PADI IDC Gili Trawangan 2026 — Dates, What's Included and What to Expect

 

The 2026 IDC season at Gili Trawangan is open, and the July and August intakes are already filling. If you are a Divemaster who has been sitting on the decision to become a PADI Instructor, this is a straightforward overview of what you are actually signing up for when you choose Blue Marlin Dive and the Gili Islands.

No fluff. Just what you need to know.

2026 IDC Dates at Gili Trawangan

There are two confirmed intakes for 2026, with a third likely to open later in the year depending on demand:

July Intake Course dates: 1 July to 20 July 2026 Instructor Examination: 21 to 22 July 2026

August Intake Course dates: 5 August to 24 August 2026 Instructor Examination: 25 to 26 August 2026

Group sizes are small by design. Holly works with limited numbers per intake so each candidate gets genuine individual attention rather than a crowded course where the Course Director is stretched across too many people at once. When a spot goes, it goes.

To check current availability and confirm your place, visit the PADI IDC Gili Trawangan page for full enrollment details and 2026 IDC dates.

What the Course Package Includes

The full IDC package at Blue Marlin Dive covers:

All academic and knowledge development sessions led personally by Holly Macleod. No substitute instructors, no rotating assistant team.

Confined water teaching presentations across all required PADI skill presentations — run in Blue Marlin's dedicated training facilities on Gili Trawangan.

Open water teaching demonstrations across multiple dive sites in the Gili Islands — real conditions, real marine environment, not a controlled pool session standing in for open water.

Emergency First Response Instructor (EFRI) certification. This is a required component before sitting the IE and is included in the Blue Marlin package.

PADI Crew-Pak course materials. These cover all the official reference material from https://www.padi.com that you will use during the IDC and carry forward into your teaching career.

Thorough IE preparation sessions during the final phase of the course. Holly runs these as close to actual examination conditions as possible so the real IE feels familiar rather than alarming.

What it does not include: accommodation, flights, and daily living. Gili Trawangan is genuinely affordable for accommodation and food, which is worth factoring into your total cost comparison if you are weighing up locations.

How the Training Actually Runs

The IDC at Gili Trawangan runs as a single structured program across the full course period. Holly leads every component — knowledge development in the classroom, confined water skills in the pool and training areas, and open water sessions on the reef.

The academic phase moves quickly. Day one is more demanding than most candidates expect. By the end of the first three days you are already presenting knowledge development topics yourself, in front of the group, with live feedback from Holly.

Confined water presentations are where most candidates feel the steepest learning curve. The skill of teaching — positioning yourself correctly, demonstrating clearly, watching a student simultaneously, giving precise feedback — takes more coordination than it looks. Holly's feedback during these sessions is specific and immediate, which compresses the learning curve considerably.

The open water phase at Gili Trawangan gives candidates exposure to conditions that prepare them for real employment. Gili's reef systems include current, variable visibility at some sites, and healthy marine life — the kind of real-world variability that distinguishes instructors who trained in challenging environments from those who only ever dived in calm, predictable conditions.

A Note on Who This Course Is Right For

The PADI IDC is designed for active PADI Divemasters who are ready to teach. That means your dive skills need to be current, your log book requirements need to be in order, and your EFR certification needs to be within the required 24-month window.

Beyond the paperwork, the candidates who get the most from the IDC at Gili Trawangan tend to share a few things. They have given some thought to where they want to teach after certification — not necessarily a firm plan, but at least a direction. They arrive genuinely willing to accept detailed feedback on their teaching rather than just their diving. And they understand that the IE is a professional assessment, not a difficult diving test.

Holly's preparation approach is built around the real demands of dive employment, not just the IE pass criteria. The goal is for graduates to walk into their first instructor role with enough genuine confidence and situational experience that the job feels manageable from day one.

Key Takeaways

The 2026 PADI IDC Gili Trawangan has two confirmed intakes — July and August — with IE dates immediately following each.

Blue Marlin Dive has been the home of Holly Macleod's IDC program for over a decade. The 13x Platinum Course Director track record is the clearest single indicator of what to expect from the training quality.

The Gili Islands provide a focused, affordable training environment with real-world dive conditions that benefit new instructors beyond the certification itself.

For detailed information about the PADI IDC Gili Trawangan program and the full resource hub, visit our PADI IDC Gili Islands hub.

And if you are ready to look at dates and take the next step, all enrollment information is on the official giliidc.com PADI IDC page.

Reach Holly directly: holly@gili-idc.com or WhatsApp +62 821-4785-0413.