Great shop with highly trained professionals ready to assist with training or equipment needs. They haves wide selection of merchandise too. There are scheduled overnight dives, travel dives, and monthly fun dives. Great shop that is building a local community of divers. read more

Marin Dive Center put together an awesome Memorial Day Weekend trip out to the Timber Cove Boat Launch and Camp site! Silas did an outstanding job of Planning the event, bringing everything we needed to camp out as well as Cooking and providing food from the sea for everyone to eat. We all brought food and I don't know about anyone else but we had a lot of food left over. We met some wonderful people that we hope to do more events with in the future. Thank you John, Silas, Cullin and Brandon for making it a very Memorable Memorial Day Weekend! Thank you again, Ken and Debbie read more

See all

I have been relying upon Jon for nearly 25 years. He is a great guy, and always fair. He truly cares about his customers, and is always polite. I think it's important in an era of on line shopping to support our local merchants whenever possible. Thank you Jon for all your years of commitment to the industry. I know it's not always easy. read more

I can not believe the wonderful customer service I have received over and over again from Marin Diving Center! I wish I could give them TEN STARS! Although I have never bought anything more expensive than a mask and snorkel, I have always been treated like royalty. Jon and Lauren have patiently shown me different options, answered my questions, and given me tips for best use. More than once when there seemed to be a problem with my snorkel, they remedied the problem: no charge. The last time this happened, they showed me a snorkel with extra protection against water entry. I asked them to put the model and color in my account so that I could order it in the future if I wanted to. Recently, after eight months of daily use, my snorkel had a leak. I was unable to go to the store but called and spoke to Jon, who took my order. Much to my delight and amazement, I received it the very next day! WOW! read more

This store is undergoing some major business organization over haul. I paid a deposit for a trip to Komodo in May with Jon the Owner last year. In January I found out that Jon is no longer working there (HUH?). BTW There was never any follow up to inform me or others of the change in management. I told Kathryn I wanted a refund of my deposit as I knew there was a waiting list for this trip, and I did not want to take this trip without Jon, who I have dived with on prior trips. Now March 19th Kathryn told me that she can not refund my deposit for a trip scheduled in May because she could not fill my seat on this trip. I suspect other people have felt the same way as me. Marin Diving Center is keeping this deposit almost six months prior to this trip! Will I do business with them again? Hell to the NO! Will I go to small claims court for my refund? Better believe it. read more

The entire team here is top notch-sales to instructors. The Channel Islands trip is truly worth while. They have earned a faithful customer of products and classes! read more

I've had the best, most memorable experience with Marin Diving Center, I have to sing my praises! About a year ago my boyfriend convinced me this whole scuba diving thing would be a good idea. From there, I signed up for my all-day pool class/written exam. Needless to say, I wasn't the shinning star in my class but my instructor was incredibly knowledgeable and very helpful. After that, I procrastinated on my open-water dive, given a year to complete the process. As the year approached quickly, my anxiety level rose. I contacted Marin Dive and reached Silas. I asked him a crazy amount of ridiculous questions to determine where and when I would be completing my open-water dive. Even though my concerns were silly, he was very kind and answered all my questions as if they weren't as ridiculous as I knew they were. I ended up signing up for a two hour pool refresher course a week before my open-water dive. During my refresher course, my Instructor, Kathryn was so awesome! She was patient and understood my fears. She helped me master the skills I was most worried about executing in the ocean. After that course, my anxieties nearly disappeared. Having been an entire year since the last time I wore scuba gear, I surprisingly felt fully comfortable and confident about my upcoming ocean dive. A week later I was in Monterey with my open-water instructor Rich, who was, the entire weekend, so fun and enthusiastic about diving. Immediately I felt at ease and after meeting the other eight people in my group, I quickly realized my fears were shared. Lauren and Treven were the Dive Masters and both were very helpful and pleasant. Rich was very by-the-book and serious about scuba safety, which I appreciated. Of course, it's easy to take short cuts but he doesn't, which I feel is very important. At the end of the weekend, I felt eager to get back in the water, my fears turned to sheer excitement and I was beyond proud of myself. I cannot thank Marin Diving Center and owner, John enough for helping me conquer my fears and make those fears a hobby I love and cannot wait to explore further. read more

OK so I'm going to jump in here and join the "fan club" for this place. They are extremely helpful and professional and really care about people getting their certifications and enjoying a lifetime of diving. For example, I went in to buy a BCD. I picked one out and the gentleman helping me pointed out that they actually had last year's version of the same model on clearance. He could have easily sold me the 'new' one and made more money, so I really appreciated him pointing this out - mind you I'd bought a dive computer and lots of other gear that month, so i was overall a good customer. read more

We went to Marin Dive Center to check out our gear in their pool before leaving for a dive trip. Part of our equipment was new, the regs, and the rest of our equipment was over 10 years old. We wanted to make sure everything was fitting and functioning properly before going to Indonesia to dive where they require you to bring your own gear. No rentals in Raja Ampat!! An awesome team member by the name of Silus helped us check the regulators, the hoses and all the connections with the BC's. What needed to be lubed and or changed was done so quickly and efficiently to get everything in tip top shape. We didn't purchase our regulators from Marin Dive but I noticed the prices for the same regs were the same as the cheapest on line price. The service here is friendly and impressive. We will definitely use them again for diving issues and needs and we would like to check out some of their local dive trips as well. read more

Went to Marin Diving Center as they were able to fit me in for classroom and pool session prior to a last minute trip to Hawaii. They were amazing. Not only did they fit me in with my tight schedule, they were professional, clear and concise, and exceptional teachers. The instructors I had really helped me feel more comfortable in the pool prior to my open water dives in Hawaii. Thank goodness I had such professionals teach me at Marin Diving Center, as my dive shop in Hawaii wasn't nearly as polished of an organization than they were. I will definitely refer Marin Diving Center to friends and use them if and when I decide to purchase my own equipment. Thanks for all of your help in getting me certified! read more

Second time I have bought a camera from them and what a great place for anything to do with diving. The friendliness, service and whatever else I can say about them.. They let me use the pool to get used to the camera and I think it's also better as you can use your gear, exchange things or jsut get help in person, which you can't do when you buy on -line. Thanks John, Debra, Silas and the rest of the staff for everything. Dave Freimuth read more

Jon, the owner, is simply the best! He stands behind what he sells at Marin Diving and consistently works on getting the best results for his customers. Just yesterday, I went to Marin Diving about a dive light that I bought from him just over a year ago. It turned out that the rechargeable battery was bad after only 7 uses. Jon just gave me a new battery...no questions asked. Awesome! I was so happy. A couple of years ago, I was looking for a replacement strap for my mask. Looked every where high and low in many places and even other countries. I couldn't find anything other than those wimpy replacement straps that everyone sells. Those things couldn't hold a mask on your face if your life depended on it. Turns out that Marin Diving sells the exact same mask, and Jon found a creative way to get me an original replacement strap. Again, so happy! Marin Diving Center has become my go-to dive shop. read more

Marin Dive Center was a bad experience. They assured us they would provide us equipment to use for my children's certifications. They proceeded to try and upsell expensive gear which was not required. I felt they were dishonest and did not set our expectations correctly. When they could not upsell me, they did talk my wife into more equipment the next day. They won this battle but lost the war. I would never recommend them to anyone. WM read more

Had a great experience with Marin Diving Center. Our teenage son got certified here and the whole experience (starting at their facility in San Rafael, classroom & pool work and then in Monterrey for the certification dives) was great. RICH was the dive master who he spent the weekend with in Monterrey for certification- he was fantastic. A total pro.. experienced, patient, and he really engaged the group with his knowledge, kindness and humor. Thank you Marin Diving Center (and a really special shout out to Rich!!) read more

Really Jon's years of expertise is pretty much legend... Safety first, truly dedicated to the industry and is the epitome of calm cool and collected. A perfect combination. We were recommended to him by a couple from Marin. What luck, we just hanging by the pool in Moorea. Awesome comes to mind.....Called when we got back home in Crockett and well ....He is just the best............yup, the BEST ! Been with Jon for over ten years............. read more

After deciding it was time to upgrade my scuba equipment, I stopped by the Marin Diving Center yesterday and had the pleasure of meeting with Kathryn. I have been diving for many years and I have to say that I learned more in 45 minutes with Kathryn than I have with countless dive masters around the world. She is so knowledgeable and passionate about the sport that she takes quality time to ensure you have the right equipment along with proper training on how to use it! I would highly recommend visiting the Marin Diving Center before your next trip. read more

I would like to say thank you to John, who talked me into signing up for the January Channel Island Boat Dive. Before the trip, John answered all of my questions professionally and patiently. After we got on the boat, all of the yummy meals, clean facilities, friendly staff, helpful instructors, breathtaking dive sites, and beautiful sunrise and sunset made my weekend so unforgettable. It was an amazing adventure trip. I am beyond grateful that I had the incredible opportunity to go on this trip with the Marin Diving Center. read more

Today I went into the shop to get set up for free diving and was very surprised at how friendly and knowledgable the staff (Silas) is. He was very helpful, explained all the gear and differences between the high to low price equipment without making me feel like an idiot. After I was all set up he was quick to offer up great places to dive and group events coming up to where a novice diver could learn from people who spearfish all the time. Great store and employees, I would recommend them to anyone and will be going to them again in the future. read more

John (Owner), Todd (Owner) and Silas (Technician) are great guys. They are always willing to help and I have actually become good friends with them. When purchasing my gear, they told me what I should get now and what I can put off. Also, if you are looking to go scuba diving, they set up fun dives that anyone can go on. read more

Fantastic dive shop with an excellent staff who are extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and genuinely care about ensuring that their customers receive the best service possible. They will make you a diver for life! I've worked with John for many years, before he took over Marin Diving Center, and would follow him anywhere. He hires only qualified and friendly staff. They arrange many dive trips abroad, as well as local day/weekend trips. This is a great group of people to get involved with if you want to learn SCUBA/Freediving, or just want to get acquainted with a great group of people who are avid divers. read more

Marin Diving Center replaces the Marin Bamboo Reef. The owner John has done a great job putting together a fully stocked dive shop and a good staff. My wife had some issues with her BCD and Silas helped he check it out in their pool. On our last trip she had some noise from her regulator and Silas is working on that as well. Although we have not done one of the shop trips they have a lot of cool stuff planned and Ali will help you with the travel stuff. It's great to have a full service dive shop in central Marin. read more

I got my original open water certification from Marin Skin Diving back in 1986 and for a number of years, Marin Skin Diving was my shop of choice. I recently got back into diving and returned to the now Marin Diving Center soon after John and Todd opened the new business. I have since taken two advanced classes through the shop. I could not be happier with customer service. They have gone out of the way to accomodate my equipment needs and were able to be flexible with my schedule for the classes. I don't live in Marin but for me, it is worth the extra drive time for the customer service. I'm excited about diving again and a lot has to do with the folks that run Marin Diving Center and their instructors! read more

John and his team are helpful, honest and wonderful people. They stand behind the gear they sell. A great place to set up dive trips, buy or rent gear. read more

My new pneumatic speargun, witch I bought online was defected. I choose San Rafael divine center because of the location, close to my home and I am so fortunate and lucky to meet Silas and John. On my initial call, Silas invited me to the store, filled up all paperwork took my speargun and send it to mares corporation for repair. John did good follow up and finally I got a call to pick my speargun. It took some time but in the end I got brand new gun with some extras from mares. I could not even imagine it will be replaced. My experience is positive and I will recommend this store. All the way 5+ read more

Nice guys. They've got a full suite of gear and know their stuff. Prices aren't horrible and you get the benefit of trying things on. This is really important for diving. Poor fitting gear is the easiest way to have a poor diving experience. Support your local dive shop! read more

This place is the worst. I used to go to Marin Bamboo Reef and loved the service. I later found out that my favorite dive place is being switched to a new owner and a new name- Marin Diving Center. And I thought okay I will get my gear serviced here because I've always gotten it done here. Well, surely I was mistaken! I went in with fully functioning gear and when it got serviced by Marin Diving center, my aqua lung silver legend leaked and my alternate air source leaked! I called them to inquire about it and they said that they did everything by the book and essentially it was my fault. I get it serviced at a different dive shop and they call me back saying that the previous service put in the WRONG parts! WTF!!???!! These people don't know what they're doing. Don't get your gear serviced here!!! read more

I needed an emergency battery change in little time before an international diving trip. The staff here were remarkable, and got my battery changed in my computer in time. The first dive center I called did not seem to want to help me and was going to charge me $$ for expedited service. Marin Diving Center, however, was more than helpful. The staff were all very knowledgable and very friendly. I would highly recommend them. read more

John and the team at Marin Diving Center are awesome!!!!! I got all my gear from them and do fun dives with the shop all the time. They are very knowledgeable and make sure you understand all aspects of diving before you get in the ocean. If you have any questions they really take the time to answer it so you understand. As a new diver I will only go to MDC for my gear and help with diving!!! read more

Even if you live in San Francisco, go to San Rafael to Marin Diving Center if you want to learn how to scuba dive or take a refresher course. The diving instructor I had was meticulous about teaching every skill and having us practice. And the store owner checked all my equipment to be sure it was still in perfect condition after three years of not being used. He also listened to my needs re a dive computer and sold me an easy-to-use one that I can attach to my regulator. Prior to my refresher at Marin Diving Center, I had taken refreshers at Bamboo Reef in SF, where the instructors and equipment crew were careless and not methodical. Definitely worth the drive to go to Marin Diving Center read more

dropped my computer off to be sent to scubapro for inspection. not only did they not send it, they broke the display cover and are asking for a receipt from 2005. really I'm supposed to have my receipt from 8 years ago ? they will not be there long with this kind of service. try bamboo reef or just about anyone else. Ended up taking my computer to bamboo reef, they in return sent it to scubapro, SP replaced the battery, replaced the lcd coved that marin dive center broke and updated the transmitter all at no charge.... Marin dive center did me a favor by pissing me off so I ended up going to a real dive shop... read more