This small hotel is a great base for all your diving needs on the island of Santa Maria, where encounters with pelagic species are frequent.
Located a short distance from the airport, the Santa Maria offers tranquil surroundings. Its 50 rooms are equipped with air-conditioning, en suite bathroom and a terrace overlooking the gardens. Facilities include a restaurant, bar, swimming pool, tennis court and games room. Complimentary WiFi internet access is available in public areas.
Based at the Hotel Colombo, Haliotis Santa Maria operates with a team of experienced dive professionals who provide daily dive excursions around the island's impressive underwater landscape. The centre is PADI affiliated and offers a comprehensive range of diving services including a full complement of Aqualung rental equipment and dive courses. Dedicated facilities include separate male and female changing rooms with hot water showers, equipment storage, a technical zone, and comfortable areas for pre- and post-dive briefings.
Dive sites ranging from sheltered coastal locations just minutes from the marina, to offshore reserves located up to 30 nautical miles from shore. The dive season runs from June through to October, when water temperatures range between 19°C and 24°C, and visibility typically varies from 15 to 50 metres. Around the island, approximately 55 dive sites offer a diverse underwater terrain of caves, canyons, volcanic walls and vibrant reefs, catering to divers of all experience levels whilst advanced divers can explore the deeper pinnacles and blue water sites.
The exceptional oceanic currents around Santa Maria create opportunities for encounters with pelagic species, with the famous Baixa do Ambrósio site offering one of the Atlantic's most reliable mobula ray aggregations during the summer months. Here, divers descend to a mooring line suspended in the blue water, where schools of sicklefin devil rays (Mobula tarapacana) gather to feed in the current, sometimes accompanied by barracuda, tuna and other pelagic species. The Formigas & Dollabarat marine reserves, whilst requiring longer boat journeys, reward divers with pristine offshore visibility and frequent sightings of manta rays, whale sharks, dusky groupers and various shark species.
Surface intervals are typically taken aboard the dive boats, with snacks and refreshments provided, whilst the longer trips to the offshore reserves allow for spectacular marine mammal sightings during the journey. Nitrox is available.
The 'Sun Island' is warmer, flatter and drier than the others in the archipelago. It offers local dive sites to suit all levels, as well as blue water diving with devil rays at Baixa do Ambrósio and plenty of pelagic encounters in the natural reserve of Formigas and Dollabarat. Find Out More about {acc:title}
