DirDirect Online is a global extension of our physical location, Underwater Explorers, the UK's leading dive shop for cutting-edge diving equipment. With over two decades of experience and extensive select stock from top manufacturers, we're your local dive store, wherever you are.
Your Gateway to Safe and Streamlined Diving
Nestled in the heart of Dorset, England, at one of the most popular dive spots in the country, Underwater Explorers is a brick-and-mortar dive store serving divers worldwide, both in-store and via our online branch, this secure website.
As a supplier to the industry's leading manufacturers, such as SANTI, XDeep, Halcyon, Shearwater, Scubapro, Suex, Apeks, Suunto, OMS, Fourth Element, OrcaTorch, and Ammonite, to name a few, our shop is always well stocked.
Our Underwater Explorers store is open to visitors Friday through Monday, weekends and bank holidays, while DirDirect is staffed seven days a week. You'll find an extensive selection of cutting-edge diving equipment trusted by leading technical divers, dive professionals and explorers.
Based on the precept of “less is more” and the "Hogarthian" diving concept, we champion simple, streamlined equipment configurations and unwavering safety standards, utilising only the most robust and reliable products.
Our unwavering commitment to reliable, innovative and robust equipment extends beyond sales to expert advice and services. It's all about making your time underwater safe and enjoyable.
Our team, based in the UK, is always available to answer your questions and assist you with your needs.
Keeping it Safe, Simple (& Streamlined) - KISS
The Long Story
The Underwater Explorers' story began in 1998 when our core team of instructors took over the management of the Weymouth Scuba Centre. Since then, the business has been under the same ownership, growing over the subsequent years.
Influenced by British diver friends and instructors participating in the Woodville Karst Plain Project, the team gradually introduced Hogarthian diving principles to their training and approach to diving equipment.
In 2000, we closed down WSC and expanded our reach by acquiring The Scuba Centre (formerly Parry's Dive Centre) in the diving hotspot of nearby Portland, which we continued as a PADI Five Star Instructor Development Centre, promoting courses in back-mounted wings, keeping it Safe, Simple and Streamlined.
This expansion paved the way for establishing Underwater Explorers Ltd. as a parallel entity at a separate location, focusing solely on select technical dive equipment sales and offering technical diver training up to Advanced Trimix levels.
It was the UK's first dedicated DIR-Hogarthian dive centre and training facility, utilising equipment and gas choices that have become popular and largely standardised across the board.
As early as then, the equipment we chose to use and stock was so robust and reliable that old-school businesses argued we'd never succeed, having eliminated the chance of repeat sales! Of course, this was when continuous-loop harnesses, wings, and donating the long hose were frowned upon and often misunderstood...
With US-based Halcyon Dive Systems deeply involved in the WKPP, taking the lead in producing superior technical diving gear for expedition-level diving, alongside stocking and selling other high-quality brands, we became the UK's first and only Halcyon dealer.
Within a couple of years, the Halcyon UK project branched out to become an importer and distributor of Halcyon equipment in the country, operating under the umbrella of our sibling, Silent Planet Ltd.
We were closely involved with Global Underwater Explorers (GUE), being formally recognised as a training agency in the UK, hosting the country's first GUE trips and DIR Fundamentals (later succeeded by GUE Fundamentals) courses. We were also recognised as the country's first GUE Regional Facility.
As an autonomous centre that respects quality training from all agencies, the core team at UE offered technical diver training at all levels in accordance with the curriculum and standards of the International Association of Technical Divers (IANTD) and Technical Diving International (TDI).
With Underwater Explorers and DirDirect growing exponentially thanks to worldwide confidence and support, we moved to our current, more extensive premises in 2013. We stopped all training a couple of years later to focus only on retail you can rely on.
We have maintained our independence from any agency, hosting and supporting other instructors and serving divers of all levels and diving styles over the years.
"Our commitment is to provide high-quality diving equipment and sound advice across the board, covering all training/certification agencies and your diving preferences."
Our Dorset-based dive centre is a popular destination for divers seeking an unparalleled diving experience, whether by boat or from the shore.
Located just around Portland Marina, across from O’Three and minutes from Chesil Cove, our centre offers equipment servicing and is a showroom for major brands.
Whether you're a seasoned technical diver and explorer seeking the latest equipment or advancing on your underwater adventure, Underwater Explorers | DirDirect is your trusted partner for a safe, streamlined, and unforgettable diving experience.
Visit us at www.underwaterexplorers.co.uk or browse this site to explore our comprehensive range of products and services. If you're coming down to Portland, have a look at our daily updates from Chesil Cove on Facebook, all the magnificent dive sites accessible from here, and Portland's fleet of dive boats.
Remember, DirDirect is staffed every day for 24/7 orders. Our Portland storefront is open to visitors 4 days a week from Friday through Monday. We are also open every weekend and over UK Bank Holidays.
Friday: 9am-5pm | Saturday: 9am-5pm | Sunday: 9am-5pm | Monday: 10am-5pm
(Closed to visitors Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Open during Bank Holidays)
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