Phantom Training Center
School Street, 180, Lower Valley, New Jersey, CYM
About the Center
Phantom Training Center, located in Lower Valley, CYM, is an SSI-certified training facility dedicated to scuba diving courses for all levels. From introductory experiences like Discover Scuba Diving to professional development through its Instructor Development Course, it offers a comprehensive path to becoming a certified diver or a dive professional.
The center is particularly noted for its commitment to veterans and military personnel, facilitating the use of GI Bill® benefits for recreational or professional certifications. Phantom Training Center partners with SSI to unlock opportunities within SSI's global job locator and placement tool for professionals.
Facilities include lockers, a swimming pool for training, equipment rental, a dive shop, and air fills (including nitrox). It also provides opportunities for boat diving and shore diving, catering to various forms of underwater exploration. The staff speaks English and is equipped to guide students on their underwater adventures in the Central Texas region.
Available Courses
6 cursosOpen Water Instructor Bundle (Assistant Instructor & ITC)
The Open Water Instructor Bundle at PTC combines the Assistant Instructor course and the full Instructor Training Course into a single $1,100 package. That combined format, offered three times a year (January, June, September), lets candidates qualify directly as Open Water Instructors without stopping at the Assistant Instructor level for an extended period. The ITC at PTC runs through SSI, which means graduates qualify to teach SSI's full recreational curriculum and gain access to SSI's digital training technology and global instructor placement tool. For veterans using GI Bill® benefits, this is the end point of a fully reimbursable professional pathway that starts at Try Scuba. PTC's connection to Fort Hood and the broader Central Texas military community means there's a steady pipeline of veteran candidates moving through these pro courses. The center also offers Mermaid Instructor certification ($180) as a separate pro-level option for candidates interested in that specialty alongside or after their scuba instructor rating.
Try Scuba
The Try Scuba program at Phantom Training Center is the entry point for anyone who's never breathed underwater. No prior experience needed — the session pairs you with a certified instructor in a controlled environment, either a local lake or pool, and walks you through the basics before you go under. All equipment is provided for the session. The focus is on comfort and breathing, not skills assessment. You won't be graded; you'll just get a first look at what being underwater actually feels like. This program is also available under the GI Bill® reimbursement pathway for veterans and active-duty service members, making it accessible to participants in the Soldier Recovery Unit diving program that PTC actively supports through donations. The Central Texas area doesn't have ocean access, so sessions run in local freshwater — lakes in and around Kempner, Killeen, and the surrounding region. It's a different context than tropical diving, but it's where the skills stick before you take them somewhere warmer.
Enriched Air and Nitrox
The Nitrox specialty at PTC is listed at $100 and is available as a standalone course or as part of the Open Water + Nitrox combo ($295). That combo is worth noting — pairing the two means a newly certified diver can immediately start using enriched air, which extends bottom time and reduces nitrogen loading on multi-dive days. The course qualifies for GI Bill® reimbursement, which is relevant for veterans working through a certification pathway at PTC. It's also one of the more practical specialties to stack early, especially if the next step after Open Water is a dive trip somewhere you'll be doing multiple dives per day. PTC stocks nitrox fills on-site, so the certification has immediate practical use within the center's own service offering. You don't need to go elsewhere to put the card to work.
Divemaster Bundle (Pro Class)
The Divemaster Bundle at PTC runs $600 and covers the Dive Guide and Science of Diving courses required to qualify for the SSI Divemaster rating. It's the first step in the professional track and the prerequisite for Assistant Instructor. PTC schedules Divemaster and ITC cohorts three times per year — January, June, and September — with each block running approximately 6 days. That compressed format suits candidates who can commit to a full week rather than spreading training over months. The professional track is explicitly GI Bill® eligible here, which is one of PTC's distinguishing angles. Veterans can move from Open Water through Divemaster and into the Instructor Training Course using reimbursement benefits, and SSI's global job locator tool becomes accessible upon reaching professional status. PTC also donates toward gear for the Soldier Recovery Unit diving program, so the veteran focus runs beyond just administrative paperwork — it's part of how the center operates in the local community.
Open Water Diver
The Open Water Diver course at Phantom Training Center runs on a twice-monthly schedule from February through November, typically over a 4-day block (Thursday through Sunday). That cadence means you're not waiting long for the next available date, and you can plan around a specific weekend. Training happens in the local freshwater lakes of Central Texas — the same waters where PTC runs community events like the annual Polar Plunge at Stillhouse Hollow Lake. It's not tropical, but learning in real lake conditions builds solid fundamentals. Visibility and conditions vary, which means students get comfortable adapting early. The course is available through SSI, with the option to use GI Bill® reimbursement for veterans. PTC is a dual SSI/SDI center, but the Open Water track under SSI is what feeds into the GI Bill program and connects to SSI's global job locator if you later go professional. A Mother's Day special runs the Open Water course at $200 — the same course, with a seasonal entry point. That price point is one of the few concrete figures listed on the site.
Advanced Open Water
PTC's Advanced Open Water Diver course runs monthly from February through November, scheduled the weekend immediately after the corresponding Open Water dates. That alignment makes it straightforward to continue training without a long gap after certification. The course covers five modules: Deep Diving, Navigation, Boat Diving, Night and Limited Visibility, and a fifth module of choice. In Central Texas, boat diving and night diving take on a specific character — freshwater lakes, lower visibility than salt water, and conditions that vary by season. Getting comfortable in those conditions at the advanced level prepares divers well for travel to more technical environments. Like all PTC courses, this one is available through SSI and qualifies for GI Bill® reimbursement. Veterans who completed Open Water here can continue directly into Advanced without switching agencies or training centers. The course is also available as part of bundled packages in PTC's store, grouped with specialty courses for students building toward the Master Diver or specialty diver ratings.
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Frequently asked
What people ask before booking
Yes. PTC is an SSI Training Center enrolled in the GI Bill® reimbursement program. Veterans verify their eligibility at va.gov, register an SSI account affiliated with PTC, complete the course, then file VA form VBA-22-0803 with the paid invoice and certification copy. The program covers everything from Try Scuba to professional instructor ratings.
Twice a month, February through November. Typical session runs Thursday through Sunday (4 days). Advanced Open Water runs on the same schedule, usually the following weekend.
Both SSI and SDI. Classes are listed under each agency separately in the store, so you can choose the certification track that fits your goals.
Yes. Tank fills are $9, yearly visual inspections $15, BCD service $30, and BCD with air control or air trim servicing runs $65–$75. Regulator servicing is also available through Mares, APEX, and Aqualung.
The list is extensive: wreck, deep, nitrox, sidemount, night and limited visibility, DPV/scooter, photo and video, search and recovery, navigation, full face mask, perfect buoyancy, stress and rescue, science of diving, and a range of ecology specialties including shark, sea turtle, manta and ray, coral, fish ID, and marine invertebrates.
Tuesday and Thursday 9am–5pm, Friday 1pm–7pm, Saturday and Sunday 9am–5pm. Closed Monday and Wednesday.
PTC hosts the annual Polar Plunge at Stillhouse Hollow Lake each January. They also organize the Diver Across Texas contest (January–October 2026), which challenges divers to log verified dives at as many Texas locations as possible — prizes include a full dive kit, regulator set, and dive computer.
Yes. The shop carries Mares, APEX, and Aqualung across BCDs, regulators, masks, fins, wetsuits, drysuits, dive computers, and lights. There's also PTC-branded apparel and a dive knife.