Full Face Mask Diving
A full face mask changes what’s possible underwater: communication, cold water tolerance, and a different way of seeing.
Configuration, clearing, communication systems, and the skills specific to full face mask diving, across 2 open water training dives.
Availability: Contact us for booking information
A Full Face Mask Changes What’s Possible Underwater: Communication, Cold Tolerance, and a Different Way of Seeing.
A standard mask and regulator work well, right up until you want to talk to your buddy, keep your whole face warm in cold water, or wear corrective lenses without a struggle. A full face mask solves all three, but it is genuinely different equipment with its own gas planning, equalization, and emergency procedures.
SSI Full Face Mask Diving teaches you to configure, clear, and dive one safely, including gas-sharing and mask-removal emergencies, across 2 open water training dives. $249 per diver (group) or $349 (private). Prerequisites: Open Water Diver, minimum age 10.
A Full Face Mask Is a Different Delivery System, Not Just a Bigger Mask
If a full face mask looks unfamiliar, that is because it genuinely is: a combined mask and regulator with its own gas flow, equalization, and emergency procedures. None of that is covered in a standard Open Water course.
This is exactly what continuing education is for. Not to prove you are advanced. To replace unfamiliarity with a specific set of skills for a specific piece of equipment.
Is this you?
This Course Is for the Diver Who Wants Communication, Warmth, or Both
Tap to expand
This is usually the right next step if any of these sound familiar.
You want to actually talk to your buddy or students underwater
Full face masks support integrated communication systems, valuable for guiding, teaching, and buddy coordination.
You want your whole face protected from cold water
A full face mask keeps cold water off your face entirely, a real advantage in cold or long dives.
You wear glasses and want a simpler solution underwater
A full face mask can accommodate corrective lenses more comfortably than swapping mask lenses.
You are heading toward cold or demanding environments
Full face masks show up often in colder Access-lane and professional-adjacent diving contexts.
Not sure?
Choose Your Optimize-Lane Course
Tap to expand
You want communication or full-face cold protection
Best for divers who want to talk underwater or keep their whole face out of cold water.
You want your whole body protected from cold water
A different kind of cold-water advantage. Pairs well with Full Face Mask Diving.
You want to get more out of your dive computer instead
Best for divers focused on dive planning tools rather than mask and delivery systems.
Setting the record straight
What Full Face Mask Diving Actually Involves
Tap to expand
"This is only for commercial or military divers."
Recreational divers use full face masks for communication, cold tolerance, and comfort with corrective lenses. This is a recreational specialty.
"I will feel claustrophobic wearing one."
The course directly addresses mask removal and comfort skills so you are trained and confident, not just handed the equipment.
"It is basically the same as a normal mask and regulator."
Gas planning, equalization, breathing dynamics, and emergency procedures are all specific to full face mask diving and covered directly in this course.
"Anyone can just put one on and dive."
This certification exists because a full face mask changes several fundamentals of diving. Proper training matters before using one in open water.
What You’ll Train
Online academics covering the mask, its components, and diving with it, followed by 2 open water training dives.
The modern full face mask and its components, gas planning, pre-dive preparation, pressure and equalization, breathing dynamics, vision, and safety and emergency procedures.
Build confidence with a full face mask in open water, focused on mastering mask-clearing technique and a safe gas-sharing ascent, to a maximum depth of 100 feet.
Independently conduct a full dive from pre-dive inspection through ascent, demonstrating mastery of full face mask skills and emergency management, to a maximum depth of 100 feet.
Course at a Glance
| Price | $249 per diver (group) · $349 per diver (private) |
| Format | Online academics via MySSI app · 2 open water training dives |
| Prerequisites | Open Water Diver (any agency) · minimum age 10 |
| Certification awarded | SSI Full Face Mask Diving · lifetime certification, recognized worldwide |
Ready to talk underwater or beat the cold?
SSI Full Face Mask Diving: $249 · Austin, TX
Online academics plus 2 open water training dives covering mask clearing, gas-sharing, and independent full face mask diving.
Register Here Call Tom’s Email Tom’sWhere this fits in your pathway
Full Face Mask Diving Sits in the Optimize Pathway
Tap to expand
Optimize is about tools and efficiency. A full face mask is a specific piece of equipment that solves communication and cold-water problems, and it pairs naturally with Dry Suit Diving for cold-water divers.
Control / Comfort
Buoyancy and confidence-building skills that make adapting to new equipment easier.
Optimize
Nitrox, computers, equipment, and other tools that make diving more efficient and more comfortable.
Access
Wreck diving, deep diving, and other environments where full face masks are often used.
Why Tom’s Dive & Swim
We Build Divers We Would Trust With Our Own Families.
Tap to expand
The best divers don’t chase certifications. They build capabilities. Diving confidently and safely with a full face mask is a real capability: it opens up communication and cold-water options most divers never use.
Tom’s instructors have hands-on experience with full face mask systems in both recreational and training contexts. Tom’s has been Austin’s only SSI Dive Center since 1982. We were teaching scuba in Austin before any of the other Austin dive shops opened. Over 18,000 certified divers and over 400 five-star Google reviews.
Built for Divers Who Want to Actually Talk Underwater
Whether guiding, teaching, or just staying in closer contact with a buddy, communication changes the dive.
Open Longer Than Any Other Austin Dive Shop Still in Business
Four decades of hands-on experience with the equipment Austin divers actually use.
Mask Removal and Gas-Sharing, Practiced, Not Just Explained
Both open water dives include hands-on practice of the emergency skills specific to full face masks.
One of Austin’s Largest Instructor Teams
Flexible scheduling to fit both open water training dives around your calendar.
We follow DAN dive safety protocols.
Tom’s follows Divers Alert Network (DAN) safety standards and recommends DAN dive accident insurance for every certified diver. Safety is not a checkbox on our website. It is the foundation of how Tom’s has operated since 1982.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tap any question to expand the answer.
Can I wear glasses with a full face mask?
Yes. Full face masks can be configured to accommodate corrective lenses more comfortably than swapping standard mask lenses.
Will I feel claustrophobic?
Most divers do not, and the course specifically practices mask removal and comfort skills so you are confident, not just equipped.
What is the maximum training depth?
Both open water training dives have a maximum depth of 100 feet (30 meters).
Do I need my own full face mask?
Ask Tom’s about rental or purchase options before your training dives.
Is there a medical screening required?
Yes. All students complete an SSI Medical Statement before any in-water activity.
Book online, call, or email, whichever is easiest for you.