5 of the Best Dive Sites in the Azores

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Roughly 50 miles off the coast of Pico Island lies one of the best dives sites found throughout the whole of the Atlantic Ocean.

Princess Alice, Pico Island

If this is you’re first time diving the Azores, then make sure you go to this dive site. Situated between the island of Pico and Faial, it takes a good 3-hour boat ride to get there, but this seamount surpasses all expectation. With visibility of up to 60m, the crystal clear water is jam-packed full of pelagic fauna, hammerhead sharks, blue sharks, schools of barracuda, dolphins, mobulas, tuna and even black marlin, which is awe-inspiring even to the most experienced of divers. The Princess Alice seamount has a minimum depth of around 30-40m with the base of the mountain reaching depths of over 500m into the abyss of the Atlantic.

Formigas Islets

The small islands of Formigas are located 20 miles off the coast of Santa Maria. These islets offer amazing diving opportunities as well as providing access to Dollabarat Bank, which is a seamount that has been damaged by the surrounding currents. Here you will find some amazing marine life including, Galapagos sharks, giant Manta rays, turtles, schools of tuna and even Hammerheads have been spotted in this area. Diving at this location is well worth it, however, the currents can be extremely strong, so speak to a dive center or guide, before embarking on this trip. This is not a dive site for newbies.

Santa Maria

Santa Maria is the smallest island out of the Azores, however, it is one of the most popular amongst divers. The sheer abundance of marine life that live in the surrounding waters provides incredible opportunities for divers and snorkelers alike. The island itself is only 90km in length and has roughly 10 dives sites to explore.

Throughout the summer months, Santa Maria is the place to be, if swimming with whale sharks is your thing. Another amazing experience takes place just three miles off the coast at a location known as Ambrosio. This is where you’ll have the chance to dive among large numbers of Mobulas Tarapacana (devil rays). You’ll usually find them in groups of 12 however, larger groups of 50 or more have been spotted in this area. If diving with whale sharks and devil rays is not enough for you, then being surrounded by incredible Atlantic fauna and flora as well as sunfish, schools of barracuda, sardines, groupers, rays and octopi all found in a beautiful underwater landscape of lava walls, black coral and tunnels, should be enough to push any diver over the edge. This Island is certainly not to be missed by any diver.

Dom João De Castro Bank

The Dom João de Castro Bank is a huge underwater volcano, which emerges from the seafloor at around 1000m and peaks at just 15m, where this dive begins. You enter the water at the crater and it is a site like none-other. This underwater volcano is located between the islands of Terceira and San Miguel and can only be accessed by boat. With its vents and crazy vertical walls, which are leaking with natural gases, this site creates a unique scene for divers. This volcano consists of 4 peaks, which range between 40m and 50m deep. At this dive site, you will find exceptional visibility. With the strong currents surrounding this area, comes stunning pelagic animals including devil rays, giant wahoos, schools of tuna, barracuda and marine turtles.

This dive site is not an easy one, due to the depths and the strength of the currents, so this is a dive for the more qualified and experienced divers.

Terceirense Wreck, Graciosa Island

Located just 2 minutes away from Vila de Praia beach on the island of Graciosa, the Terceirense shipwreck lays on the seabed at around 20m. This freighter stretches for over 40m in length and is now home to some of the most amazing marine life. Groupers move along the pipes and around the boiler room and hull that is pretty much still intact, however, this wreck has been there since 1968, which means obvious wear and tear has caused smaller parts of the vessel to break away over time. When visiting this wreck, you will see thousands of Azores Chromis and ornate wrasses that have moved in, mackerels, eels, hogfish, and sargus. If you could imagine what a wreck dive would look like, this would be it and unsurprisingly, this site is rated one of the best dive sites found in the Azores.

There are so many incredible dive sites found throughout the Azores, way too many to include in our Top 5 list, so if you have dived one or more of these incredible locations, please let us know about it in the comments below.