ACTIVITIES
SHARK WATCHING
Observer and learn about sharks
Small groups of 6 people maximum (3h to 5h activity)
UNDERWATER OR FROM THE BOAT.
PHOTOGRAPHY SEAFARI
Design your own program at sea for the day and enjoy maximum flexibility on activities and schedules.
Book directly with your guide.
Plan your trip directly with Silvio Solleliet-Ferreira your marine biologist guide and shark specialist with over 10 years of experience on sharks and rays conservation, behavior and ecology. French and Portuguese citizen, Silvio speack’s French Portuguese and English. Resident of the Azores for the last 7 years, Silvio dedicated the last 3 years of is academic carrer free-diving with Blue Sharks, Shortfin mako sharks, whale sharks, smooth hammerhead sharks and sicklefin devil rays (mantas) to study their behavior and ecology.
I would like to see the sharks but do not feel comfortable swimming with them, is it possible?
Of course! Come on board of Floripa our boat to see the sharks swimming around the boat. Blue sharks are very curious, they pass very close to the boat and even check out the shinny propeller. Even if you do not enter the water, you will have very close interaction with the animal and have the possibility to get underwater shots with a simple action camera and a selfy stick.
This activity do not require any previous experience or certification.
We set a day and a meeting time at our base in Horta Marina (Faial Island) or in Madalena harbour (Pico island) if you need a pickup to get to Horta. Then Silvio will brief you about the species behaviour and the rules of the activity. We head out (30min to 1h drive) depending on the spot, to start “chuming” (attract the shark). Depending on the animals, they can take 20min to a few hours to show up, while chuming, Silvio will share with you his knowledge about the Sharks around a local organic and fresh snack with drinks. The total duration of the activity is from 2h to 5h.
PRICE 190€ (Condor bank 50€ fee)
Duration 3h (Condor bank 5h)
Included:
Extra water to refill your personnalm bottle. Do not forget your hat, sunblock and sunglasses!
I would like to swim with the sharks but do not feel comfortable holding my breath underwater is it possible ?
Of course! Blue sharks spend long periods of time “finning” which means surface swimming, taking advantage of the sun light to warmup their body. Therefore just floating at the surface you will experience very close interactions under the supervision of our freediving guide and shark specialist.
This activity do not require any previous experience or certification. If you are not confident with your snorkelming skills we recommend you to boog a coastal snorkel with us first, to refresh your basic snorkeling skills such as cleaning your mask with sea water to remove any fog and train your fin kicks to insure the best experience this the sharks. This check dive will be done in a pristine marine protected area where you will enjoy the wonderful colors of the coastal sea life.
We set a day and a meeting time at our base in Horta Marina (Faial Island) or in Madalena harbour(Pico island) if you need a pickup to get to Horta. You choose and try your equipment (suit, mask, fins) if you need some. Then Silvio will brief you about the species behaviour and the rules of the activity. We head out (3min drive) for a check dive (15min) in a pristine coastal area to refresh/learn basic snorkeling skills to insure the best experience with the sharks. Then we take the boat (30min to 1h drive) depending on the spot, to start “chuming” (attract the shark) while chuming, Silvio will share with you his knowledge about the Sharks around a local organic and fresh snack with drinks. Depending on the animals, they can take 20min to a few hours to show up. The dive will last about 30 to 45min and we head back. The total duration of the activity is from 3h to 5h.
PRICE 190€ (Condor bank 50€ fee)
Duration 3h (Condor bank 5h)
Snorkeling equipment included (wetsuit 3mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask and snorkel).
Local fresh snack and drinks included.
I would like to safely freedive in the blue with sharks, is it possible ?
Of course! Free diving allows maximum interaction with the shark while swimming up and down with them. This activity is done under the supervision of a certified freediver and shark specialist and in buddy team to insure safe surface intervals between dives. Our team will set for you a vertical safety line down to 20m maximum for each buddy team to insure maximum safety.
This activity require at liste one freediving certification.
We set a day and a meeting time at our base in Horta Marina (Faial Island) or in Madalena harbour(Pico island) if you need a pickup to get to Horta. You choose and try your equipment (suit, mask, fins) if you need some. Then Silvio will brief you about the species behaviour and the rules of the activity. We head out (30min to 1h drive) depending on the spot, to start “chuming” (attract the shark), while chuming, Silvio will share with you his knowledge about the Sharks around a local organic and fresh snack with drinks. Depending on the animals, they can take 20min to a few hours to show up. The dive will last about 30 to 45min and we head back. The total duration of the activity is from 2h to 5h.
PRICE 190€ (Condor bank 50€ fee)
Duration 3h (Condor bank 5h)
Freediving equipment rental not included (wetsuit 3mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask, snorkel and weight belt) 20€.
Local fresh snack and drinks included.
Less people so you can get closer, safer...
We work with small groups of maximum 6 people on board to insure that marine life is confortable and provide close interactions with animals in maximum safety conditions.
I would like to swim with large schools of mantas with 5 to 60 specimens, is that possible?
Of course! Join us to a day trip at Princess Alice bank, where sickle fin devil rays aggregate in large schools every year. You will also enjoy the presence of huge schools of big amberjacks and other pelagic life (barracudas, tunas etc.). This activity is done under the supervision of a certified freediver and manta specialist and marine biologist, always in buddy team to insure safe surface intervals between dives. Our team will set for you horizontal safety line of 25m and a resting buoy. It does not require any certification to snorkel. If you are not confident with your snorkelming skills we recommend you to boog a coastal snorkel with us first, to refresh your basic snorkeling skills such as cleaning your mask with sea water to remove any fog and train your fin kicks to insure the best experience this the sharks.
The day before the activity, we set a meeting time at our base in Horta Marina (Faial Island) or in Madalena harbour(Pico island) if you need a pickup to get to Horta. You choose and try your equipment (suit, mask, fins) if you need some. Then Silvio will take you by boat (3min drive) for a check dive (30min) in a pristine coastal area to refresh/learn basic snorkeling skills to insure the best experience with the sharks.
To freedive and wear a weight belt you need at liste one free diving certification and a coastal check dive.
PRICE 270€
Duration full day.
Included:
Freediving/snorkeling equipment rental included (wetsuit 3mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask, snorkel and weight belt).
This activity is a FULL day trip 40 nautical miles offshore in a comfortable and fully equipped boat with over 7m long.
RENT A PRIVATE BOAT, FOR A SEAFARI FOR ONLY 499€ A FULL DAY AND INVITE UP TO TWO OF YOUR GUEST.
I would like to enjoy a full day at sea looking for specific marine life and landscapes and/or do my preferred activity, is that possible?
Of course!
Enjoy your best day of your vacations in our SEAfari, where you will be able to see many different resident species of the Ocean of the Azores in a pleasant day only with your family and friends.
This tour is made for Private Small Groups (5 people max) aiming to explore te most of the marine life and the beautiful views from the Ocean to Pico Mountain, Faial and São Jorge, perfect for adventurers photographers and animal lovers.
We include a lunch with freshlocal and organic food and drinks to degustate in a quiet bay our desert beach.
Plan your day with Silvio our marine biologist guide and skipper and and come on board of our boat with your guests to spend a full day at sea (max 7h).
We can take you all around the island to see it from an other perspective and enjoy a few snorkeling destinations.
You would like to plan a private scuba-diving trip it is possible 1 Scubadivers (max 2 tanks of 15L), 2 Scubadivers (max 2 tank of 15L each).
If you are a professional underwater photographer or just want to get a chance to witness special events or special sea life, we offer maximum flexibility regarding schedule and itineraries. You want to leave at 5h30AM to try to witness feeding events and look for bait balls, you would like to focus on finding sea turtles or any other sea life LET´S GO ! You want to see whale sharks (*only from mid August to October) and tunas and swim with them as much as possible, this activity is for you!
WE DO NOT ALLOW FISHING OR SPEAR FISHING DURING THIS ACTIVITY.
PRICES
3 free-divers 590€, 4 free divers 790€, 5 free divers 990€
1 or 2 Scubadivers (max 2 tanks of 15L max ) 790€
Duration full day 7h.
Freediving scubadiving equipment rental included (wetsuit 3mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask, snorkel and weight belt, tanks) Scuba diving suit BCD’s and REGULATORS not included.
We include a lunch with freshlocal and organic food and drinks to degustate in a quiet bay our desert beach.
Enjoy a briefing and debriefing about the activity and the animals, their ecology behavior, threats and conservation needs.
Silvio Solleliet Ferreira (Ms) and Andrea Herguedas (Ms), marine biolo+gist and sharks and mantas specialists will answer all your questions !
I am curious and would like to have a short activity to see the coastal see life of the Azores , is it possible ?
Of course! We take you to a pristine marine protected area 2min away from Horta Marina by boat, where you will enjoy the wonderful colors of the coastal sea life during 45min. This activity do not requiere any certification, we will teach you some basic skills such as mask clearing, hears compensation technics and efficient fin kicks.
PRICE 80€
Duration 2h
Included:
Snorkeling equipment included (wetsuit 5mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask, snorkel and weight belt).
I would like to have a short boat trip to see some of the pretiest geological formation of Pico and Faial from the coast, and underwater, is it possible ?
Of course! We will take you for a snorkeling boat tour of 2h to see the most beautiful volcanic formations of the south of Faial Island :
*Monte de Guia *Ponta Furada *Porto Pim bay *Morro de Castelo branco
PRICE 100€
Duration 3h30
Included:
Snorkeling equipment included (wetsuit 5mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask, snorkel and weight belt).
Jacket and water proof pents included. Do not forget your hat, sunblock and sunglasses!
I would like to the famous capelinhos vulcano from the sea and bellow yhe surface, is it possible ?
Of course! During this activity, we will take you to capelinhos where you will be able to see from very close the youngest piece of land of Europe. Indeed Capelinhos volcano errupted in 1957 in the Ocean and connected to land but the prettiest part of the crater is only visible from the sea. We plan this activity at sunset to enjoy on one side of the boat the red volcanic rocks and the red sunset in the Ocean on the other side.
On the way, enjoy the submerged volcanos from the sea:
*Monte de Guia *Ponta Furada *Morro de Castelo branco
PRICE 150€
Duration: 3h30, meeting 18h00
Included:
Snorkeling equipment included(wetsuit 5mm, hoodie, gloves, fins, mask and snorkel).
Jacket and water proof pents included. Do not forget your hat, sunblock and sunglasses!