit more, going deeper. And then Covid happened so I didn’t get around to do the advanced course last year so this was the first opportunity!

I chose Go Freediving because I have done courses with them before and the instructors are all good fun and knowledgeable. The location is also good.

I enjoy the fact that it is tailored to individuals so the instructors are telling us what to do based on what they have seen and what we can do as an individual. You are not having to do the same dive every time and you can progress quite quickly.

The benefits of doing this course is that it makes you a safer diver and a safer buddy. It would give me confidence if I was diving with someone else who had done the advanced course, as I would feel happier with them because knowing they can do rescues from 15 metres just makes a better, safer diver, more competent. Vobster is a good location, especially on a day like this where it is raining and naturally you can come out and get a drink and shelter for a bit.

I did the free breathing optimization class. I have done one before with Emma and they are definitely worth doing, it makes that connection between your brain and your breathing so you have got a bit more idea of what you are actually doing.

I would definitely recommend this course because it makes you a better diver. Even if you don’t want to go deeper, it just gives you more time to focus on your technique and work on the safety stuff and be more confident. – Alice

I came back because Emma said she would give me a 50% discount on the course and it seemed like a good idea at the time – just kidding Emma!! I came back because I want to progress in my freediving, I want to learn more, I want to improve, I know there are some things I do well, some things I don’t do as well and some things I do which really need attention so it was a good idea to get some professional input and coaching!

I discovered that since I did my first course I gained more confidence in the water and that has bought me more time to think. Because I’m more relaxed in the water, I have time to actually think, it’s given me the opportunity to make better decisions so that’s been useful. It’s been very interesting having the instructor input – correcting me on little points which I would never have noticed on my own or even diving with a less experienced freediver – but little things all make a big difference so that’s been very helpful.

I am a lot more relaxed this time around and that’s definitely helped in acquiring new skills and correcting bad habits. I have really enjoyed it!

Yesterday didn’t actually feel like a course, it just felt like a really fun day with an instructor who is giving me pointers and corrections and doing some really fun activities, it was really good. It didn’t feel high-pressured!

I liked improving my diving, improving my practice, having the opportunity to ask questions -and you’ve always answered, so that’s been very useful. I love being in the water, any day I can go freediving is a good day really!

The benefits are progressing to new skills and giving greater confidence and it will make you a better buddy.

I took the free breathing optimization class, they have been really good, the stretching has been really good, I have noticed an improvement, especially on the exhale stretches. At first, they were fairly challenging and now it is comfortable. My breath hold has improved quite a lot as well.

I would recommend coming back. – Jamile

I came back to improve my skills and learn new skills and improve myself as a freediver.

I have discovered that some things needed to be ironed out, small things but all the small things add up together. It has made me more aware of myself in the water, more aware of my body position.

Compared to the first course, mentally it wasn’t as heavy as there wasn’t as much to remember because I know a lot more than previously. Physically, the deeper stuff like the rescue was harder.

I enjoyed the challenge of the hard stuff, getting a larger freediver from the bottom -, that was a massive challenge for me because I am not a big person.

The benefits are the continuation of learning from the first course and improving on the skills, refining the skills obviously which is the intention of the course, it basically makes you a better and safer diver.

I would recommend coming back because of the environment, the people, the instructors are good so it’s a relaxed environment, you don’t feel pressured, everything is very relaxed. – Philippe

I have reached my limit where I was with the open water, I was wanting to improve and I got an email from Emma saying advanced students, do you want to come back? And it’s been two years since my first course so it felt like a really good time.

I have discovered that it’s really refined what I do, it’s made me really think a bit more about how I do and the awareness around what I’m like in the water, what I need to do, the preparation of breathe up has been more about how I feel, how the water is, how the dives going to go.

This time I stuck with what was there, the course work so I knew what I was going to get here is what I was going to do so there is no need to go outside of that which was good.

I liked extending the depth, doing the skills that I’m familiar with but at different depths because it does feel really different. It’s just knowing that I’m that bit safer, I can rescue at a greater depth and be comfortable with it.

The benefits are that it improves yourself mentally, gives you the time to think about it while being lead by somebody who can watch you and tell you what you’re doing right and wrong which I think is really useful. I know the team, I have been here before. The first time I met Emma we did a try dive and I really clicked and so it’s nice to be able to come back and know that the teaching atmosphere is going to be good.

I did the free breathing optimization classes and I really enjoyed them. They helped me as I kind of stepped back from trying to improve and I did more of what I felt comfortable with, which I think was a really good way to go – to take more time over things as you feel comfortable. – Richard

I came back as a returning student because Emma sent me an email and said would you like to come back. Emma basically suggested that I tag along with the advanced guys to just do some extra skill stuff so that’s why I came back, I fancied a challenge!

The initial course is the first one which is going over the basics and stuff and this is good. It is more technical and more critiqued which is better than just saying ‘you can just about do it and that will do’ kind of thing.

I liked having the consistency of the dives and more focus on the specifics and critiquing.

The benefits of returning are; getting to see everyone again – everybody’s great, being a better freediver and also hearing other instructors explain things and watching more people dive – learning from more people basically.

I have done maybe three breathing optimization classes but I do try and keep up with empty lung stretching and that kind of thing.

I would recommend coming back as a returning student because why would you not want to be better?! – Jen (Returning Student)

I love being in the water and seeing creatures and swimming! I have also been doing some scuba diving but I have always been passionate about how peaceful it looks to go freediving.

I just wanted to try and practice those skills and have that experience under my belt. There were always some free divers around when I did scuba diving and it looked amazing!

Go Freediving was the one I felt most comfortable with. It felt like the one where you were not going to be pushed but rather coached to improve your skills, rather than you need to do this, that and that.

I need to work on the equalising, it is like any muscle you just need to train and hopefully it will come. I am not looking to take huge steps or compete, I would just like to be able to go a bit deeper when on holiday and stay there a bit longer. And if you go surfing and find yourself in a bit of a pickle, then you can stay calm.

I liked how the course is very individualised, I have not felt pushed to keep reaching further than I felt comfortable with.

I would recommend the course because having the skills gives you the confidence to get into the water anywhere you go and it makes you calm in the water. I have seen people struggle while snorkelling because they just freak out and I think having the time to do this and get yourself comfortable in the water and see how your body reacts is a really helpful skill! – Javier

I have done scuba diving for quite a while and I have always wanted to give freediving a go. I love scuba diving but sometimes it is quite a lot of hassle with all the kit. Freediving just looks a lot more relaxed sometimes.

I checked the internet for freediving clubs around and I found Go Freediving.

There is a lot more to freediving than you necessarily think, it is more complex. There is a lot of stuff you have to learn up front to relax and enjoy it safely.

I have liked how fun and relaxing the course is and the challenge of it.

The benefits of learning to freedive are breath control and being comfortable in the water.

I would recommend the course because it is fun, very interesting and you can go at your own pace, you are not forced to push yourself. – Claire

I had read about free diving randomly about a month ago and I thought that sounds like something I want to go and do so I just thought why hang around, I am just going to go do it!

My water experience is mainly on the surface doing kayaking and scuba diving as a teenager.

I chose Go Freediving because it was available locally and it all looked very professional. The website looked very professional.

I have discovered that I can swim down to at least 10 metres under the surface and I have really enjoyed it!

The benefits to doing the freediving course is that you can pick it up and take it anywhere and it is a chance to meet new people..

I would recommend the course as it is run professionally, run very safely. – James

I have toyed with freediving on and off and then I did a spearfishing course last year which was good but the weather was horrific!

I find it a real mental challenge to relax and I booked a trip in December up to the Arctic and I want to try and freedive there – if I can find a buddy.

I chose Go Freediving because of Aldo Kane, he was down here at Vobster Quay and I thought it looked alright.

I have learnt a lot from the course. I’ve had an issue with being relaxed enough and controlling my mind. I came with the mindset of ‘I am going to go as slow as possible, not worry about depth, not worry about anything like that’. All I want to do is have a settled mind when I go down and then hopefully that means I will get as deep as I can go.

I liked that the admin is squared away in advance. I liked all the freediving and the instruction is great but the thing that sticks out in my head is the level of detail that has gone into making sure that all the admin and preparation is squared away.

The benefits of learning to freedive are that a relaxed and settled mind enables you to relax and settle when under any other pressure. It is life enhancing. It gives you a different way to experience the world and it probably encourages a more healthier way of life.

I would recommend the course because the good admin is a sign of how professionally run it is – a sign of how much thought goes into all aspects of it. And safety is taken very seriously which also shows how good the instruction is. – Mark

I tried freediving before but just on my own and I felt like I really needed to learn the safety procedures because I wouldn’t want a situation where I was diving with Jake, for example, and one of us blacked out or something and we didn’t know what to do.

I chose Go Freediving because we live close but also, the team looked really friendly online and Vobster is really cool as well.

I have discovered that I can definitely push myself more than I do, I give up a bit easily and you always have more breath than you think.

I have enjoyed how friendly everyone is and how relaxed it felt – but you are also learning as you go.

The benefits of learning to freedive is that it is all mind games so you learn that your mind is really in control so it is a way of opening that up, and you are doing it without equipment!

I did the free breathing optimization class and I do think the breathing video helped prepare me more too because it was more explanation – I got even more information from the breathing video.

I would recommend this course because all the staff are really friendly, it is really relaxed, Vobster is really nice and everyone knows what they’re talking about. They’re not going to push you too far as well. – Abi

My girlfriend and I have been freediving recreationally, but we never really knew if we were doing it correctly so we saw the course and thought it was a really good opportunity to improve our skills and become better freedivers!

We chose Go Freediving because when we looked at the website we saw that there was a large array of different instructors that could cater to our group and I just thought they looked like a quite vibrant and friendly looking group of people.

I have discovered that I have got way more confidence after starting the course!

I think to start with my finning technique wasn’t the best and now after honing that in, it has just improved so much more. Before I started the course I would always look where I was going and I wouldn’t tuck my chin in which was causing me not to be able to equalise as well. I was using a lot more energy.

I have enjoyed our instructor, the pace of the course, it is not too demanding. The instructors will push you to do your best but if you are struggling you don’t have to go too fast.

The benefits of freediving is being in a new environment and just being able to see all these new, amazing things under the water! It is just so incredible being able to be down there without loads of weights on you and without loads of bulky equipment. You can be down there and be able to move around and just be in the environment.

I did the free breathing optimization class too. It really helped as a practice before coming to Vobster. I think it saves a lot of time because if we had come to the class and then had to do all of that, everything would have been taking a lot longer. Before I watched the video I was breathing from the chest whereas after watching the video I started breathing from my stomach, I just felt a lot more relaxed.

I would 100% recommend Go Freediving, the pace at which they instruct you is just really nice and relaxed and also, you just learn so much and just become a much better diver from doing it. – Jake

I was living out in Cyprus and I tried snorkelling with turtles and things. I wanted to do freediving because I wanted to dive deeper, last longer and be more relaxed – it was always just a bit of a rush to get underwater, see some stuff and then go straight to the surface again.

I chose Go Freediving because I saw some Instagram stuff and then I saw the free sessions and the free videos and I just liked how it was presented and it was all very sensible and I understood all the explanations.

I have discovered lots of things that I was doing wrong! Also, the importance of relaxation. And I think it is interesting that I have a problem clearing my right ear when I equalise. I thought that was something I had scuba diving but when I was trying to duck dive down, it was not I was running out of breath, it was my ears hurt. It is just a completely different approach to it and just how long you can hold your breath if you relax.

I have liked the attitude of the Go Freediving team. It’s an unfamiliar environment and being told to relax – there is nothing worse (!) but it is not like that at all. As long as you’re enjoying it, as long as you’re safe, there is no pressure to do anything more.

The benefits of learning to freedive is that the breathing makes such a difference in how relaxed you feel.

I would recommend the course because it is so friendly, it is so well organised and every dive I’ve learnt something. Every session you think ‘I’ve learnt quite a few things’. You just get so much benefit from it. – Alisdair

I have always enjoyed snorkelling and I thought I would like to go further and stay down for a bit longer so I decided to do a freediving course. I had done scuba training so I knew about partial pressures and not hyperventilating. My dad was an advanced scuba instructor so I did training when I was a teenager and another qualification when I went on honeymoon but I prefer snorkelling.

I chose Go Freediving because it is local and it seemed to have a good reputation online. I will hopefully be joining the club.

I have discovered that I need to sort out my sinuses, haha! Even though I had two cups of coffee this morning, I could really feel it when the dive reflex kicked in. Suddenly you feel much more chilled and with your breathing, you don’t feel so worried about going down, you feel like you can hold your breath longer.

I liked the instructor, being part of a group and the encouraging sports atmosphere. And the emphasis on safety is reassuring too.

The benefits of learning to freedive are social activity, physical activity and hopefully a chance to take it to some more exciting locations and see some stuff down there!

I did the free breathing optimization class and all of the breathing videos and stuff. It was good to be guided through.

I would recommend the course because I think the content is good and I think the practical experience is great! – Mike

I came back because I wanted to get better at duck diving and wanted to have a weekend away with my friend Jen. We did it before and had an amazing weekend before so it felt like the right choice!

Everything was just so new the first time and there was so much to learn, I think by the end my brain was a bit overloaded. Although we finished the course and I managed to do everything which I was so proud of, it felt like this weekend was kind of consolidating that.

I like being at Vobster Quay and I like coming with Go Freediving. I think everyone’s really friendly, really friendly and instructors are very patient even though I always put my chin out!

The benefits are building confidence in what you’re doing, it’s a nice weekend away and it’s just a fun thing to do!

I would recommend coming back as a returning student. It’s a good, comfortable way to come back to freediving. You have a lot of supervision, you’re not just left in a lake somewhere on your own which I think would be very scary, it’s very controlled. – Sam (Returning Student)

I had so much fun last time and I learnt a whole new skill and after lockdown I thought we would come and have a play because we enjoyed it so much! It’s good for my confidence in water.

I can duck dive after coming back! I have remembered it all even though it was four years ago and I can duck dive and I’m really relaxed!

I have loved it all, the confidence and the relaxation and the play time!

The benefits of coming back are you are consistently getting better at what I do. You guys are not worried that I’m here for fun because I know I can’t go deep. You’re really cool with me and I really appreciate that. I love being around you guys, it’s just a community.

I would recommend coming back as a returning student because Emma remembered us which helps, I think she’s well aware that I remember having the ear problem last time so I feel like you knew what you were expecting and you’ve just been easy with me, I really appreciate it. – Jennifer (Returning Student)

I read about free diving and thought it sounded like something nice to do. I Googled free diving Bath and Go Freediving popped up.

My water experience is swimming lessons when I was a kid and then just splashing around in pools on holidays, going into the sea, doing a little bit of snorkelling and things like that

I chose Go Freediving because of the location. It was local for me, but the reviews on the web were all very positive too!

I have discovered that the course is harder than I thought! There is a lot to think about while you are learning, a lot to put together. But I really enjoyed it and I will be back!

I enjoyed the theory. There is a lot to learn and it is all really interesting stuff about how your body reacts in the water. Everyone is really friendly here and I have never felt unsafe – I feel like I am in good hands. The thing I like about the course is being in the water, freediving and just getting on with it really!

The benefit of learning to freedive is your self awareness improves, particularly around breathing, and I enjoyed meeting new people.

I would recommend the course because it is good fun and everyone is really friendly. I have really enjoyed it, it has been what I expected! – Mark

I did a two hour freediving taster session when I was sailing in the Caribbean and that started whetting my appetite! The chance of just being able to swim around wherever I am anchored in my boat is what attracted me to freediving.

I learnt to dive when my children wanted to do scuba so I have dived in the Middle East and Caribbean and have a buddy rescue diver qualification.

I chose Go Freediving because the website was very clear, looked very professional and the instructors just all looked like a really nice bunch of people.

What I have discovered from the course is how hard it is not to breathe! I went through all the free Go Freediving breathing tutorial videos which I thought were great and a really good introduction and I would encourage anyone whoever does this to go through the videos too. I also did the CO2 dive tables because I was always worried about holding my breath and that just made me realise that you can go beyond the contractions. The more you dive the easier it becomes, so I am very conscious of that.

I liked the easy pace at which it is taught, the instructors take you at your own pace and there is no forcing, it is repetition and it is just a nice steady pace suited to the individual.

The benefits of learning to freedive are confidence to be able to go down even just to five or ten metres and have a little bit of time to enjoy the underwater environment. Also, knowing that if I get something wrong with my boat I can go and take a rope off the propeller as long as it is not too cold, and I think it will help my swimming as well.

I would recommend Go Freediving because the facility is great, the instructors are competent, professional and really nice people – Martin

I have always wanted to do freediving. I have done scuba diving in the past and always wanted a bit more of a challenge. I watch a lot of freedivers on the internet and I just love it! I am a PADI rescue diver.

I chose Go Freediving because I saw it from Jason Fox on Instagram. I really like him, I follow him and he obviously enjoyed it.

I was a bit nervous that I would be more panicked about the breath holds but I felt quite relaxed. I have liked that everyone has been really friendly and really helpful – it has been a very relaxed environment.

The benefits of freediving is the challenge of getting it right. I definitely feel more relaxed, the mental side of it. I just love being in the water.

I would recommend Go Freediving because everyone is so friendly and knowledgeable. – Emily

I wanted to learn to freedive to support my career as an artist to help me do underwater photography.

I am an open water swimmer so I swim in the sea very regularly and I have done lots of snorkelling. I also did a PADI basic course years ago, but this was the next step in progression.

I chose Go Freediving because my friend found it. I checked the website and the feedback is glowing! And when you actually research it, Go Freediving is the nearest and best!

I have discovered that I can hold my breath for a lot longer than I thought, but equalising is way trickier than I thought!.

When I did the PADI course you had to meet certain criteria to pass, whereas this one is much more about learning about your body and listening to your body. It is easy to assume it is an easy thing to do and it is actually not.

The instructors are amazing, the location is stunning, the company is great, everyone wants to do it and everyone is really enthusiastic! The course material is really interesting as well, it is the right pace, I like the way it is matched at your level and you never feel pushed or kept back.

The benefits of freediving for me is how it will help my career. Also, for holidays in Cornwall if I can get a buddy, And, I actually think the breathing techniques were nice so I am quite keen to start yoga now.

The free breathing class helped me prepare for the course and it was really interesting.

I would definitely recommend this course for everything I have just said. I think it is very safe, it is a good course to do from a pace perspective, I never feel like I am in danger in the water and this place is just stunning!!! – Michelle

I wanted to do freediving just because I love water and I am a scuba diver and the only thing I do not like about scuba diving is all the equipment. I have only done 30 scuba dives, I have dived in Jamaica, Malta, Egypt and Mexico. I am a cold water swimmer so I swim in the winter.

I heard about Go Freediving from a couple of friends and it was quite local so I gave it a go.

I have discovered that I cannot equalise with my head down. I struggle with when I have to do several things at a time or think, so it has just confirmed I am not very good at multitasking.

Everyone is really friendly, the lake is amazing and I enjoyed being in the water.

The benefits of freediving are that it makes you so calm, I had a really stressful week and nearly cancelled as I thought I would not be able to focus or do anything, but actually, yesterday I just felt so relaxed – it was like taking a mini break from life! I love meeting new people so I am hoping I will come back!

I would recommend this course because it is friendly, the instructors are extremely knowledgeable and everyone was fantastic! – Elena

I discovered freediving a few years ago on Youtube and finally just decided to do it having been in lockdown for a while and wanting to get a little bit of sense of adventure so that was really the main motivation to actually cause me to do it.

I chose Go Freediving because it was the closest one I could find on Google and I like the area as well.

I have discovered that freediving is much harder than it looks online, a lot more technical aspects involved in it!

The people were so friendly when I first arrived, that was the most notable thing because I have been on courses before for different things but they drove you very hard about being on time, all these little details and it was not like that at all here, it was very friendly and I could tell that everybody wanted to get the best out of each other so that was the key thing for me!

The benefits of Go Freediving are being comfortable in the water, increasing connection with nature and meeting friendly people.

I would recommend this course because it is fun and it is teaching you the safe way to do things. – Jaxom

I came back as I would like to get my freediver card and get a level of professionality.

I have discovered how unfit I am and I need to practice, practice, practice. I do feel more comfortable in the water, the group sizes are less this time so it feels a lot more relaxed.

I have enjoyed just getting back in the water. There are some new facilities and it looks really nice. It is a lovely environment.

The benefits of coming back as a returning student are to complete my skills. I would like to get through the planes – a real nemesis of mine, a real personal challenge – and just feel comfortable in the water.

I would recommend coming back as a return student as it gives you more chances to go through the skills and pick up different things that you didn’t last time. – Mark (Returning student)

I came back as I wanted to complete the course requirements.

We did more diving this time, last time it was more about safety and lifesaving but this time we are focusing more on diving.

The benefits of coming back as a returning student is that I am more relaxed, there are new wetsuits which are incredibly comfortable and easier to get on and off and I have realised you cannot just try harder and succeed, you need to practice.

I would recommend that if you want to come back to complete the course, first join as a club member and come back and practice until you feel you are ready to come back as a returning student to have your skills tested. – Claire (Returning Student)

I’ve scuba dived before and I decided to go for a sport with a bit more freedom, bit less kit, easier to turn up and go somewhere. I grew up around the sea, playing with boats and wakeboarding but when I started diving I did all my training abroad.

I chose Go Freediving because of the good reviews. I did look around and as I took two RAID courses before, I decided that whatever direction I went next, I was going to stick with RAID.

I have discovered that I can hold my breath longer than I thought! The first day I thought I was not going to do very well but confidence boosting and a bit of practising helped me get there!

I have enjoyed reaching ten metres and learning to rescue. Rescue diving courses give you confidence. I’d say if you were ever going to do a course, do a rescue course!

The benefits of learning breathing techniques is that they are good for relaxing generally. It makes you want to be fitter and healthier so you can dive better.

The FREE breathing optimisation class prior to the course helps you prepare by learning continual breathing like breath holds and then pause, and then continuous breath holds one after the other, trying to get you a lot more tired than you think it would. It prepares you well for getting your breath back when you are buddying.

I would recommend this course because I would never have done what I did today if I was trying to teach myself. You can’t beat time in the water with an instructor! – James

Freediving looked more fun than scuba diving. I am a rescue diver and I learnt to swim when I was five and did competition swimming for four years.

Go Freediving looked like the best freediving course provider. I checked all the websites and I liked what happens on the course and it is closest to London as well.

I have discovered on this course that equalising is life-changing and I have enjoyed how everybody is always smiling!

The benefits are that you don’t have to worry about your breathing. That is the most beneficial for me because I realised you don’t have to do anything, you just enjoy it.

I would recommend this course because it is faultless! – Atilla

I wanted to go spearfishing so I thought I had better learn freediving first!

I have done swimming and snorkelling before and chose Go Freediving because it had good reviews and was local.

I have discovered that I have a real love for going into the sea and seeing things I haven’t paid much attention to before! I have enjoyed the good instructors and a good time in the water!

The benefits of doing this course are the good control in the water, learning how to do everything safely and the good instructors.

I would recommend this course because it takes place over a weekend, and the location is really good as well.- Ben (Returning Student)

I came back as a returning student because I really wanted to pass the course!

I love the feeling of being in the water. It is enjoyable but so much harder than I thought! I just wanted to finish off so I can come more often with my friend Anoushka and get better at it.

I have discovered that coming back as a returning student, your fears are gone, you know exactly what to expect. The stuff I found really hard last time, I found really easy this time. I love it here, it is lovely, I just want to be able to do it!

The staff are all really friendly, everybody else on the course is really friendly and it’s so amazing, I’m really excited to progress so I can go see what else is under the water.

I would say you should come back sooner than I did as a returning student because the knowledge is still in your brain.

I was disappointed that I didn’t pass the first time but coming back, I know that I wasn’t ready. It’s made me more confident now. There are still a few things I’m freaking out about, but it’s increased my confidence to come back and build on what I learnt before.

I would recommend coming back to increase your confidence and keep building on those skills. I’ve learnt different things this time because I’ve been with other people who weren’t beginners and it’s made me realise I need to do some breath hold exercises! – Cath (Returning Student)

I got a gift voucher for my birthday so that is why I came back. The last time I did it, I did it at the end of the season so I was out of practise. It’s summer now too, so I thought it might be nicer as it’s warmer. And I feel if I do it now I have time to come back again later this season as a returning student and then eventually get to where I want to be.

I have discovered that my ears will get better because I was struggling with that last time but they’re better this time.

Different instructors have different techniques so they help you with different things. I have enjoyed just getting back in the water, being outside and remembering what it feels like and the people are all super nice. It’s nice that it’s small groups and there’s only two or three of you with one instructor, you get to do a lot of diving while learning from what other people say as well.

The benefits are that you can progress and test your limits, you’ll start thinking you can only go to a certain depth and then you realise you can do more and more!

I would recommend coming back as a returning student. – Helen (Returning Student)

I booked the course because Eleanor was an inspiration for me and I always wanted to do it because I’m a Pisces star sign and spend all my life in water! I wanted to become a marine biologist but never did so this was my next step. I’m a regular swimmer and used to swim competitively.

I chose Go Freediving because of Eleanor. I also did some breathing classes with Emma and it sounded like a really nice bunch of people. It’s a new challenge so it’s always nice going with a friend.

I’ve discovered that the course is not as scary as I thought it would be, it is actually really calm down there but I do need more practice and I need to slow down! I’ve really enjoyed the people, everybody is open and they all have a smile on their face. Three benefits of freediving is discovering a new part of yourself, finding calmness above water and in the water and thirdly, finding a way that is not restrictive because scuba for me was always restrictive with the tank. 

The free breathing class and videos helped me prepare. I think the videos are great as most people don’t enjoy reading so much so it helps for them to hear it instead of having to read it. I would definitely recommend this course, what is not to love about the place and the people, it is stunning here!  I’m planning on coming back and bringing my husband with me! – Katja

I always wanted to do freediving and my husband thought the course would be a nice Christmas present. I have done lots of scuba diving, over 500 dives and I do open water swimming up to 10 kilometres. An internet search made him pick Go Freediving.

I’ve discovered that the course is not what I thought it would be – it is much more relaxing!

The yoga part has been great for not only learning freediving but also for handling stress in my day to day life, I am much calmer. It has also confirmed what I already knew about my love for water. I’ve enjoyed the group feel, there’s no pressure, it is not about ticking boxes, it’s just about being comfortable, it is very individualised.

Spending time in green space and blue space is amazing for health and it gives both of those, as well as the yoga principles of breathing which are calming, learning about over breathing. And also, mind over body, pushing boundaries and knowing that your body is capable of a lot more than you think.

The free breathing class really helped me, I thought it would be boring but it really was not, it was an opportunity to just breathe, pause and feel wonderful afterwards! I would thoroughly recommend this course, the setting is amazing, the people are brilliant and the organisation has been fantastic. I was given a suit, given the kit, it all fits perfectly, it’s all so very easy. – Lucy

I booked the course because I surf and windsurf and I thought if there are no waves why not try freediving? I have quite a few friends who freedive and spearfish and I didn’t want to join them without the proper knowledge.

I chose Go Freediving because I’m local and always heard about Vobster so I did a bit of research. My friend did a course in Bristol, he came over here for a day and he told me how amazing it is.

I have discovered that I can push my boundaries and was reassured by the safety aspect. I was a bit worried about that but Go Freediving takes it really seriously – all the procedures, all the buddy training, the fact that you can never go alone. It’s really good, it really made me feel more at ease with the sport.

I enjoyed how friendly everyone is. It’s so laid back and it’s really an amazing experience. It goes really well with the freediving experience because it’s all about letting go and relaxing and you really managed to show us that. I wasn’t expecting to do half of what I’ve done so far!

The benefits for me are the breathing, feeling comfortable under water and letting go. And also being able to cope with distress signals from your own body, I think I can bring this knowledge into my surfing and that is massive!! And now I know this place and you people!

The free breathing class was really helpful. I would definitely recommend the course, even for people who don’t really want to use it for anything, just as an experience because your body is able to do so much more than you ever thought. – Miguel

I’ve always fancied giving freediving a go, I loved the idea. I was really interested in diving with a lot less gear. I’m really busy at work but decided to just take some time for myself and book it. I surf quite often and have done scuba diving before.

I saw Go Freediving on social media and researched it and realised Emma is quite a big name in the industry and worldwide. I liked the idea that it was a lot closer than a lot of places are to me and it was quite foolproof where conditions are concerned, there is no chance of it being cancelled.

I’ve discovered that it is hard but I felt very comfortable the whole time. Equalisation has been my main trouble. It’s not like you just jump in and it all goes perfectly, I knew I wasn’t going to do everything right straight away but I like the challenge because when I finally do it I feel like I’ve achieved something.

There is a lovely family feel here, I already want to be a part of it. I haven’t met any instructor or student who has been negative, everyone’s happy and rooting for each other. Once I’ve got to the level, I will definitely be signing up for membership and taking it further! The benefits are that it’s humbling in a really good way. You know exactly how your body works. I even found the theory side of it fascinating!

I really enjoyed learning about dive reflex, I thought it was really interesting. I would definitely say the knowledge I picked up can only do me well as a surfer, learning stuff about being comfortable under water and being able to hold breath for longer. So I think there’s a lot of benefits.

I would definitely recommend the course, there is nothing I would change about the course, everyone feels really comfortable. Everyone is at different points in our group but it still feels like everyone’s together, everyone’s rooting for each other. I honestly can’t fault the course in any way!! – Dan

I love doing outdoorsy stuff, love being down by the coast, swimming, hiking and I’ve always wanted to do a freediving course.

I’m quite a confident swimmer, I like snorkelling and I liked the idea of scuba diving but it’s just too much kit to carry. I never thought I’d be able to do freediving, I thought you had to have special techniques but the more you learn about it, it’s just relaxation.

I chose Go Freediving by looking at courses on Instagram and Emma’s one looked like one I would like. I’ve discovered that my equalisation is crap! I thought it would be more about static breath holds but it’s not! I’ve not really struggled with breath hold at all, it’s more to do with equalisation – it’s just getting past that step.

I’ve enjoyed being made to feel calm and safe, I have not felt unsafe at one point today. In reality, there is very little that can go wrong. The benefits are the relaxation methods, the lovely community atmosphere and the ability.

The free breathing classes are interesting to watch and they helped me prepare for the course. I also liked the theory and learning about how the lungs work.

I would definitely recommend the course, it has been really well thought out. – Henry

We go down the coast quite often and we’ve always seen freedivers there and it looked really cool! loads of videos online just look awesome and I just wanted to try it myself!

I Googled freediving courses and read a few reviews and Go Freediving seemed to be really decent and after watching a few videos online the instructors seemed to be really sound as well. I’ve discovered that I’m not very good at equalising but I would be way more annoyed if I was the only one in the group but as there are other people it’s not so bad! Also, I need to relax more in the water. Before the course I was doing static stuff after watching some videos and I’ve got a pretty good static breath hold, but I’m not as relaxed in the water.

I think the main benefit is the connection you have with your body, like relaxing everything, it’s getting in the mindset of really staying in tune with your body and knowing what’s tense and how to relax. I think being able to calm your mind and not panic will be a cool thing to be able to do.

I watched quite a few breathing videos online and they helped me prepare for the course. I would definitely recommend the course, the instructors are really good (my instructor has been really awesome!) and that plays a big part, especially when you’re trying something new. They know what they’re doing and they’re confident in what they’re telling you. The approach is very relaxed as well.Ben

Lucy was given a freediving course for her birthday and I thought it would be unfair for her to have all that fun without me and that made me book onto the course too! I’m very comfortable in the water as I start swimming at a very young age.

I’ve discovered that the stuff I thought I might be anxious about isn’t necessarily true, I thought breath holding and depth would make me anxious, but they are fine! I enjoyed being in the water, the colour of the water, the wonderful people, wonderful teachers and fellow students!

The benefits are the good mental training in terms of mindfulness and being in the moment, the fun and learning an amazing thing that will give limitless pleasure. I’m really grateful I did the free breathing class because I think it really has helped. I would recommend this course because it is very professionally run, it’s an amazing location, you feel very supported and able to do things you maybe couldn’t do otherwise. – Clare

I love the water, I grew up on the beach but I tend to be in water because it’s a calming place for me. I have done scuba before and enjoyed it. I wanted to do a freediving course because I enjoy pushing myself and doing something I find quite challenging.

I chose Go Freediving because when I saw the videos online I could see how comfortable the instructors made the people feel and the safety. I was going to do a course in London but it just seemed really extreme.

I’ve discovered that it’s not as scary as I thought it was, that the only person that gets in my way is me! I really loved that it was fun and that we are nurtured, encouraged but not pushed.

The benefits have been learning about myself more, learning how incredible the body is and the science behind it, and realising having fun is the most important thing!

I practiced breathing optimisation a few times a week before coming and it really helped with the course.

I have already recommended this course and the breathing prior to coming!- Nadia

I came back on the advanced course to learn new skills and build on previous skills learnt on the freediver course.

I’ve discovered that one has got to continuously practice and train and keep themselves dive fit and that’s important. The advanced course is just pushing you a bit further in all aspects of the freediving material we got on the first course, giving you more competencies and confidence.

I’ve enjoyed touching base again. It is a refresher in addition to having a fun weekend of diving. The benefits are that you take your skills a little bit further, you build your confidence a little bit more and you have a great weekend.

I would recommend this course! – Mohamed

I came back on the advanced freediver course to improve and to try and go deeper safely and I discovered that I can actually go deeper safely.

I also discovered the safety side of things, buddying, rescuing, I love all of that. Obviously we are going to need that if we start freediving ourselves in the future.

This course is more advanced, it gives you more confidence in the water and even my breath holds have improved, I did my personal best!

I enjoyed realising just how deep I can actually go. The benefits for me would be safety, touching up on all the skills that you’ve started at the beginning, improving them and learning the right habits.

I would recommend coming back because of the friendly staff and great environment – I love it!! – Abdel

I’ve discovered that I’ve become more aware of myself as a result of doing the advanced freediver course, being able to recognise things and adjust them.

I’ve enjoyed the instructor, he’s a really nice guy and that made a huge difference to me.

For me, it is essential to come back! The first course gets you going but you need a little bit of experience and then cleaning up to really get somewhere.

I would recommend coming back because the RAID Freediver Course is just to get you going, this really takes you on to becoming a much better diver. – Rob

I wanted to do the advanced course because I wanted to feel more confident with my safety in the water and also really want to experience freefall, and there’s a lot of technique that one needs to know about.

I chose Go Freediving because of this wonderful woman called Emma Farrell who is a star of the water. The breathing classes you have been doing have been just incredible and you are an amazing teacher. I’ve been with a lot of different teachers and I feel completely confident with the way you’re teaching and I know your school is very strong on safety and technique. Also, the fact that you’re a woman made me feel more comfortable.

I’ve discovered that lots of really nice people do freediving. I’m learning a lot about myself in all of this, I’m beginning not to hate cold water as much and I’m not as fearful about visibility.

I’ve enjoyed being in the water with some really great people.

The benefits of the advanced course is that the knowledge and safety gets built on what you’ve done in the beginner’s course. And also, going into freefall, going into your next buoyancy, was really exciting for me.

The breathing courses have really informed the breathe up. All the breathing exercises we do in the breathing classes have allowed me to explore and understand my body.

I would recommend the advanced course for the knowledge and safety. I think if anyone wants to go freediving with a buddy, they must do the advanced course because they’ll get all the safety. – Eleanor

My mum gave me the advanced course as a gift.

I’ve learnt how to hold my breath longer, I’ve enjoyed being in the water and being able to move. The course teaches you to be calm under pressure, it’s good for fitness and it teaches you to be relaxed.

I would definitely recommend the advanced course! – Alfie

I’m a marine pilot and I do commercial scuba – I was a salvage officer for the MOD and a merchant Navy officer. I’ve done a bit of scuba diving, but got fed up with lugging around all the kit. I liked the idea of being able to put on a wetsuit and some fins and a mask and dive.

I chose Go Freediving because I did a bit of research online and I really liked what I read on the website. I’m really enjoying the freediving – I think it is quite challenging! I watched the recording of my free optimisation class before the course and it did help.

The concept of not breathing underwater is taking a bit of getting used to but I’m loving it! I’ve enjoyed meeting people, making new friends and the experience of diving as well. The benefits are; being able to go freediving with friends and feeling safe doing it.

I would recommend the course because a lot of thought has gone into how it runs and I really like the instructors. – Richard 

A friend suggested coming to a freediving course and I like trying new things.
During helicopter underwater escape training at work I’ve previously got quite nervous, so I thought anything I could learn to feel like I could be in the water for more than twenty seconds is a bonus!

People, military-wise have used Go Freediving, and it just seems to have an aura of competency. It was probably quite good that all four of us were at starter level. I thought I would have to push myself to meet the requirements of all the rest of the course but I felt it was very adapted to everybody in the group. I was quite worried about my equalisation because when scuba diving before, I had trouble with that. Also breath holding. But the online breathing lessons with Emma before coming showed me I could hold it for a minute as opposed to what I thought, so they helped as well!

The benefits of the course are feeling comfortable in the water and it has made me more safety aware. All the rules, even things like the difference of the pressure at the surface – I forgot that the first ten metres were the risky area. – Amy

I had my 40th birthday in January and I’ve never done anything for myself. My partner started freediving and I started experimenting with cold water swimming, breath holds and meditation and it all felt like fun. I’m not a great swimmer but I want to feel I’m able to do things in the water. I don’t have much water experience.

I chose Go Freediving because I thought you had a nice approach. It was important that I did not get pushed to do things which I can’t do or I am not able to do yet, so I liked the laid back approach I heard Go Freediving had.

The course has given me more confidence in my capabilities and it is great fun, relaxing and I enjoy being in the water – which I never felt before! I work in a paediatric intensive care unit so it’s very intense and this course has totally taken me out of that. I can completely forget everything about being at work, about being mum, it’s just purely about my experience and that’s fantastic!!

I’m a smoker and when I started experiencing the breath holds, it was my final stop for smoking.
I would definitely recommend this course because the instructors are lovely, very relaxed and I think it is a fantastic skill you are giving people. – Sami

I booked the course because I wanted to do something special for myself. I have done scuba diving and I love being underwater so I wanted to try something new. I am already an advanced diver, I used to do a lot of whitewater kayaking and I surf.

I did an underwater photography course before and it’s amazing what you can see at quite shallow depths. I just thought doing all of that without the tank would be lovely. To see those sorts of things on your doorstep.

I chose Go Freediving for the geography and the reviews on the internet. The website also looked a lot more professional and made more sense than the other places so it gave me more confidence.Because I’m a scuba diver I thought I would take to it more easily. I did not consider the equalising would be different and a problem. I was more focused on the breath hold but actually the equalising has been the difference. Without all the equipment I felt quite vulnerable – but it is also a freedom! I enjoyed learning something new and meeting new people. It is exciting and it feels like you’re pushing yourself to do something new, challenging yourself!

The benefits of the course are that it is good for your health. I think challenging yourself is quite healthy to do and not just sitting in front of the TV. You find peace in yourself and it gives you a bit of perspective, a bit of space in this crazy world! The free breathing optimisation course was really good. I found the bit where you alternate felt funny on one side compared to the other side.

I would recommend the course because it’s a good experience and I’d want more people to join in on something I enjoy! It has been good fun! – Rachel

I booked the course just to try it. I thought it would be a good experience. I’ve done scuba diving before and really enjoyed that. My friend Laura booked us onto the Go Freediving course. I was reading a book about flow and they mentioned that people get into that state with freediving.
I’ve learnt some interesting stuff about breathing, that’s been really good. Inner expiration has been really interesting! Everyone is really friendly and learning a new skill has been nice.

The benefits are learning to breathe better and be more efficient in the water. I loved the free breathing optimisation course and it definitely helped me prepare for the course.

I would recommend the course because everyone is really friendly and we’ve learnt a lot in the short time, it is well organised. – Wing

I swim here and I’ve seen Emma here with groups previously and thought it looked interesting. I had a chat with her once and she made me come!
I chose Go Freediving because Emma seemed really nice and I wanted to be taught by somebody you’d think would be a good teacher and it is local.
I’ve discovered that you are capable of a lot more than you think you are and I am not very aware of my body in general.

The free breathing optimisation course was good, it was worth it to get used to the sensations that you experience when the dive reflex kicks in because the first time that was happening is when you’re underwater with all of this weird kit on, that might have been a bit alien so definitely worth doing it. The weekend has been quite relaxed, that’s been really nice and I like that we’ve tried a lot of different things.

The benefits are that it is really good for stress management because you can’t do it if you’re not relaxed and general health and fitness. I would recommend this course as it is very well organised and very professional and the instructors are great. – Sophie

I saw a talk by a guy called James Nester and he described diving with whales and I thought freediving would be something I would be interested in. I also saw The Big Blue years ago. I think James Nester mentioned RAID in his talk so I Googled freediving schools and Go Freediving came up.
I’ve realised that equalising underwater is really hard. I always thought I was a much stronger swimmer than maybe I am. I can swim really long distances but I’m not particularly strong so I need to work on that.

The free breathing optimisation class really helped in terms of the techniques. Emma describes taking the big breath and step technique and that was really helpful. She explained it clearly so I could remember it well.

The wetsuits we are provided with are really thick and warm, as opposed to those skinny ones I have worn in the past. I’ve enjoyed the people, everyone I’ve met has been really lovely. The surroundings are absolutely gorgeous, I loved the quarry itself. I have found the whole experience very chilled. The benefits are that the breathing classes have improved my lung capacity and I’ve gained the confidence to do it again.

I would recommend this course because it’s been really chilled, well paced, everybody knows what they’re doing, everybody’s really friendly and I didn’t feel patronised at all. – Laura

I’m a film maker and I have an idea for a sequence under water so I found out about freediving and I liked the idea. I had swimming lessons when I was a child and there is a river nearby that I sometimes jump into. That is my water experience!

I searched for freediving courses and Go Freediving came up and it looked really good, everything about it looked proper, good fun and safe.

The course is really tough which isn’t really a surprise but I really know that now! I liked the free breathing optimisation class and I also did the dive reflex class beforehand. They helped me prepare. I liked it when I was going down the line and I progressed a little bit.

I would recommend the course to people that are really up for trying hard and going through it. It feels properly established, well thought out freediving training. The benefits of the course would be safety, it’s fun and challenging and exciting. – Mitch

Mitch and I have a project in the summer that we want to work on. It is a film where we have an underwater camera and we want to do a sequence underwater, swimming up to something. We both got very excited by the idea of training to be able to hold our breath long enough to safely do everything that we would want to do. Also for me, I would really enjoy learning to try the duck dives because that is what I’d be doing in the summer. But now that I’m doing it, I feel really good. I feel way better now!

When I was a kid I did swimming classes, I didn’t really excel. I just did some swimming in lakes on holidays and going in the sea, bodyboarding. The most I’ve done in terms of water is an obstacle course on a lake. I did okay but I’m not very good under the water.
Mitch chose the place but Go Freediving seems so full of help and information, really interesting stuff and people seemed really lovely!

I’ve really liked swimming with fins on and I’ve discovered that I’m more confident underwater than I thought, and in terms of breath I feel confident enough to work on holding my breath more and doing deeper dives. I’ve really enjoyed the atmosphere, the people here are so lovely and it just feels so nice here, I feel very welcome.

The benefits for me would be my physical health and fitness and wellbeing felt amazing after doing everything and I think that helps with mental stuff, I just felt really energised and it was really good. Also knowing how to rescue people from the water safely and look after yourself in the water.

I would recommend anyone to do this course because it pushed me out of my comfort zone and I ended up being really interested in this stuff and being in the water! I think it would benefit everyone to have a good understanding of being safe and how to get around in the water.

I enjoyed the free breathing optimisation class, I learnt a lot! I honestly think if I hadn’t done it then I would have been feeling way more scared about holding my breath for long enough. I feel like I would have gotten pretty competitive with it but having the breathing optimisation class I was able to see what my limits are. –Izzy

I love being in the water! We’ve scuba dived already and this was just the next stage of opening up another plan to being in the water. We do BSAC sports diving through the army and I do open water swimming in the lake and sea but I haven’t got any other qualifications. I chose Go Freediving because I’m so close!

I discovered to not rush it, to rather try and better myself, being calm and doing it properly rather than rushing. I’ve enjoyed being in the water.

I would definitely recommend doing this course, I think this is perfect for an entry level diver from the enclosed area which would normally be in a pool to the duck dive stuff, progression isn’t too quick and the instructions are such a way where you’re comfortable at each stage before you move on.

The benefits are that everything is more deliberate with you guys. When we did freediving elsewhere they taught the meditation part but they were teaching you to over breathe – we didn’t realise we were doing it wrong. Everyone at Go Freediving is really friendly – there has been no awkwardness at all. The instructors don’t push everyone at the same speed, we’re allowed to do what’s comfortable for us. And, the location is fantastic! – Ryan

I’ve done freediving twice before but a long time ago and I just wanted to get back into it. I scuba dive too but I do not particularly like swimming. I chose Go Freediving for the location and the website was quite informative. I did actually contact another place but they never came back to me. I’ve discovered that I love it and I will probably become a member. I definitely want to start doing it a lot more regularly!

My favourite part was the diving! The last dive was just amazing, I felt very free! I was very calm and I managed to get right down to the bottom on my last dive!
With scuba diving you’re very enclosed but with freediving you’re so at one.

The instructor has been incredible! When we were looking we really liked the trips away, we really wanted to do the shark one!

I would recommend the course because I liked doing all the precourse work first. By doing the exams, watching the videos and then putting it into practice, it will stay with me a lot longer! –Michelle

I used to do a lot of competitive swimming in my teens but since then just snorkelling with the kids.

I did this freediving course for safety, so I know the right thing to do, how to listen to your body and knowing you’ve got minutes left before you’re going to black out. I’ve discovered the feeling of how deep you can go on one breath, still a bit of a shock!

I like the speed at which we’re taught, ensuring that we’re happy with it before going onto the next bit. We’re given plenty of opportunity to do what we’re doing, it doesn’t feel like we’re being rushed onto the next stage.

The benefits are safety, just knowing what I’m doing is the right thing and knowing your body can cope with it. And meeting new people and having someone to tell you about the gear.

I would recommend the course because of the pace the instructors go, everything seems to be covered. The equalisation problems, we spent a lot of time on that to make sure that we’re comfortable with it before moving on. – Andrew

I did a freediving course in the Maldives and they said I should take a course in the UK so that I’m qualified and my mum wanted me to do it safely. I chose Go Freediving because it’s close to my school.

I enjoyed going down and buddying from below. The benefits are that you know how to do it properly, you’re qualified to give tips and being able to have it as a hobby. I also discovered that the wetsuits are really warm!

I thought the breathing optimisation was good too because breathing is one of the main things to learn.

I would recommend this course because I really like it, it’s fun! – Brooke

I’ve snorkelled and scuba dived and enjoy swimming underwater but I have wanted to do a freediving course for years.

I heard about Vobster Quay about two years ago and I drove past it last summer and snuck in but I was terrified after seeing the deep water. I chose Go Freediving because Vobster recommended them.

I’ve discovered there is more to freediving than I thought, I’ve learnt how to calm down and relax! The benefits would be accessibility, tranquillity, mindfulness and relaxing. I’ve enjoyed the small class sizes.

I would recommend this course because being in closed water is better. I’ve seen other courses on the coast but the idea of going into the sea is a bit daunting. – Ed

My friend Tom got me to join the course, I didn’t have any previous experience so he said it would be a good thing to do, so I came along with not much of a clue! It was also a recommendation from Tom and Aldo Kane.

I’ve done surfing, a bit of diving, playing around as a kid.

I go on kite surfing holidays but you need wind, you need waves. If you don’t have that, you’re on holiday twiddling your thumbs. So the benefit of this is, if I buy a pair of fins then I can go and do something. You can do freediving no matter what the conditions.

I didn’t realise there was more to this than just turning up and just going underwater until I saw the emails come through to prepare me for the course! I would recommend this course because of the good staff. Wayne is alright – a half decent bloke, haha!! This freediving course was something enjoyable to do – a good way to spend the weekend!

I can use the breathing while surfing too, I have nearly died twice surfing before, I was probably only under for forty seconds and I’m actually quite calm underwater but I would now know I had another thirty seconds and would be a lot calmer.

We’ve got two days to cover a lot of ground and everyone is very positive about achieving a fair bit in that time. I discovered how quickly you progress, like the first dive you’re struggling and you’re only at five metres. A few hours later, you’ve doubled it, who knows how far you’re going to go in a short period of time! – Jonathan

I am a skipper and I skipper around the Mediterrenean and the Caribbean. Freediving is something I’ve seen people do for years now so I’ve wanted to get into it and make sure I’m safe.

I am comfortable swimming and being a skipper but other than that, I don’t have much more experience.

I looked at many schools. Go Freediving looked the most professional. I got quick responses when contacting them and I was happy with the course content beforehand. The videos have been fantastic and the amount of information given!

I’ve become more confident. I wouldn’t have believed I could go down as far as I have!

I was with a fun group and had the best instructors!

The benefits of doing a freediving course would be building self confidence, I will use it a lot for work and it’s great fun.

I also did the free breathing optimisation class which was included as part of the course preparation and I was very relaxed afterwards. I think it helped massively with the belly breathing coming into the course, it was something I tried to pay attention to.

I would recommend this course because it can seem quite daunting mentally but just getting stuck in, you’ll be fine. – Luke

My wife booked the course for me because a few years ago I did a scuba diving course but then we saw freediving as an option as well and I got keen on the idea of doing that!

My wife found the course online. Go Freediving looked like one of the best options out there. She trusted the reviews and had a good impression of it.

I’ve discovered that you have to retrain yourself to do things that you’ve done previously, learning how to do it the right way. It’s good to push yourself. I’ve enjoyed the friendly instructor, she was very helpful and encouraging. The instructors know what they’re doing!

The breathing optimisation classes helped me prepare for the course by understanding how important it is and the relaxing part of it is all part and parcel of making sure you get a better breathhold, The ‘mind over matter’ part is important.

The benefits of this course are the breathing classes, the relaxation techniques and I love just being in the water! I would recommend this course because everyone should just try something once, try something new, try something different! – Mike

I booked a freediving course because I was looking for something to do. I quite like watersports and being in the water – I swim a lot, canoe and kayak. I was doing some Googling, freediving came up and I thought that looks like fun!

I chose Go Freediving because there were pretty pictures on the webpage and good reviews, it seemed like it was in a safe place to do it.

I have discovered that I don’t like pressure on my ears. but I have enjoyed playing in the water!

The benefits of this course are improving my breathing, the enjoyment of being outside and in the water and meeting new people, especially after the last twelve months!

I would recommend this course because the instructors are fun and entertaining, it’s in a safe place, it’s an easy location to get to and it’s enjoyable! – Neil

I am a fairly strong swimmer but no real deep stuff.I was coerced into joining a freediving course by my friend Neil – I just followed his lead!

I enjoyed learning the techniques, learning little bits to change the way it affects what you do. I also learnt that underwater pressure is quite a lot on your ears!

The benefits of doing the course is that you push your own personal boundaries. Being more confident in water and using the breathing technique in life is great, it doesn’t matter what you’re doing.

The free breathing optimisation class I took with Emma beforehand was really good. The nice thing with the breathing stuff is that you can do prep and online classes before the weekend.

I would recommend this course because it’s really relaxed, a nice vibe and it feels like a little community of people. – Nick

I surf, swim, scuba and I had done a bit of snorkelling but I wanted to just be able to go down a bit further and stay down a bit longer, about four or five metres.

I chose Go freediving because Vobster’s close and a friend said it was good. I checked out the websites and Aldo Kane also recommended the course as he had done it.

I’ve discovered a much deeper understanding of the different elements of freediving. The physiology, breath hold, the equalisation, so all the different elements. I didn’t know most of it, to be honest.

It has been fun being in the water and giving it a go. I think the benefits would firstly be safety, understanding how to do things properly. Secondly, being able to recreationally go and do things and do more than I did before.

I would recommend the course because if anyone wants to get into freediving they should do a course rather than just going in and freestyling. This course is good and well run, good instructors. – Tom

I spearfish and it seems like a really bad idea not to do a freediving course. I would have done one last summer but obviously, with Covid, it made it very difficult!

It has been very useful to get input into things I can already do but not very well, like I could sort of duck dive but Go Freediving made me better at things that I’ve been taught by people in the past who can’t teach.

I did the free breathing optimisation class which was quite useful. I also did the 15 minute video that Emma has for the morning exercises for a few weeks and I felt a difference in terms of the flexibility in my ribcage which really helped.

The benefits of doing this freediving course would be safety and improving my overall standard of diving and comfort in the water which will help my spearfishing and diving in general. – Alex

A bunch of my buddies back in Florida started doing freediving so I wanted to give it a try. I have done a bit of scuba diving and very basic swimming. I found Go Freediving online and they are near to me.

Doing the course I have discovered that it is not supposed to hurt when you go down. I like now knowing that I can hold my breath longer than I thought I could. – Christopher

My freediving course was a birthday gift from my girlfriend and she chose Go Freediving.

When I was about 5 years old I saw an octopus and I knew I wanted to do things underwater. I am a confident swimmer – I do triathlons and a bit of surfing as well.

Doing the course I have discovered that I need to be more confident with equalisation and practice it. I have been doing the Breathing Optimisation classes with Emma, and I have really adapted to that. I meditate already, it’s a yoga kind of breathing and I have found the classes absolutely brilliant.

The benefits of learning to freedive are being more confident in depths of water, being able to know your limits, and being able to help someone if they are in difficulty.

I really liked my instructor, Wayne was great. It was a very friendly atmosphere and you are never pushed to go over your own limits. You go on at your own pace and it is a very calm way to learn.

I would recommend the course to anyone who wants to learn the techniques. The breathing is the best thing to take away from this course. – Bryn

I love everything that gets me in the water and learning to freedive has helped improve my scuba diving skills. I am in the water all the time doing snorkeling and scuba diving.

I chose Go Freediving because everyone I spoke to about freediving recommended them, I checked their Facebook page and they seemed to be the most organised and qualified.

Doing the course I have discovered that there is just so much more to learn and have fun with when doing sports in the water.

I was very apprehensive about going down to depths and within five minutes of arriving the instructors had taught me to relax and to trust my abilities.

There are lots of benefits of doing this course, just improving my health and my fitness, how I breathe and how I need to relax. It is not just beneficial in the water. In case of emergency scuba diving I can rely on my ability.

I read Emma’s book and it taught me to use what I learned here in everyday life so it has benefitted me both in and out of the water.

I would absolutely recommend the course, and in fact I would actually bug people to do the course because I don’t think people realise that it is not just a hobby.

Anyone that has anxiety with water, depth and not trusting their own body and abilities will gain confidence in the water. Those that do have confidence will learn how to not get cocky with the water. Just because you are comfortable in the water does not mean you necessarily have the skills. – Layan

I have done a lot of snorkeling in the sea with the kids and I was looking for something to give me more confidence in the water and to be able to go deeper. I also have an interest in learning a bit about underwater photography so it made sense for me to come and do the course and learn the skills.

I have done a bit of body boarding and I have just learned to surf. I found Go Freediving on Instagram and they are close to me.

I have learned a lot on this course about breathing, relaxation and how that relates to your mental state. The things I liked most about the course is that it is super friendly with really good instruction and a nice location. The benefits of the course are you learn new skills, meet new people and you are more comfortable in the water.

I would recommend this course because even if you are not going to be a freediver there is just so much more to it even if you don’t go to depths you still learn valuable water skills. – Matt

I like searching for things to do and freediving seemed like a really fun thing to do. I swim a lot in the sea and rivers and love the water.

I chose Go Freediving because Emma is one of the best.

I have enjoyed the experience and pushing myself. I have enjoyed everything about the weekend.

The benefits of doing the course are it is a nice and friendly atmosphere and being in the water learning new skills is always good and learning the breath holds.

I would definitely recommend it because it is nice to have something new to do with really nice like minded people. – Michelle

We decided to book on a freediving course because we wanted to dive without all the equipment. I do some cold and ice water swimming. We wanted a course that would be good on the day and that had pre course materials so we could be ready and Go Freediving offered that.

The benefits are that I now have skills, both in the water safety and breathing skills that will help me going forward. I absolutely recommend the course because it is really fun and really good to learn new things. I have discovered how all the component parts come together when you know how to do it. I have enjoyed the feedback from the instructors that helps you improve. – Kathryn

I don’t have much water experience but have always loved the water and wanted to do a course to learn how to do it properly. I found Go Freediving online and it was really well rated, and very well put together and a well run organisation. I discovered I really like it more than I thought I would. I liked the way the course was structured.

The benefits of doing the course as well as the online Breathing Optimsation classes are really fantastic and I find it all really relaxing. Knowing how to do it safely is a huge benefit.

I would absolutely recommend the course because it is the whole package. – David

I have always been interested in freediving and I have done spearfishing. I do yoga and it all goes well together. I was looking for a course where I could learn to do it safely and Go Freediving looked like the safest one.

I have discovered that I really like it and it is lots of fun and I am really pleased about it. The instructors and other students are really friendly and welcoming.

The benefits are you learn how to focus your mind, safety and be comfortable in the water and for all these reasons I would recommend the course.  – Claudio

I have no previous water experience but I was interested more in the breathing and relaxation side of freediving as I do yoga. I listened to a podcast with Emma and wanted to do the course with her which is why I chose Go Freediving.

I have discovered that it is not as scary as I thought it was and I am learning a lot. I really loved all the instructors, everyone has a nice chilled attitude and it didn’t feel competitive at all.

The benefits of the course are you get to be outside, it is fun and just takes your mind off everything else.

I would recommend the course because I think it is really thorough and the instructors know their stuff.  – Candice

I have done scuba diving in the past and I don’t want to do scuba diving again because of all the equipment and expenses. And freediving is well, more free! I found Go Freediving online and it had great reviews.

I have discovered that I really like freediving and I didn’t even need to think too much about the breath hold. I really like how organised it was, great instructors, great kit and great venue. The benefits are you will be better in the water overall and learn new skills.

I would recommend the course because I have learned a lot and it has been really fun. – Joe

I have done a lot of snorkeling and a bit of scuba diving and Joe got obsessed with freediving and it looks like a lot of fun. Joe did a lot of research and chose Go Freediving.

I have discovered that it is harder than it looks, but once you get through everything it becomes automatic.

The instructors are really knowledgeable and obviously love what they are doing. The benefits are just having the knowledge of how your body works underwater, holding your breath longer to be able to explore, and being able to go down without any equipment.

I would recommend the course because it is really well planned, there are warm showers, and all the pre course information is really good.  – Sophie

I have seen freedivers and it looked amazing, I have also done a bit of scuba diving. I have done some water activities but haven’t had too much experience in the water. I have always loved water and feel really comfortable in water.

I chose Go Freediving because it is local to me and Vobster is amazing and Go Freediving seemed really nice and organised. All the organisation and communication has been great. I never had to ask anything because I had everything. Any problem I had was dealt with immediately.

I have discovered how much I love diving. The benefits of learning to freedive is it pushes you out of your comfort zone and you learn more about your body and the life saving skills are brilliant.

I would recommend the course because the instructors are great, they have been really calm, supporting and encouraging. The communication is brilliant, the location is brilliant and I just really recommend the course. – Anoushka (returning student)

My friend suggested that we do a course and the last time I scuba dived was in 2017 and with lockdown my two dive trips got cancelled so it just seemed like a better and more ecological friendly way to learn. My friend found Go Freediving and realised we can do it locally. I have discovered that I would really like to persevere.

The tuition was definitely the best part of the weekend and the instructor was amazing. The instructor made me feel so relaxed.

I was amazed by the quality of the equipment. Usually you go on courses and the equipment is worn and old and that is not the case with Go Freediving. The quality of the equipment really impacts on your experience and the location is absolutely gorgeous.

I would definitely recommend this course. – Jane

I snorkelled a lot and even as a young boy I enjoyed the water a lot. I learned to scuba dive so I could spend more time underwater but it was a bit of a faff with all the equipment and I wanted to be rid of it. I gave freediving a try and I really, really enjoyed it. I looked at a few courses and Emma seemed very relaxed and like she really cares about what she is doing and has really high standards.

I didn’t appreciate how much there was to breathing to be honest and that is why I also do the online breathing optimisation classes on a Tuesday. It helps you become more aware of your body and abilities.

I really like the relaxed nature of the course and coming back as a returning student I have understood what I needed to do to get it right and complete my course.

The benefits of learning to freedive are you learn about your body, and I can go in the water comfortably, and it opens new doors for you to enjoy the water.

I will be using my freediving skills to play underwater. I would absolutely without a doubt recommend the course. – Jay (Returning Student)

I have been diving for years and everytime I dive I feel so encumbered with all the kit and I thought freediving would allow me more freedom and confidence in other sports such as kayaking. My wife recommended Go Freediving.

I have discovered that you can hold your breath for much longer than you need to and it teaches you the calmness of the breathing and how to zone out, and no matter what is going on around you, you can find that channel.

I like how you start on day one and think that is the best you can do but you keep progressing with every dive. The benefits of freediving is that it teaches you how to breathe properly and it teaches you self control. I would 100% recommend this course because I love the way that Emma teaches.    Aldo Kane

I was inquisitive about freediving. About understanding more about breathing and being peaceful and relaxed in situations that may seem hostile to human beings. Aldo Kane recommended Go Freediving to me, I never knew that something like this was available in the UK

I like learning and I have neglected this kind of adventurous learning for a long period of time and I have really enjoyed learning something new and the micro technique within the technique is the thing I have really, really enjoyed. When you put it all together and it just starts working, when you come back up it is just an amazing feeling. Each dive is a mini success!

I have really enjoyed learning the new skills and the feeling, well, that is just amazing! It has been a nice environment as well, with a really great group. It’s nice and secure, safe and supportive. The instruction has been amazing, and you will struggle to find an environment as amazing as this. You are in nature, you are getting exercise, you are relaxing and it is just amazing!

The benefits of learning to freedive are it is good to be in a group and encourage other people, you are going to get pushed a bit and pulled a bit. You learn the breath you have is enough, you don’t need any other stuff.

I would 100% recommend this course. I am very happy and getting a bit addicted to it!   Michael

I had recently done some wild swimming with some friends and realised I am actually scared of deep water so I thought a freediving course would be the best way to tackle it!

I came to Go Freediving as part of a group. I have more understanding of being in and under the water and it definitely helps combat the anxiety of being in the water. It has been great just being in the water and the camaraderie has been amazing.

The benefits of freediving are I can feel more confident when snorkelling on holiday, just getting out in the water and being with friends and being active is good for the mind. I would definitely recommend this course because the location is amazing, visibility has been amazing, the instructors are great and I will definitely be telling people to come and do it!  – JP Cooper

when is the best time to do a freediving course - Ian

I did my original course with Go Freediving and I felt like they knew their stuff so I came back to do a refresher course so I can do it safely with a buddy. I was able to push myself more and find new limits. I got to learn new techniques and I enjoy the people a lot.

The benefits of being a returning student are that I have been able to find my limits afresh and gain new insight with the tuition and I would definitely recommend coming back as a returning student.  –  Ian (Returning Student)

I saw the Go Freediving Instagram page and I found that swimming is great for rehabilitation and getting out of my chair and being free so it felt like freediving was the next step from there. I have discovered what I am capable of psychologically, overcoming barriers and realising what I can do. It has reaffirmed that there is not really much you can’t do. My favourite part of the weekend was Emma and Mark. The camaraderie about it and all the little achievements throughout the weekend.

The benefits of freediving for someone that is in a wheelchair is that you are away from your chair and you feel one with the environment, it allows you to be inquisitive and it is absolute freedom.

I would recommend freediving to people who are in wheelchairs and those that are not just so that you can see that you can do it.        Darren

I had such a great time the first time we came and that remained as a positive memory and so I wanted to come back as a returning student. I have discovered you are learning all the time with freediving and how your body adapts and how far you can push it. I have enjoyed the instructors as they are incredibly skilled with wonderful interpersonal skills which makes it great fun. The weather has also been great.

Coming back as a returning student you get to work with people you have worked with before and know you to a certain extent which is helpful for your development. I couldn’t recommend coming back as a returning student enough because the team is made up of wonderful individuals that are fun and easy to interact with so it makes it a great atmosphere to learn in.

Mohamed (Returning Student)

A good friend of mine recommended Go Freediving and I took his advice as he is a qualified freediver already.

I have discovered that there’s a lot more to think about in terms of your equalising and body movement when you’ve not got life support equipment with you and it’s taught me a lot about myself and my physiology and how to listen to my body, particularly the breathing exercises which have been fantastic.

I liked the camaraderie, the people here, the coaches and the guys on the other teams that we’ve met, it seems like a really nice group of people and the atmosphere is great here too.

The benefits are learning the breathing techniques for mental health/de stressing before the course. Physically, I think it’s getting the muscle memory right and using that process toward parts of your body, I’m really enjoying that. And finally, the atmosphere, it is really cool here.

I did the free breathing optimisation, it was really nice and relaxing, it helped me prepare for the course.

I would absolutely recommend this course!!Kyle

Kyle decided he wanted to do a course so I came along. My water experience is mostly swimming.

I chose Go Freediving because Kyle recommended it.

I have discovered that I needed to work hard on my equalisation before I came. I’ve got to a stage of relaxing under water which is a good thing and just even in the lead up, just through some really good breathing exercises.

I appreciated the ability to change the profile depending on my level and different options for the different levels. Obviously, it’s helped having different people here who have come at the same stage as me but I’m pretty sure that you guys would have found a way anyway. It’s a nice setup here and the kit’s nice.

I would say the benefits are being in control of your body, extra breathing exercises to remain calm in what would otherwise be stressful situations.

I would recommend the course, it’s really good!! – Dave

I came back as a returning student because there is so much help and support – a really massive support network which really feels great. And for friendship alone just knowing there is going to someone there, not judging and just working with me and that is such an amazing gift, it makes me want to cry!

I have discovered my own ability and that I am not as useless as I thought I was! I’ve enjoyed the friendship and the ease. It’s been joyful.

The benefits of coming back has definitely been working on my skills. It was good to have someone look at you and advise you. That was a massive benefit. Applying the skills and seeing how much more efficient it is and feeling those two things together and how much more relaxing that is.

I would recommend coming back on this course, as you won’t want to get out of the water!

Jacqui – returning student

I wanted to do this course because I thought that I would be able to hopefully get better at staying under water so I can appreciate looking at fish for longer and I just want to be a mermaid – I watch too much Disney!

I love scuba diving but with freediving the marine life doesn’t really know you are there as much as you are not blowing bubbles in their face!

When I started searching, you guys were one of the first places that came up. The more I read, the more you guys sounded really approachable, and now I know that you are very approachable as you answered every one of my million questions and concerns! You had really good info on your website and really nice photos that showed off of what you guys did pretty well. I just liked the look, it looked amazing!

Doing this course I have discovered I CAN swim like a mermaid! Pretty cool!!

I have trouble with my left ear, which I didn’t realize because when scuba diving I never had problems with equalizing, so it was quite a shock to find that, but I know it will just take practice to overcome it.

I know I’ve got a long way to go before I complete the course skills. I love being in the water and  I am definitely determined to come back and actually get as deep as I can.

Even just for the small time that I could manage holding my breath it was pretty awesome. The fact that you can have the ability to hold your breath longer than you realize and to fulfill the mermaid thing was amazing. I also like that it  makes you slow down and I like the kind of breathing that makes you focused on being relaxed. Freediving is something I definitely want to carry on doing.

I would definitely recommend this course. Very helpful, lovely, friendly and approachable instructors, who will answer your million questions and they gave me a lot of confidence. Even though I came into the course with a previous injury, you guys accommodated me and didn’t make me worry about it affecting me freediving. Megan

I decided to do freediving as it was recommended by a friend and I also did some spearfishing in Cornwall and I just wanted to get a bit more confident.

I think the location is great and I could equalise my ears better than ever before so that’s really useful. I discovered that holding your breath is a bit harder in the water than on the living room floor.

I liked the group and the instructor, I think they are great.

The benefits of the course are that it gives you more confidence in the water. Hopefully, more spearfishing and more fish. I think safety as well, spearfishing with a buddy.

I did the free breathing optimisation and it helped me prepare, you then know what you’re getting yourself into a bit more rather than just turning up and holding your breath. – Kim

I have friends who did a freediving course years ago in Thailand and it sounded really fun and a cool thing to teach your body how to do so I decided to give it a go. My water experience is swimming and a bit of diving.

I searched courses in the UK and Go Freedivings reviews seemed to be very positive and it seemed like a professional outfit where with others it was less certain.

I was quite surprised today by how quick the progression is from the beginning, like yesterday just figuring out how to equalise to then being able to go down to ten meters.

I liked how safe and comfortable I felt on the course.

The benefits of the course are that it is confidently instructed which makes it confidence inducing. It is a nice place with nice people.

The free breathing optimisation course helps in getting your head in the mindset of trying to think about that kind of stuff. It would have been more intimidating coming here without any preparation.

If other people were keen to learn how to do a slightly random thing in water I would definitely recommend they do the course!! – Matt

I have always loved swimming under water more than on the surface and I just wanted to learn to stay safely as long as possible underwater. I have done scuba diving a few years ago but only once.

Matt and I chose Go Freediving because we wanted a place that wasn’t too far and it looked great.

I discovered that it takes time to get comfortable with equalising and you shouldn’t go too quickly and that there’s still more to learn.

The benefits of Go Freediving are the place, Vobster is really nice. The instructors are really nice and it is nice to be guided through it and know that there is a way of doing this properly and safely rather than just going off and doing it on your own.

The free breathing optimisation class helped me, I would have liked to go through the techniques more.

I would recommend this course because it feels like there’s more to do and learn so it’s nice to start with this because you just see how much it takes to get to know your body and do things properly. – Sarah

My dad was looking at freediving and when I saw it, I wanted to do it so we booked it at the same time. I used to train in swimming, I have done my lifeguard course, I’m a surf instructor and sailor, I lived by the sea so proper water babies.

My dad had done lots of reading about Emma and the school and he was super keen to come to Go Freediving and I trusted him and went along.

I have discovered that it’s reinforced relaxation and that I am going the right way with my meditation, that practicing meditation every day is a good thing. I felt a little bit of fear at the bottom that I didn’t think I would have but then also, that I am more capable than I thought.

I have enjoyed diving and doing deep dives.

The benefits of doing the course with Go Freediving is that there are small groups, nice instructors, a chilled vibe and freediving is great. The free breathing optimization class helped me prepare for the course, it was helpful.

I would definitely recommend this course!! – Emily

I have done scuba diving before and freediving had been in my mind for quite a while and one day I just decided I was going to do it.

I liked the sound of Emma. Once I started to think about it, I listened to some podcasts and various other things like that and it sounded like Emma knows what she’s doing and I thought that was the most important thing so I chose Go Freediving.

I discovered I can go ten meters, I never imagined I’d be able to do that. It is nice to be around like minded people, the instructors are brilliant and very capable, that’s a reassurance. I have enjoyed being able to do something with my daughter too, she came along with me.

The benefits would be learning to chill, the personal development. I think going forward in life there are going to be more benefits from it. It’s healthy, I’ve learnt a bit more about diet and things as well.

I did a breathing course, I didn’t give it enough practice, I could have applied myself better and it probably would have helped me more if I’d been better prepared.

I would definitely recommend this course for anybody because it takes you outside of your comfort zone and you have to actually learn new things. – Graham

I booked a freediving course because I fancied the idea of it, I saw it on the TV. I like swimming, I like snorkelling, I do a bit of holiday scuba diving, this sounded like a better option. I also sail, windsurf and kitesurf.

I chose Go Freediving because all the information on their website seemed to be good. When I started reading the Go Freediving website it sounded like the real deal.

I discovered that freediving is enjoyable and relaxing. The hardest bit is having to learn the technical bits. I enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and being put at ease, the instructors always put us at ease.

I bought a book a few years ago about freediving and realised you can’t learn this from a book, you have to go on a course and that was apparent from the book. The benefits are getting stuff explained, getting taught what you are doing wrong straight away and the whole safety thing which is impressed on us.

I would absolutely recommend the course, if anybody enjoys water sports it’s a nice other option. – Nigel

I really like scuba diving and the only thing I didn’t like about it was the fact that it was quite restricting and it takes a lot of kit and it takes a lot of effort to get there and I just prefer the feeling of not having the hassle of all the kit and if there is a malfunction with the kit, it’s the kits fault where with freediving you can only blame yourself. I have swimming and minimal scuba experience.

I chose Go Freediving because it was the clearest website on the Vobster, they had the easiest website use and it looks very good.

I discovered that there is a lot more that goes into it than you think in terms of breathing and it is not just holding your breath, there is a lot of technique and other skills that you learn that isn’t just breath related.

I have liked the fact that it is quite a small group so it is quite one on one, it’s not like it is 20 people and you have to wait your turn, it’s very personal. You can ask questions more, it is just easier.

The benefits of freediving is that it is relaxing, it is always good to learn a new skill and the breathing stuff is good for you.

I did the free breathing course and it was good, it prepared me for the course.

I would recommend the course, it is a lot more challenging than you think it would be but in a good way, a rewarding way. Everyone has their own individual problems to get past so it’s a good way to learn about yourself – Sam

I did a freediving taster session on holiday which I booked onto mostly because I didn’t know it was something you could be taught. I loved it on holiday so decided to book. I did a bit of swimming at school and do a lot of snorkelling on holiday.

Go Freediving seemed vastly more geared towards freediving rather than scuba. It has a great website and seemed cool.

I am surprised that I don’t panic, it’s lovely underwater, it’s very quiet. I enjoyed the instructor, he was very patient, he explained things very well and he will find a way to get you to achieve something.

I like the safety aspects, I hope I never have to use it but it’s good to know just in case. It’s useful to know the timing for how long you have if something does go wrong. I found the breathing techniques really interesting, it was fun learning about the anatomy aspects and putting them into practice.

I found the Go Freediving online resources very thorough, there was a huge amount online.

The free breathing optimisation course was really good fun, I think it gets you used to the feeling of having a bit more carbon dioxide than you are used to. It was useful for helping you not panic when you start to think you need to breath.

I would 100% recommend the course, it is a safe, thorough, specialised experience. – Alena

I decided to learn freediving because I wanted to be a mermaid and I do a lot of open water swimming. I have got a scuba diving background.

I chose Go Freediving because I Googled and they were the first ones I found. I am based in the South West so it seemed like a natural fit.

I have discovered that it is more mental than I thought it was. I think a scuba diving background helps because I feel comfortable in the water anyway.

I have liked the sense of camaraderie and the thing that I have been really relieved to find is that being underwater freediving, I get the same sense of peace and meditation as when scuba diving and I wasn’t sure that would be the case.

The benefits are that you would be more like a mermaid. I think it would help you get into a nice headspace if you had anxiety or depression. I have not had booze or coffee for three weeks so health is also a benefit.

The free breathing optimisation class helped me prepare for the course. It is so useful.

I would recommend this course, the instructors have been so lovely. – Rebecca

 

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