Portimão & Benagil - Dive Sites

OLIVEIRA e CARMO - OCEAN REVIVAL Wreck (11 - 30 meters)


This newly sunk Ship has already got alot of small schooling fish all over!! This site is a easy Wreck to dive for all levels from Open Water as it starts at 11m and is 20m on the deck of the boat (with alot to see without going inside if you don´t like), although it is easy to go deeper and would get the most out of this dive if you was Advanced or with Wreck Specialty for going completely inside. Come explore the Wheel house and be Captain at the Wheel of the ship, or sit on the Captains Chair!!

Launched: February 5th 1975
Effective entry date to the Armed Forces: October 28th 1975. At the ceremony for the ship's arrival in Lisbon, on November 16 h, in addition to the presence of individuals from the Spanish Navy, Commanding Officers ECN Pinto Vilela (from the Directorate of Shipbuilding) and Cunha Freitas (naval attaché to the Portuguese Embassy in Madrid).

Retired: 1999 Deactivated: 2000 Disarmed: March 13th 2002 Scrapped: Nov 1st 2007
Years of Service: 24 NATO Designation: F 487 Crew: 107 crewmembers Length: 85 meters

Construction: Between 1972-1975 in the Empresa Nacional Bazan shipyards in Cartagena.

4 Ships: "Baptista de Andrade", "João Roby", "Afonso Cerqueira" and "Oliveira e Carmo"; Its ships, due to being equipped for anti-submarine combat and having radars and torpedoes available to them, are more than simple corvettes, they are light frigates. Designed for their presence in the Portuguese Colonial War, the resolution of those conflicts left these ships without a purpose, and they were then put to use as oceanic escort ships under the scope of NATO, and later on, they were disarmed with a reduced level of weaponry, as patrol ships in the exclusive Portuguese economic zone. This type of ship was also sold to Spain, Morocco and Egypt.

Sunk: 30th October 2012


HERMENEGILDO CAPELO - OCEAN REVIVAL Wreck (11 - 32 meters)


This ship was sunk on 15th June 2013 and has already got alot of small schooling fish all over!! This site is a easy Wreck to dive for all levels from Open Water as it starts at 11m and is 20/22m on the deck of the boat (with alot to see without going inside if you don´t like, they have left alot more on this ship like the guns etc..), although it is easy to go deeper and would get the most out of this dive if you was Advanced or with Wreck Specialty for going completely inside. Come explore the Wheel house and be Captain at the Wheel of the ship, or sit on the Captains Chair / or the Guns!!

Launched: November 29th 1966
Effective entry date to the Armed Forces: April 26th 1968
Retired: 2004 Disarmed: 1st July 2005
Years of Service: 37 NATO Designation: F 481 Crew: 164 crewmembers Length: 102.7 meters
Construction: Started in 1966 at the Compagnie des Ateliers et Forges de la Loire shipyard in Nantes
Class: “João Belo”; The “Comandante Hermenegildo Capelo” frigate is the second frigate in a group of four ships ordered in 1964 by the Portuguese Navy: “João Belo”, “Hermenegildo Capelo”, “Roberto Ivens” and “Sacadura Cabral”.
Characteristics:
Displacement: 2,700t; Length: 102.7m; Maximum Breadth: 11.7m; Hull: 4.4m; Maximum Speed: 23.5 knots; Autonomy: 7,500 miles (15 knots).
From the point when it was brought into effective service for the Portuguese Navy on April 26th 1968, it took part in several missions in Africa, in various national and international exercises, search and rescue missions and inspection of the exclusive economic zone. It also undertook voyages for the instruction of naval college trainees. In1980s there was the installation of ASW (Anti Submarine Warfare) equipment.
Sunk: 15th June 2013


Almeida Carvalho – Ocean Revival Wreck (15 – 30 meters)


Now it is sunk the last of the 4 wrecks in September 2013, you can also go and have a game of football during your dive!! JThis site is a easy Wreck to dive for all levels from Open Water as it starts at 15m and is 18-20m on the deck of the boat (with alot to see without going inside if you don´t like), although it is easy to go deeper and would get the most out of this dive if you was Advanced or with Wreck Specialty for going completely inside. Come explore the Wheel house and be Captain at the Wheel of the ship!

Launched: July 30th 1964 The Navy Minister, the Chief of the EMA and Superintendents from the Personnel and Materials Services attended the ceremony, among other general and superior officials, local civil and military authorities.

Taken into active Armed Forces service: January 21st, 1972

Disarmed: December 4th 2002 Scrapped: November 15th 2006
Years of Service: 34 NATO Designation: A 527 Crew: 47 crewmembers

Type: Hydrographical Ship

Construction: Started in 1961 and concluded in 1968.

It entered into service for the US Navy in January 1969, named "Kellar". It was later acquired by Portugal and incorporated into the fleet of the Armed Forces on January 21st 1972, and it entered Lisbon for the first time on March 12th 1972 and undertook the activities of the Hydrographical Institute.
In 1981 it undertook a cruise of almost two months in the Republic of Cape Verde and in 1984 it docked in the Republic of Guinea-Bissau to carry out several studies, specifically on the Cacheu river.
Particular characteristics of the ship is that it had Reinforced hull for navigation in icy seas, Air conditioning system for any type of climate and Scope for the embarkation and accommodation of a technical/research team.

Sunk: September 2013


ZAMBEZE - OCEAN REVIVAL Wreck (15 - 26 meters)


Launched: October 31st 1971. The Navy Minister, the Chief of the EMA and Superintendents from the Personnel and Materials Services attended the ceremony, among other general and superior officials, local civil and military authorities.
Effective entry date to the Armed Forces: July 20th 1972 The act that made this official was overseen by Director of Shipbuilding, Commodore Rogério de Oliveira, various Armed Forces officials and, representing Mondego Shipyards, Dr. Álvaro Malafaia and Engineer Joaquim Bessa.
retired: September 2003 Disarmed: September 25th 1975
Scrapped: November 15th 2006 Years of Service: 31
NATO Designation: P 1147 Crew: 33 crewmembers
Construction: Mondego Shipyards, Figueira da Foz.
Class: patrol ship

10 Ships: "Cacine", "Cunene ", "Mandovi", "Rovuma", "Cuanza", "Geba", "Zaire", "Zambeze", "Limpopo", "Save"; Built for coastal and river patrol operations in Africa; All the ships of this class were named after African and Indian rivers from former Portuguese colonies; The ships are the next technological step up from LFGs - Large Inspection Ships of the "Argos" class, built between 1964 and 1965.

Sunk: 30th October 2012

 


PRAIA DO PINTADINHO (10 meters)

This is a beautiful and easy beach dive, along the coast situated in a protected bay with a cliff on one side of the beach and a wall on the other side. A short swim and you are in and amongst the rocks. They are all together, from ½ meter to 3 – 4 meters high. You can follow around the cliff where it will get deeper and the rocks bigger or stay within the beach area where there is much life. As you go around the corner look above to see many shoals of fish. Look under and between the rocks to find Octopus, crabs, pipe fish, cuttlefish and much more.


PRAIA DOS CANEIROS (10 meters)


This dive site is over a large area, there is a huge rock that sits above the sea covered with many birds (Birds Rock). As you swim towards it and over rock formations that are 2 meters high you will see lots of blennies and some octopus. Look under the overhangs and rocks close by. There are also other large rock formations, 4- 5 meters high as you go south away from the main area. Look out for some Large Octopus, spider crabs, Nudibranch, small fish like sea bream and damsel fish. This is also very nice for a night dive.


SMUGGLERS COVE (5–12 meters)


If you don’t know this beach you must come! If you can find it!! You must walk through the cliff to get to the beach which is located in a cove. Look in front you will see a large rock coming out of the water, where there are many fish around you and the small rocks. There is also a small wall dive with many overhangs but when you swim to the south side of this there are many rocks 4-5 meters high in a large area to look around. You can find cuttlefish, octopus, sometimes rays, many bream, damsel fish and different nudibranch.





We have more dive sites to choose from in this area!

Portimão - Dive Sites

  • Portimão

    37°08'23.8"N 8°31'56.9"W

  • Benagil

    37°05'14.6"N 8°25'34.9"W

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