Reef
down to 16 m
Reis Magos
Sheltered, shallow rocky dive from 6 to 16 m, recommended for night dives and one of the few known places to see seahorses.
- Open Water
- Seahorses
Experienced≤40 m
Corveta Afonso Cerqueira
Dive site in Madeira, Portugal
85 m former warship sunk in 2018 south of Cabo Girão, easily reached by boat, with groupers and anemones.
- Max depth
- 33 m
- Level
- Experienced
- Best months
- Sep–Oct
- Entry
- By boat
- Current
- Mild
The story
The 85 m corvette Afonso Cerqueira (F488), a former warship, was sunk on 4 September 2018 south of Cabo Girão to become a dive site.
Source: duikersgids.nl
The dive
A wreck and artificial reef dive from a boat.
Who it's for
Experienced≤40 mSource: duikersgids.nl
Recommended minimum: Experienced (Deep Specialty, N3).
- DepthThe usual dive goes deeper than lower certifications allow.
- OverheadPart of the dive is under a ceiling, without a direct way up.
- Overhead environment: only go inside with the matching training.
Conditions
- Dive type
- Wreck, Artificial reef
- Environment
- Wreck penetration
- Water
- Sea water
What you might see
- Groupers
- Anemones
Season in Madeira
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Good
- Possible
- Closed
- Not documented yet
Best months: Sep–Oct.
Source: divernet.comWhere is Madeira?
The point shows the Madeira area, not the exact dive site.
More dives in Madeira
Wall
down to 40 m
Baixa de Santa Catarina
Black-coral wall about 500 m offshore, from 13 to 40 m, with pelagics and large rays on the sand.
- Advanced
- Rays
Reef
down to 24 m
Arena
Site with its top at 7 m and bottom at 16 m, its surrounding sand home to hundreds of garden eels.
- Advanced
- Garden eels
down to 40 m
Badejeira
Reef outside the lighthouse, from 3 to 40 m, with the chance of large pelagics.
- Experienced
- Schooling pelagics
Reef
down to 18 m
Baixa do Carneiro (Lido)
Funchal home reef about 25 m from the Lido sea stairs, from 5 to 18 m, for all levels of divers.
- Open Water
Wreck
down to 32 m
Bowbelle
The dredger Bowbelle lies upright and reasonably intact off Ponta do Sol, to a max depth of 32 m.
- Experienced
About this page
Values marked “Estimated” come from our original catalogue and are being checked against published sources one by one. Sourced values link to where they come from. Conditions change with the season, the weather and the tide: confirm with a local dive centre before you dive.