Ilhéu de Vila Franca

Ilhéu de Vila Franca

The protected area of the Vila Franca do Campo Islet is located directly opposite the town after which it is named, less than 500 metres from shore. It offers several excellent dives that are suitable for all experience levels, as well as lots of snorkelling opportunities. Inside the islet you will find a large bay created by the crater of an extinct volcano that rose from the sea more than four thousand years. This is another great spot for snorkelling.

The islet offers various diving options along the major cracks and canyons, which mean you can tailor your dive depending on the direction of the waves. The area is protected, and there is an abundance of Azores chromis (Chromis limbata), ornate wrasses (Thalassoma pavo), blacktail combers (Serranus atricauda), parrotfish (Sparisoma cretense), ballan wrasses (Labrus bergylta), barred hogfish, moray eels, common octopuses (Octopus vulgaris) and dusky groupers (Epinephelus marginatus). On the sandy seafloor you are likely to spot common stingrays (Dasyatis pastinaca), and in the water column there are often white trevallies (Pseudocaranx dentex), yellowmouth barracudas (Sphyraena viridensis), Almaco jacks (Seriola rivoliana) and bluefish. (Pomatomus saltator).