Guided Adventure Scuba Dives around Machico, Madeira

Come and explore the different scuba diving spots around the island of Madeira, explore its underwater world, and get to know its marine life on this adventure!

Take your chance to explore the incredible underwater wonders that you'll find while diving around Machico in Madeira! It's the experience of a lifetime, and depending on the weather and your diving level, you'll be able to visit different diving sites, all very much worth your while.

To participate in one of these adventure dives in Madeira, you must have a PADI Open Water Diver certification or an equivalent and a medical certificate from your general practitioner dated within the last 3 months, stating that you are allowed to practice this activity. Your instructors at Haliotis Madeira require these two documents to guarantee your safety and that you'll be able to perform this wonderful activity. Additionally, if you have your own scuba diving equipment, you can book an experience and bring it along, but if you don't, the instructors will have rentals available, just be sure to choose the right option when you book.

Now, as for the spots you'll be able to dive into on your adventure dives around Machico, your instructor will be able to choose between:

Quinta do Lorde

- Located in the parish of Caniçal, in Machico.

- A calm dive with a minimum depth of 5 meters and a maximum depth of 18 meters.

- It's well populated by fish such as the (Abudefduf luridus and Chromis limbata), turkish wrasse (Thalassoma pavo), arrow crab (Stenorhynchus lanceolatus), octopus (Octopus vulgaris), and more.

- Level of difficulty: 2/5

Baixa da Cruz

- Located just outside the harbor of Machico.

- A dive with a minimum depth of 3 meters and a maximum depth of 30 meters.

- It has a very dense population of fish, and so you'll be able to see species such as the white bream (Diplodus sargus), school of bastard grunt (Pomadasys incisus), cow bream (Sarpa salpa), trumpetfish (Aulostomus strigosus), striped barracuda (Sphyraena viridensis), and others, as well as anemones (Telmatactis cricoides), red-backed cleaner shrimp (Lysmata grabhami), arrow crab (Stenorhynchus lanceolatus), murays (Muraena augusti), rays (Dasyatis pastinaca; Gymnura altavela) and a lot of black coral (Antipathes wollastoni).

- Level of dfficulty: 3/5

Parede da Queimada

- Located at the entrance to Machico's bay.

- It starts with a depth of 10 meters and ends at 40 meters.

- It has a sizable fish population and you'll be able to see wonders such as black coral (Antipathes wollastoni), school of bastard grunt (Pomadasys incisus) and cow bream (Sarpa salpa) along the entire wall. On the sandy bottom we can find different species of rays like the common stingray (Dasyatis pastinaca) and the butterfly ray (Gymnura altavela).

- Level of difficulty: 4/5

Reis Magos

- Located next to the bathing area of Reis Magos in Caniço.

- Its minimum depth is 6 meters and the maximum, is 16.

- You'll get to see a lot of marine life such as green fish (Thalassoma pavo), arrow crab (Stenorhynchus lanceolatus), octopus (Octopus vulgaris), black moray eel (Muraena augusti), anemones (Telmatactis cricoides), some Cleaner Shrimp (Lysmata grabhami), flat fish (Bothus podas), and even seahorses (Hippocampus ramulosus)!

- Level of difficulty: 1/5

Arena

- Located inside the Garajau Reserve.

- Minimum depth will be about 7 meters, and maximum, 16.

- In this special diving spot, you'll be able to spot dolphins (Sparisoma cretense), goldfish (Bodianus Scrofa), snapper (Pagrus pagrus), whale (Mycteroperca fusca) and snorers (Pomadasys incisus), and garden eels at the bottom of the dive.

- Level of difficulty: 2/5

Baixa de Santa Catarina

- Located about 500 meters from the coast of Santa Cruz.

- Minimum depth will be 13 meters, and maximum, 40.

- You'll see a wall of black coral where you'll find greenfish (Thalassoma turkey), and chestnuts (Abudefduf luridus and Chromis limbata), among others such as large rays (Taeniura grabata) at the very bottom of the dive.

- Level of difficulty: 4/5

Garajau

- Located, as its name indicates, in the Garaju Reserve.

- Minimum depth depends on the day and where you start, but the maximum depth is 30 meters.

- It is one of the places with the most diversity of marine life, and one of Madeira's most iconic dives, which means you'll be able to see Meros (Ephinephelus marginatus), who will accompany you along the dive, moray eels (Muraena sp.), Large anemones (Telmactatis cricoides), clown shrimp (Thor amboinensis), shoals of chestnuts (Abudefduf luridus, Chromis limbata), kingfish (Coris Julis) and greenfish (Thalassoma turkey), as well as bicuda (Sphyraena viridensis) and charuteiros (Seriola rivoliana).

- Level of difficulty: 2/5

Baixa do Lobo

- Located in the Ponta de São Lourenço.

- The minimum depth is set at 14 meters, and the maximum is 40 meters.

- It's named like this because you have a high possibility of seeing a sea lion (Monachus monachus), but you will probably also get to see shoals of Sargos (Diplodus vulgaris), Salemas (Sarpa salpa) and Roncadores (Pomadasys incisus).

- Level of difficulty: 3/7

Badejeira

- Located at the end of Ponta de São Lourenço, on the east of the island.

- Minimum depth will be 3 meters and maximum will be 40 meters.

- This is a very particular dive and one of the best ones on the island, but also one of the most difficult. You'll be able to see an actual shipwreck, as well as chestnuts (Chromis limbata, Abudefduf luridus), kingfish (Coris julis) and greenfish (Thalassoma turkey).

- Level of difficulty: 5/5

As you can see, a diving experience around Madeira is not only an incredible underwater adventure, but it will also let you get to know different sides of the island from the boat that drives you toward the chosen diving spot. It's an unmissable activity on a visit to Madeira if you are passionate about diving and marine life.

So, don't hesitate and book your amazing scuba dive around Machico, Madeira, and become an explorer of the underwater wonders this place has to offer! You won't regret it.