Certification
Molchanovs Wave 1 certification fees and digital materials.
Molchanovs · Wave 1
Wave 1 Freediver
Your first Molchanovs certification: breathe, relax, and dive to 12m on a single breath.
Molchanovs · Wave 1
Your first Molchanovs certification: breathe, relax, and dive to 12m on a single breath.
Get certified
Wave 1 is the beginner Molchanovs certification. Over two to three days you build the breathing, relaxation and safety skills to freedive confidently and independently with a buddy.
Molchanovs Wave 1 turns curiosity into capability. You learn the fundamentals of breathing and physiology, mental techniques and relaxation, static and dynamic apnea, equalisation, and the rescue and buddy protocols that keep freediving safe.
All prices in IDR · Marine Park fee of IDR 100,000 applies to reef sessions.
What is Wave 1?
Molchanovs Wave 1 turns curiosity into capability. You learn the fundamentals of breathing and physiology, mental techniques and relaxation, static and dynamic apnea, equalisation, and the rescue and buddy protocols that keep freediving safe.
By the end you can hold your breath for over a minute and a half, swim 30m underwater on one breath, and dive to 12m using free immersion and constant weight, ready to freedive with a buddy anywhere in the world.
Two theory, two pool and two to three open water sessions.
Breathing fundamentals and physiology, mental techniques and relaxation, safety, and how the body adapts to depth.
Static and dynamic apnea, the buddy system and rescue protocols, in the calm of the pool.
Free immersion, duck dives and finning to depth on the line, working toward your 12m certification dive.
Message the freediving crew on WhatsApp to book your Molchanovs Wave 1 course.
Everything you need is included, so you can focus on the diving.
Molchanovs Wave 1 certification fees and digital materials.
A Molchanovs instructor and small-class, personal coaching.
Wetsuit, long fins, mask and everything you need.
Footage of your sessions and certification dives.
Course requirements
Wave 1 is a beginner course, with a few simple prerequisites:
Why Gili Air
Warm water around 28 to 30 degrees, gentle currents and depth a short boat ride from shore make Gili Air one of the best places in the world to start freediving.
Small classes and calm, clear water mean you can focus on relaxation and technique rather than fighting the conditions.
Ocean-obsessed, and patient with it.
Real, personalised attention at every step.
Warm, calm, clear water on your doorstep.
Safe and supportive: become a family member.
No. Wave 1 is the entry-level Molchanovs certification and is taught from the very beginning.
Wave 1 certifies you from 12m and takes you to a maximum of 20m, on free immersion and constant weight on the line. 12m is all you need to get certified, there is no cap holding you back, so if you feel comfortable you can keep going deeper.
A breath-hold of at least 1 minute 30, a 30m dynamic swim, a 12m depth dive, a rescue from 6 to 10m, and a short theory exam.
Two to three days. An optional third day (a small supplement) gives extra water time to reach the targets calmly.
Equalisation is the thing that limits most beginners, and it is a skill rather than a gift. It is taught in the first theory session and drilled dry and in shallow water before it matters at depth. If it is slow to come, the optional third day exists for exactly this, and a one-to-one coaching session afterwards is often the quickest fix.
Less fit than people expect. Freediving rewards relaxation and efficient movement rather than power, and a tense, strong swimmer usually does worse than a calm one. You do need to be comfortable in open water and in good general health. A medical questionnaire applies, and some conditions need a doctor's sign-off first.
You dive with a buddy and an instructor on every single dive, and rescue is part of the syllabus rather than an afterthought. Turning early is normal and respected. Nobody here is comparing your numbers to anyone else's.
Yes, soft contact lenses are fine under a mask. Glasses are not, so bring lenses or ask us about a prescription mask.
Swimwear, a towel, reef-safe sunscreen and a water bottle. Wetsuit, long fins and mask are included. The Gili Matra Marine Park fee of IDR 100,000 per person applies to reef sessions and is paid to the park, not to us.
The water here is 27 to 30 degrees year-round and visibility runs from about 10 metres in the wet season to 35 in the dry, so the sea is diveable all year. If a morning is rough we swap the running order, do the theory and pool work, and take the line later.
Yes, they are separate disciplines and plenty of people do both. Tell us when you book so we can order your days, and remember the scuba rule for the journey home: at least 18 hours between your last scuba dive and a flight, 12 hours after a single no-decompression dive, and a full 24 hours before a flight or the Mount Rinjani trek, which climbs to altitude.
A coaching session or Wave 2, the intermediate Molchanovs certification. Either way you keep practising under instructor supervision, building depth and getting ready to go deeper.