The Algarve benefits from outstanding conditions for diving, especially in autumn and spring, when the waters are at their calmest and most transparent.
There are schools and diving centres scattered all along the Algarve, offering activities for divers with different levels of experience. All you need are goggles, flippers and a snorkel and you can observe the impressive colours of the Algarve’s underwater world, full of life and undiscovered charms.
When you go diving in the Algarve, you will find yourself in the company of seahorses, gobies, cuttlefish, eels, octopuses, bream, squid, sunfish, coral, gorgonian, sponges, anemones and nudibranches. Did you know that near Vau Beach there is a place called the “Nudibranch Garden” because of the various species of nudibranches that live there?
There are more than 50 places where you can dive in the Algarve. One which you must be sure to visit is Ponta da Piedade. If you think it’s pretty on the surface, imagine what it must be like when you dive there and discover the natural passages that the sea has carved in the rocks.
Explore the remains of the shipwrecks that are part of the region’s history. Visit the wrecks of ships, freighters and bombers that, having left the war, became reefs of peace where many marine species have found shelter, such as shoals of grouper, crabs, octopuses, prawns and European lobster.
In Vila do Bispo, at Boca do Rio opposite Salema Beach, there is even an underwater museum, with duly signposted archaeological remains.
In the Portimão area, two miles off the coast, you will find the artificial reefs of Alvor. Here divers can experience the amazing thrills of the Ocean Revival Underwater Park, which comprises four Portuguese Navy warships that were sunk at this precise spot and together form an artificial reef unlike any other in the world.
With tourism infrastructures capable of responding to all kinds of demands, the Algarve boasts a fascinating underwater world for you to discover. Experiencing all the thrills of the deep off the coast of the Algarve is a privilege that many divers have enjoyed regardless of the time of year. Now it’s your turn.