Today we’d like to introduce you to Morad Hassan and Jeanne Cinquegrana.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Morad and Jeanne. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
We spent several years training divers here in Houston. We took a vacation in Egypt and after one dive we fell in love with the gorgeous coral reefs and abundant wildlife we found underwater. We decided to make that vacation our everyday reality and spent a couple of years preparing to relocate to a resort town on the Red Sea to teach diving and experience what we were preparing our students for.
We saw the industry from a completely different perspective and quickly realized that training people to dive in a lake is much different than diving on vacation. Divers training at home have an advantage over those training at a resort. The divers at home really get to know their instructors and can spend more time training than when they are on vacation, but there’s a distinct disconnect between training locally and what’s expected of them while on vacation.
We spent years living and working in the resort destination and gained so much valuable experience that when we came back to Houston, it just felt natural to open our own dive center and continue doing what we loved.
So here at Outside The Asylum, we essentially simulate the vacation experience and approach dive training holistically, to prepare our guests not only for the lake, but for the boat, and their vacation destination while preparing them to take their diving to the next level with continuing education and experiences.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There were a lot of challenges along the way, Living abroad really prepared us to start our own business. Moving to a foreign country, learning new customs and a new language can be daunting but if you approach it with an open mind and good attitude you can accomplish amazing things.
Starting a business is fraught with obstacles and challenges and we certainly encountered our share! We use the same formula we teach our students when presented with a problem while diving: We stop, take a breath, think, then act.
We figure out how to deal with an issue and then we put our plan into action. Then we look back and ask ourselves, what can we do better next time and what did we learn from this experience.
We love what we do and that passion sustains you through the difficult times.
Outside The Asylum Diving & Travel – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are a full-service Dive Center. We teach diving courses and specialties, whether you want to learn how to scuba dive for a family vacation to the Caribbean or you want to take your diving skills to the next level we teach it all. We sell everything you need to dive: wetsuit, mask, snorkel, fins, along with breathing regulators, BCD’s and dive computers and all the accessories.
One of the best parts of learning to scuba dive is getting out there and diving. We plan about ten off-shore group diving trips a year. Group trips are a lot of fun and an easy way to meet new friends with a shared passion for scuba diving.
We are recognized as Houston’s leading Red Sea travel specialists. We know how to do the Red Sea right, we speak the language, lead the trips and tours and have OTA Diving Staff based in the Red Sea. We lead at least two Red Sea trips every year and demand is growing as the Red Sea is home to one of the most abundant and pristine coral reef systems in the world. Along with amazing diving, we also do excursions to the Great Pyramids of Giza and to the city of Luxor- the world’s largest open-air museum. Culture, history and off the charts diving all at an awesome price makes the Red Sea our most popular trip.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Our proudest moment happens when a student tackles a skill or overcomes a phobia and succeeds. It’s amazing to watch the transformation learning to scuba dive has on people. We work to make it fun and accessible and we structure our classes to help our students succeed and develop confidence while they are learning. When you take a new diver into the ocean for the first time their excitement is infectious, it’s like we are seeing it all new again through their eyes.
When they come out of the water beaming from ear to ear because they saw some awesome wildlife we are right there beaming with them. We helped them find their bliss and that’s priceless!
Another important tenet in Outside The Asylum’s philosophy is community service and conservation. We volunteer our time to speak at local schools and clubs about marine conservation and the individual’s role and responsibility as a resident of planet Earth.
“As divers, we get a first-person view of the state of the reefs, often called the rainforests of the sea,” states Morad, “there is no way you can go below the surface and not be impacted by the sight of a stunning, healthy reef. Conversely, a damaged reef or rubbish-strewn environment can propel one into action, to find out why this has happened and naturally leads to divers asking themselves, ‘what can I do about this.’”
“This is one of the most rewarding aspects of this job,” Jeanne says, “to create divers and watch them evolve and then share their love of the sea with others.”
Pricing:
- Open Water Course is $255 which includes your manual and certification fee. Students need to purchase personal gear: mask, snorkel, fins, boots, and light wetsuit. When they buy with OTA , we offer a perfect fit guarantee.
- Red Sea live aboard trips start at $1350 for 7 day cruise, 3-4 dives a day, all food, taxes, fees, and Nitrox included
- Local Flower Garden Trips start at $585 for a 2 day weekend trip, includes a bunk, all food, and 7 dives
Contact Info:
- Address: 15015 Westheimer Rd
STE H Houston, TX 77082 - Website: www.otadiving.com
- Phone: 855-682-3483 (855-OTA_DIVE)
- Email: funtimes@otadiving.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/otadiving/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OtaDivingTravel/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/OtaDiving
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