Outside The Asylum Diving & Travel (a.k.a. OTA Diving & Travel) is Houston’s newest Dive Center located in Houston’s West Oaks neighborhood near Cinco Ranch. The shop is well placed on Westheimer Road with plenty of parking available.
Their mantra, “your vacation begins when you walk in the door” rings true as the scent of coconut and pineapple pleasantly welcomes you upon entry. Tropical tunes on the stereo transports you to that Tiki Bar on the beach fantasy as your hosts, Morad & Jeanne, hand you a cool drink and a warm welcome.
The showroom has an open floor plan that feels inviting and allows you to visually navigate the store from the entryway. A unique aspect of the store is the large, hand-painted murals by local Houston artist, Sammy Hassan. A mural of divers descending on a reef greets you to the right and a frolicking dolphin mural to the left as you walk in the front door. Continue on to the diver education center with its life-size dock and palm trees to grab your books and plan your dive training.
Across the way, the Travel Center invites you with a beach scene and driftwood sign meant to inspire your travel fantasies of diving and snorkeling destinations around the world. Here you’ll find books and maps and the latest travel packages on offer. Jeanne has been arranging group and individual travel for over 8 years.
Step further “Outside The Asylum” and you’ll find yourself in the Shark Cage. Grid wall displays over murals of Mako, hammerhead, and Oceanic White Tip sharks create a cool illusion and highlight the gear meant to get you there.
The vacation theme reverberates throughout the store and is at the core of Outside The Asylum’s philosophy.
“This is supposed to be fun! Learning to dive, shopping for equipment, and planning trips should not be stress-filled and confusing.” Jeanne Cinquegrana, OTA Co-founder, explains.
“We make it easy for our guests to enjoy their courses and focus on the diving by taking care of details like transporting tanks and gear. We don’t require our customers to buy weights they’ll never use again and we don’t ask them to haul the equipment around.” Adds Morad Hassan, Co-founder and Training Director. “Students do not have to purchase any equipment to do their Open Water Course. We firmly believe that they should have a chance to see where they want to go in diving before they invest in their own equipment.”
Outside The Asylum also distinguishes itself by focusing on dive trips and travel. Morad and Jeanne have traveled the world and also spent several years teaching scuba and guiding in the Red Sea. Their passion is getting Outside The Asylum of everyday life and taking you along with them. “Group trips are a great way to travel, meet new friends and connect with like-minded people” says Jeanne. “I strive to give travelers the benefit of my experience, with tips and advice that help them avoid common pitfalls and make the most of their precious vacation time.”
“We also offer lots of local events and diving here in Houston. We’ll be celebrating Women’s Dive Day on July 16th with a mimosa brunch where we’ll plan some local excursions to do throughout the year right here in the Houston area.”
Another important tenet in Outside The Asylum’s philosophy is community service and conservation. They volunteer their time to speak at local schools and clubs about marine conservation and the individual’s role and responsibility as a resident on 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.”
Outside The Asylum Diving & Travel offers all PADI courses and Technical training. They have a full service dive center where they offer courses, equipment and gear service and repair.
They also have a mobile dive shop and can bring the diving fun to your location. Take courses or book a Scuba Party for your next special event where participants can try scuba and play underwater games in the comfort of your own pool.
Meet The Team
Jeanne
Jeanne’s passion is underwater photography and videography. She’s traveled the world with her camera and enjoys telling the story of a place through her lens. She’s a PADI IDC Staff Instructor and enjoys introducing new divers to the wonders of the underwater world. Jeanne spent three years as an instructor, guide and professional underwater photographer and filmmaker in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt and has returned to Houston to open her Diving Center, Outside The Asylum Diving & Travel. Jeanne lives in Houston, Texas with her husband and beloved dog, Dahab.
Morad
Getting Outside the Asylum is Morad’s passion in life and diving. He loves to be underwater, whether it’s in a swimming pool or a tropical reef he’s most at home beneath the surface. He started his diving career in the crystal clear springs of Florida and is headed back there to start his cave diving courses. Morad spent several years teaching scuba diving in Houston, Texas before moving to his favorite dive destination: the Red Sea. He spent several more years in Egypt guiding, teaching and perfecting his diving skills with continuing education. He trained with some of the biggest names in the International technical diving world and now brings his experience, passion for diving, and zest for fun back to Houston.
Sammy (Artist)
Sammy Hassan is making his mark on the Houston Art Scene with his life size murals of cool underwater themes at OTA Diving & Travel. His canvass keeps growing as he works on a huge, multimedia project at the Vinson & Elkins Pavillion in Smither Park, Houston, TX. Sammy Hassan is an avid diver, artist and musician living and working and creating masterpieces in Houston, Texas.
You can contact Outside The Asylum at 855-OTA-DIVE (855-682-3483) or www.otadiving.com
1 Comment
Houston definitely doesn’t need Outside The Asylum Diving and Travel, Inc. (OTA). If you book a trip through OTA Travel and it doesn’t go according to plan, neither Morad Hassan nor Jeanne Cinquegrana, the owners of OTA Travel, will do anything to help save your dive vacation.
My dive buddy and I experienced this situation first-hand. We purchased a group dive trip from OTA Travel to the Galapagos Islands. The boat operator canceled the cruise after we arrived in Ecuador.
We were already in Ecuador and still expected to go diving in the Galapagos and we expected OTA Travel to help identify other diving options. OTA Travel failed to provide the level of expected service because apparently they don’t know anything about diving in the Galapagos. Their only input was to not to fly to the Galapagos even though we were at the departure gate and were on the 96-hour Covid testing clock for travel there. Instead of helping arrange alternative diving options, OTA Travel told us to return to the US and file an insurance claim. They sell trip insurance, too.
If you are looking for a reputable dive and travel shop look elsewhere because OTA Travel will leave you to fend for yourself when your dive trip doesn’t go as planned. There are plenty of other professional Dive Travel Agencies to choose from.