I recently completed a Reactivate course with Underwater Safaris, which included eLearning and confined pool dives. Everything from the upfront information to the pool work was phenomenal. The dive shop personnel provided great communication and were friendly and welcoming upon arrival. The confined water dives were the perfect refresher after not having dived in several years. Instructors Hannah and Lotte were phenomenal at explaining and demonstrating skills and overall created a very low-pressure, friendly environment. Because of them, I'm excited to get back into diving and look forward to more visits to the shop.

Def recommend this small family run business! This place was amazing! They made us feel right at home before and during our classes! We tried to go to another place that was a non for profit, and the time line was too long and it cost more money! Underwater Safaris was able to get us in within days and was a lot less expensive. They have a great indoor pool attached with a small class size. My bestie and I were the only ones in the class. Ultimately, Alex the instructor was badass! Thank you so much guys!

I recently completed my scuba certification with Underwater Safaris, and I can't say enough good things about my experience. The entire team was incredibly kind, friendly, and patient, making the journey enjoyable from start to finish. What impressed me the most was the exceptional support I received during my open water dives, which took place seven months after the pool classes. It was a challenge for me to recall all the skills I learned in the first class, but I was fortunate to have Ashton, Cathy, and Parker as my instructors for the open water dives. These three professionals were not only incredibly kind and friendly, but also extremely patient. They willingly assisted me whenever I needed to redo certain skills I felt unsure about, ensuring that I gained confidence and proficiency. Initially, I had reservations about taking the class alone. However, meeting the instructors and the other students quickly dispelled my concerns. The inclusive and welcoming atmosphere created by the Underwater Safaris team made the experience highly enjoyable. By the end of the class, I felt confident diving with a buddy, thanks to the guidance and support provided by the instructors. I cannot thank Ashton, Cathy, Parker, and the entire team at Underwater Safaris enough for their outstanding dedication and professionalism. They not only taught me valuable scuba diving skills but also instilled in me a deep passion for the sport.

I did my scuba certification a couple of months ago with Spencer in the pool sessions and then Ashton & Daniel for the open water sessions. All of the instructors were top notch and went over all of the skills in an easy-to-learn manner. I highly recommend you come to this shop if you’re considering getting into diving.

This store is amazing. The people were so helpful and willing to charge a watch so I could see a display, found some gloves for me to try it out with, were very knowledgeable about the gear and diving in general, and were just all around nice people. The prices were reasonable and they even have a store mascot. We stopped in from out of town. Walked away with a pair of travel diving fins but would buy all our diving gear here if we lived closer!

If you’re in Chicago and looking to get into diving this is the place! I got my PADI open water certification through UWS last October and had a great experience doing the confined water dives at their onsite pool. I had such a good experience that I got my advanced open water certification with UWS earlier this month at Haigh Quarry. All the staff are friendly and knowledgeable but I have to reserve highest praise for Ashton who was my instructor for both certifications. He’s a fantastic instructor who made me a lifelong diver. My wife and I are planning a dive trip to Cozumel and the shop had really helpful recommendations for everything from dive shops to restaurants. I’m proud to call Underwater Safaris my local dive shop.

Absolutely appalling service. I ordered a BCD and received an online receipt, then followed up 3 days later with an email asking for tracking information. No response to the email. Finally, 4 days later, I called and they said that the item was out of stock, that the order was cancelled, and that I should be grateful that they refunded my credit card. What?! Why did they show online availability? Why couldn’t they send an email before I had to enquire? Why couldn’t they even apologize when I called? “Grateful” to them because they avoided being charged with credit card fraud?

Very friendly and knowledgeable. Great family business. Bought all my equipment and had it serviced here. If ever there was an 'ooopsie' with anything, they've addressed it right away. Definitely recommend when you're ready to go into the water! (Pic is from one of our cert locations)

My Dad and I took the Open Water Diver training course with Hannah and Lotte. They were very experienced, enthusiastic and great teachers. I really loved my first time scuba diving and can’t wait for our first dive trip.

I had the best experience taking my open water course at Underwater Safaris. Going into the sessions I was a bit overwhelmed after taking the online learning but Lotte and Hannah made it easy to understand and catch on to all the different terms, signals, equipment and tricks of the trade. Their passion for diving shows through in their teaching and because of them I went from planning to just pursue my open water to changing my trip to Belize to pursue my advanced as well! I am so grateful for their incredible leadership throughout the course, deep knowledge and expertise for the sport, and overall personalities which made the sessions at UWS awesome! Could not recommend UWS enough!