Sidemount and GUE courses near Heidelberg

Getting started

Where to start

Five typical starting points and the course to begin with.

Certified, but you want to get better

GUE Performance Diver consolidates your core skills in two days. For specific weak spots there is personal training with video analysis.

Performance Diver Personal training

Interested in sidemount

On a try dive you test sidemount before buying any gear. After that, SDI Sidemount Diver is the recreational entry course.

Try dive sidemount SDI Sidemount Diver

Heading for technical diving

I teach TDI Intro to Tech in sidemount, without decompression. TDI Sidemount Diver and Decompression Procedures follow.

TDI Intro to Tech

The GUE path in doubles

GUE Fundamentals teaches you GUE configuration, procedures and teamwork. Basic Fundamentals is the foundation for the primers, Technical Fundamentals the prerequisite for GUE technical courses.

GUE Fundamentals

Technical diver, new to sidemount

You already dive technical, for example GUE-style in doubles. On TDI Sidemount Diver you carry your procedures over to sidemount, including deco dives and, if you like, extra cylinders.

TDI Sidemount Diver

Sidemount course path · SDI / TDI

Sidemount courses

I teach my sidemount courses to the same standard of trim, buoyancy and team procedure as my GUE courses. In practice that means every skill is explained and practised on land, repeated in the water and discussed in the debrief. Certification is through SDI and TDI. The course path shows the order from a first try to a full tech configuration, and DPV, Advanced Nitrox and Decompression Procedures can be added alongside.

Try it

Try dive sidemount

Test sidemount before you buy gear. I fit the configuration to you, we practise the S-drill on land, then you get an honest assessment.

Half day €149

Details

Entry

SDI Sidemount Diver

For recreational sidemount: equipment, weighting, gas management with two cylinders and problem solving. No decompression, down to 40 m.

2 days from €505

Open Water Diver, age 18 (15 with parental consent)

Next date: 24–25 Oct 2026 · 1 spot left

Details

Tech entry

TDI Intro to Tech

The foundations of technical diving without decompression, taught in sidemount. Can be combined with Advanced Nitrox.

3 days from €740

Open Water Diver, 25 logged dives, age 18 (15 with consent)

Details

Tech sidemount

TDI Sidemount Diver

For sidemount on decompression dives too: propulsion techniques, unclipping and clipping cylinders underwater, gas switches, optional extra cylinders.

“…without him I might never have found how much I love sidemount!” Chris K.

2 days from €505

Open Water Diver, age 18

Next date: 17–18 Apr 2027 · 3 spots left

Details

Add-ons to the course path

Add-on

SDI DPV

Handling, planning and team diving with a scooter. I teach it in sidemount too.

2 days from €505

Open Water Diver, age 18 (15 with consent)

Details

Gas

TDI Advanced Nitrox

Planning and using nitrox mixes from 21 to 100 % oxygen. Runs parallel to the course path.

2 days from €505

Nitrox Diver, 25 logged dives, age 18 (15 with consent)

Details

Deco

TDI Decompression Procedures

Planned staged decompression to 45 metres: stage handling, gas switches, SMB and ascents as a team.

3 days from €740

Advanced Diver, 25 logged dives, age 18+

Details

GUE · Global Underwater Explorers

GUE courses

GUE trains divers to uniform standards for equipment, procedures and teamwork, from the first dive into technical diving. Because equipment and procedures are the same worldwide, GUE divers can dive together as a team without long briefings on how they do things. I have taught GUE courses since 2018, from Performance Diver through Fundamentals, Advanced Open Water Diver and primers to DPV 1.

Foundations

GUE Fundamentals

Performance Diver, Basic and Technical Fundamentals: consolidate your core skills, for recreational diving or as the way into technical diving.

“It was the best diving course I have ever had and a very good introduction to the GUE system.” Tobias G.

2 to 4 days from €470

Next date: 22–23 May 2027 · 2 spots left

Details

Advanced

GUE Advanced Open Water Diver

Deeper to 30 metres, rescue, navigation and emergency management. Triox optional.

6 days from €1,410

GUE entry course, 15 dives since, age 16+, BLS

Details

Level 1

GUE DPV 1

Scooter handling, gas planning and emergency procedures as a team.

“Three instructive days with very well structured presentations, plenty of time for discussion and 6 hours of intensive practice underwater.” Daniel S.

3 days from €705

GUE entry course, 75 dives, age 16

Next date: 16–18 Jul 2027 · 3 spots left

Details

Primers, bookable individually

Primer

GUE Navigation Primer

Compass, natural and guideline navigation. One dive in reduced ambient light.

“With very good teaching skills, Christof created ‘aha’ moments that stick.” Johanna S.

2 days from €470

GUE entry course, 15 dives since

Details

Primer

Other GUE primers

Doubles, Drysuit, Deep and Rescue Primer: configuration and skills for the next step.

“He gives honest feedback in a way that is supportive and motivating, and works with students to aid forward progress.” Amber G.

depends on primer from €470

Details

Already GUE-trained?

If you dive GUE and want to learn sidemount, TDI Sidemount Diver and Intro to Tech hold the same standard as the GUE courses. Certification is through TDI.

Go to sidemount courses

Instructor

About Christof Müller

Diving instructor at Deepstop Schwetzingen. Thousands of dives in lakes and mines, the Mediterranean and the cenotes of Mexico. Trained with GUE, TDI, ISE and PSAI up to Full Cave and Cave CCR.

More about me

My story on the blog

DE · ENTeaching languages

Since 2017Instructor at Deepstop

Full Cave · CCROwn training

How training works

Open water, not pool

Dives take place in local lakes such as Rheinauer See or St. Leon. Courses normally run from March to November.

Your gear gets fitted

Before the first dive I check your equipment and adjust it to you. Missing items can be rented.

Land, water, debrief

Every course day: theory at Deepstop, dry runs on land, 1 to 2 dives, then a detailed debrief.

Personal training

No new course needed: based on video analysis, I work with you on specific skills.

More about personal training

Expectations

Who my courses suit

A good fit

You want to dive better, not just collect another certification card.
You want honest feedback. On GUE courses I grade every skill on a scale of 1 to 5 and go through each one with you.
You like learning in a small group of at most three students, in open water rather than a pool.
You don't have a regular dive buddy. I match up individual sign-ups.
If something is still missing, you add days at the same day rate.

Not a good fit

You expect a guaranteed certification. You are certified only once you meet the requirements of the standard.
You want to learn in a swimming pool. I teach by “train like you fight”: cold, a drysuit, thick gloves and poor visibility belong in training, because that is how you will dive later. Master it in a lake and warm water feels easy.
You smoke and want to take a GUE course. Being a non-smoker is a prerequisite in the GUE standard.
You have no dive accident insurance. GUE courses require insurance including hyperbaric treatment, for example DAN at Master level.

All prerequisites in the FAQ

In cooperation with

XDEEP Stealth Tec Christof Müller Set

An upgrade set for the XDEEP Stealth: it does not change the concept, it refines it. The result is a clean, all-black setup with clear lines.

Unlike the unmodified Stealth, everything comes pre-assembled, so there is nothing to rebuild yourself.

No experiments, just meaningful refinement.

In the set

Black aluminium D-rings
Colour-matched weight stoppers
Stainless Steel Triglide with Eye for the loop bungee
Bungee Hook for the wing bungees

View at Deepstop Set details

Available exclusively from Deepstop.

In conversation

Podcast appearances

Conversations about training, sidemount and why experience is not the same as expertise.

Speaking Sidemount · Episode 122 · July 2026

Experience doesn't equal expertise

On the Sidemount Pros podcast: why a high dive count alone does not make you skilled.

Listen to the episode

Off Gassing: A Scuba Podcast · August 2025 · 67 min

A Conversation with Christof Müller

From a gifted Open Water course to instructor, e-learning versus in-person teaching, and how good training pathways are built.

Listen to the episode

Testimonials

What students say

Feedback from sidemount, GUE courses and personal training, in the original wording; quotes written in German are translated.

**Tobias G.**performance diver · translated from German

**Chris K.**technical fundamentals & tdi sidemount

As a GUE diver moving into sidemount, it mattered to me that I could build on my previous training. With Christof I was in very good hands. He understands the mindset and the standards you bring from GUE training, and builds on them when you switch to a sidemount configuration. He also handled my Razor system without any issue. What I liked most was that we worked through the configuration and the procedures together, so I understood the reasoning behind every adjustment. For me the course was a valuable addition to my diving experience so far. If you come from a GUE background and want to get to know sidemount, I can recommend Christof from my own experience.

Leif R.sidemount

On the blog: Which Tank for Sidemount? Material and Size Compared