PADI Instructor Development Courses and Divemaster Internships
Boutique PADI Pro training in Roatan, Central America
Go Pro Caribbean has been a leader in professional-level PADI training in Roatan for more than twenty years. Whether you're starting a career, taking a sabbatical, or just want to dive vastly more than a holiday allows, we offer the most thorough — and most enjoyable — instructor and divemaster training in Central America.
Roatan has a lot of dive centres, and most of them specialise. Some focus on cruise-ship day trips, some on resort guests, some on the recreational tourist market. Coconut Tree Divers, where Go Pro Caribbean is based, has specialised in pro training for over twenty years — and over the last two decades, more pros have been certified here than at any other operation on the island, by a wide margin. As a divemaster or instructor candidate, you are not fitted in around a more important business. Pro training is the business. You are our raison d'être. Our divemaster internship has no fixed start dates and no limit on the number of dives you complete. We run our own pro accommodation — private rooms from $5 a night, a few minutes' walk from the dive shop. The result is a complete tailor-made package for any length of stay.
PADI Divemaster Internship
Unlimited diving, no fixed dates
PADI Divemaster + Instructor
Two pro qualifications, one trip
PADI Instructor Course
Best PADI IDC in Central America
Roatan & Accommodation
Live a few minutes from the dive shop
Thousands of Divemasters and 500+ instructors certified · 100% IE pass rate
About your Course Director
Trained by one of Central America's most experienced Course Directors
Go Pro Caribbean is led by PADI Platinum Course Director Will Welbourn — the longest-serving Course Director in the Bay Islands. Will has been diving since 1989, made Roatan his home in 2003, and has taught the Instructor Development Course there since 2008. He has certified more than 500 PADI Instructors, with a 100% Instructor Examination pass rate over the last ten years.
PADI has awarded Will multiple Platinum Course Director Awards for excellence in training. He was one of the founding directors of the Roatan Marine Park, and has spent over twenty years choosing to work with small dive centres because the intimate training environment matters to the candidates who train there.
Will is also a PADI Tec Trimix Instructor Trainer — one of a small number worldwide qualified to teach the full PADI Tec pathway up to Trimix. Beyond Go Pro Caribbean, Also based at Coconut Tree Divers is Roatan Tec Center, the only PADI Tec training facility on the island.
For instructor candidates, that means access to technical-diving experience that is genuinely rare in the IDC market — and a clear route to add Tec instructor ratings to your resume after you certify.
Many DM internships and IDCs prepare you to pass. We prepare you to succeed
What graduates say
From recent Google reviews and PADI commendations to written testimonials going back a decade — a small selection of voices from candidates who became instructors here.
West End, Roatan — your home for the journey
Frequently asked questions
How long is the PADI IDC in Roatan?
The IDC takes 12 days. The two-day Instructor Examination follows on directly, so plan for 14 days of training plus exam in total. Course dates run monthly year-round. Check upcoming IDC dates →
Do I need to be a Divemaster before starting the IDC?
No. We offer pathway packages from Open Water, Advanced Open Water, or Rescue Diver level that include your Divemaster certification before the IDC begins. Most candidates arrive partway up the certification ladder and complete the rest with us. See your starting level →
Where do I stay during my course?
In our purpose-built 13-bedroom house, a short walk from the shop, with a private pool and a shared acre with Roatan Oasis. Ensuite rooms from $5/night for IDC candidates and from $10/night for Divemaster candidates. Unless you want something higher end, in which case we are very willing to help you find the right place for your budget. Accommodation details →
What is your IE pass rate?
In the last ten years, every candidate who has completed the IDC with Will Welbourn has passed the PADI Instructor Examination first time. We guarantee it: if you complete the course and don't pass, you train and re-sit at no additional cost. More on the IE →
How is Go Pro Caribbean different from larger Central American IDC operations?
We cap classes at six candidates, with an average class size of three. Will Welbourn is the Course Director on every course personally — not a rotating staff. Roatan has 50+ dive centres recruiting locally compared to roughly 15 on Utila, so the post-IDC employment market is genuinely wider as well. Why Coconut Tree Divers →
When do courses start?
There are no fixed start dates. Pre-IDC training is structured around your arrival, the IDC itself runs monthly, and Divemaster internships can begin at any time. Tell us when you can travel and we'll build the schedule around that. IDC dates · WhatsApp Will Welbourn
Are you ready to become a PADI pro?
Ready to take the next step?
Three ways to start
Or email will@goprocaribbean.com