Haliotis - Santa Maria Diving Center

Haliotis – Santa Maria Diving Center sits on Santa Maria Island in the Azores, Portugal, a PADI Dive Center staffed by 2 PADI instructors. What draws divers here is the blue water — some call it the most beautiful in the world — with visibility that sometimes reaches 50 meters, alongside mobulas and pelagic fish. The island's mascot is the Mobula tarapacana.

Dive sites and courses

Around Santa Maria you'll find caves, canyons, walls and reefs, and encounters with big oceanic species are always possible, even at the closer sites. The center runs a full slate of PADI courses, from the beginner PADI Open Water Diver and PADI Scuba Diver through Advanced Open Water Diver, Enriched Air Diver (NITROX), Peak Performance Buoyancy and a ReActivate refresher.

Facilities include male and female changing rooms, hot showers with towels, a rental zone, a small shop, an onsite training pool and classroom. A custom-designed dive boat and staff speaking English, Spanish, French and Portuguese make it a welcoming base for divers of every level.