Dive Instructor — Banderas Bay & Marietas Islands

Responsibilities

• Lead guided dive excursions at Banderas Bay sites: El Morro (reef and pelagic), Majahuitas Wall (stunning vertical drop-off with diverse coral), Los Arcos Marine Sanctuary, and the Marietas Islands (UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve with protected seabird nesting) — each requires site-specific briefing and approach management
• Conduct PADI Open Water and Advanced Open Water certification courses: Banderas Bay's protected areas and varied depth profile offer excellent conditions for certification dives, with multiple advanced dive sites including deep and current diving options
• Manage humpback whale dive experiences during December–March season: humpback whale encounters while diving in Banderas Bay are among the most sought-after experiences in Pacific Mexico — the instructor follows responsible marine mammal approach protocols and provides the acoustic context for the underwater whale song experience
• Navigate Marietas Islands dive access: the Marietas Islands are a protected biosphere reserve with specific visitor access quotas, booking requirements, and environmental conduct rules — the dive operator manages this through advance permits, and the instructor enforces the protocol on-site
• Identify and communicate seasonal conditions: July–August is the rainy season in PVR, affecting visibility at some sites; the dry season (November–April) produces consistently better conditions — accurate seasonal condition communication shapes client expectation before bookings are made
• Conduct equipment maintenance and safety checks for all courses and guided dives

Requirements

• PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor
• Emergency First Response Instructor certification
• 300+ logged dives; Banderas Bay or Pacific dive environment experience preferred
• Marine wildlife encounter protocol knowledge (humpback, manta ray, sea turtle)
• English and Spanish bilingual for PVR's mixed domestic and international dive market

Benefits

• IMSS, aguinaldo, paid vacation + premium
• Fixed monthly + guided tour gratuity
• Access to Marietas Islands dives for personal dive development
• Seasonal humpback whale dive privileges during breeding season
• Career development in PVR's growing and underrated dive tourism market

Work environment

Pacific coast dive instruction and guided excursions from Puerto Vallarta marina. Banderas Bay's diverse marine environment including manta ray stations, humpback whale encounters, and the protected Marietas Islands biosphere.

About the role

The Puerto Vallarta dive guide who positions a group of 6 divers 10 meters below the surface in Banderas Bay in January — when a pair of humpbacks is passing 30 meters above them, their song audible through the water as a deep rhythmic pulse — is giving those divers an experience that cannot be manufactured anywhere else. The Bay of Banderas whale season is one of the most intimate and extraordinary marine mammal encounter environments in Mexico, and the guides who know it are providing something irreplaceable.