Porto Santo Sub - Scuba & Freedive Center
Estrada Jorge de Freitas - Penedo, Porto Santo - Madeira, 9400-240 Porto Santo, Portugal, Porto Santo, Porto Santo, PRT
Over het Centrum
Porto Santo Sub - Scuba & Freedive Center, located in Porto Santo Island, Portugal, is an SSI-certified dive and freedive center. Since 2001, it has been dedicated to providing unique diving experiences in the deep blue waters of the Atlantic. The center offers a comprehensive range of courses, including freediving, snorkeling, and specialty courses like Wreck Diver, catering to both beginners and experienced divers.
Porto Santo Sub's facilities are designed for client convenience, featuring lockers, a bar, accommodation, a swimming pool, equipment rental, a dive shop, air fills (nitrox), and options for shore diving and night diving. They also provide airport transfer services, making it easier for visitors to reach this idyllic island.
The philosophy at Porto Santo Sub emphasizes personalized care and small group settings to ensure relaxed and safe dives. With a team passionate about the aquatic world, the center is committed to showcasing the wonders of the underwater realm, promising an unforgettable experience. The center also promotes watersports such as Stand Up Paddling and Kayaking in waters sheltered from north winds, which are perfect for beginners.
Beschikbare Cursussen
9 cursosCurso Wreck Diver
Porto Santo Sub's Wreck Dive specialty runs over 2 dives and costs €200. Wrecks are specifically highlighted by guests as the standout sites around Porto Santo — reviewers call them the best spots the centre visits, and the team goes out to them daily. Doing the specialty here means training on the actual wrecks that the centre knows in detail, not on training wrecks added as an afterthought. José Ricardo and the instructors have logged thousands of dives around Porto Santo, and wreck diving is a regular part of the operation. The specialty builds the skills to plan and conduct wreck dives more independently, which is directly applicable if you're returning to dive these same sites as a certified wreck diver on subsequent visits.
Open Water Diver
The SSI Open Water Diver at Porto Santo Sub certifies you to 18 m and includes 2–3 theoretical sessions, confined water practice and open water dives in the Atlantic around Porto Santo. The island's waters are the actual training ground — not a pool, not a lake. You're learning in the same environment where the centre runs its guided boat dives daily. The programme is structured for small groups, with flexible scheduling and individual tuition. The centre commits to unlimited water time during training, which matters when learning in open water where conditions vary. Emanuel de Almada, described as having infinite patience, is one of the instructors running this course. Dive trips run morning and afternoon by RIB. The Open Water certification is the standard entry point for the rest of the centre's programme — from specialities like wreck, deep and night diving to more advanced technical and rebreather routes. The price of €450 includes all dive centre equipment.
Dive Master
The SSI Dive Master at Porto Santo Sub is the first professional level certification. The centre has been running since 2001 and operates year-round, giving Dive Master candidates exposure to the full range of conditions the Atlantic around Porto Santo produces across seasons — not just calm summer diving. The team includes instructors who have been diving since 1996 with thousands of logged dives around the island. Training under José Ricardo or Emanuel de Almada means learning how to read local sites and manage guests in an environment the instructors know in detail. The centre runs morning and afternoon trips by RIB with real guests, giving candidates direct exposure to how a working dive centre operates. The price of €600 covers the Dive Master programme. Contact the centre for scheduling, as the programme length varies with individual progression.
Basic Diver
The Basic Diver programme at Porto Santo Sub runs over a theory class, a confined water session at sea, and two open water dives to a maximum of 12 m. The certification is valid for 6 months and allows diving up to 12 m always guided by an SSI instructor, giving new divers a structured entry point without committing to a full Open Water course immediately. All sessions are run by SSI instructors, including Emanuel de Almada and Ana Catarina Caria, both marine biologists — so the underwater time isn't just skills practice; there's genuine knowledge behind what they point out. Groups stay small, keeping the experience personal. Completing the Basic Diver also gives you a discount on registration for the Open Water Diver or Scuba Diver course if you decide to continue. The programme includes full dive gear, the SSI digital manual, and the digital SSI Basic Diver international recognition card.
Try Dive at Sea
The try dive runs from shore into the waters around Porto Santo, reaching a maximum of 6 m. Past participants have reported seeing plenty of fish at that depth without needing to go further out by boat. Joana and Ricardo handle the session with individual attention — one reviewer noted being the only student in the water, with two instructors dedicated entirely to them. The session is straightforward: brief preparation on land, then into the sea. No pool, no confined tank — you're diving in the Atlantic from your first breath underwater. At 6 m the visibility is clear enough to make it a genuine introduction to what diving actually feels like rather than a controlled pool exercise. The minimum age is 10. Anyone with a history of epilepsy or asthma will need a medical authorisation before participating. The price is €80 and covers the shore entry experience.
Night Dive
The Night Dive specialty at Porto Santo Sub runs over 2 dives and costs €200. The centre already adds a €10 supplement for night dives on its standard guided dive pricing, and offers the specialty as a certification option for divers who want to formalise the skill. Porto Santo's waters are the actual environment for these dives — Atlantic conditions, the same sites the centre works daily. The centre is open all year, which means night diving is possible outside the busy summer season when you may have more flexibility on scheduling. A torch is available for rent at €10/day if you need one.
Try Freediving
Porto Santo Sub offers SSI freediving programmes in the same sheltered Atlantic waters they use for scuba. The Try Freediving session is the entry point — equipment included in the €60 price — giving beginners a first experience of breath-hold diving without committing to a full certification course. The bay location provides calm conditions for first attempts, particularly for those with no breath-hold experience. The centre's snorkelling guides already know the reef sites close to the shop, so even a shallow freediving session covers ground worth exploring. For those who want to continue, the Basic Freediver and Freediver certification courses are available as next steps.
SCR XR Technical
Porto Santo Sub runs the SSI SCR Diving programme on the Mares Horizon Semi-Closed Rebreather, certifying divers to plan and conduct no-decompression dives to 30 m with the SCR unit. The Mares Horizon is the platform used throughout the programme — from confined water sessions through to the 4 open water dives required for certification. Prerequisites are meaningful: 24 logged dives, an Enriched Air Nitrox specialty, and a Deep Diving specialty. The programme runs over 7 theoretical/configuration sessions, 2 confined water sessions and 4 open water dives, estimated at 24–30 hours total. José Ricardo and the team have been operating in Porto Santo's Atlantic waters long enough to know where conditions are stable enough for rebreather training dives. The Mares Horizon SCR unit is available for rent as part of training at €150 for the course period. Nitrox fills and other consumables are charged separately. Minimum age is 18.
SSI SCR Extended Range (Mares Horizon XR)
The SSI SCR Extended Range programme takes the Mares Horizon SCR into decompression diving territory, certifying divers to conduct deco dives with a cumulative decompression time of up to 25 minutes to a maximum depth of 40 m, using nitrox mixes. This is the technical level of the rebreather programme at Porto Santo Sub, sitting above the standard SCR Diving certification. The programme requires the same prerequisites as the SCR Diving course: 24 logged dives, Enriched Air Nitrox 40, and Deep Diving specialty. It runs over 8 theoretical/configuration sessions, 2 confined water sessions and 6 open water dives, taking an estimated 32–40 hours. The Mares Horizon unit rental for the XR course is €200, with consumables charged additionally. For divers already trained in extended range open circuit, this programme provides a parallel rebreather pathway using equipment that the centre operates in Porto Santo's Atlantic conditions. Minimum age is 18.
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Frequently asked
What people ask before booking
Yes. The dive centre picks you up from your hotel for diving trips.
They run two boat trips daily — one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
SSI across all programmes, from Basic Diver to SCR rebreather courses.
10 years old for Try Dive and Basic Diver. Rebreather courses require a minimum age of 18.
Yes. Nitrox fills are available on site. A single nitrox fill costs €6; a 10-dive nitrox pack costs €50.
Yes. Full equipment package (suit, BCD, regulator, mask, fins, boots) is €25/day. Individual items are also rented separately. A GoPro 4 is available for rent as well.
Yes. They run SSI SCR courses on the Mares Horizon SCR, from a Try SCR introductory session up to the SCR Extended Range certification to 40 m.
Yes, Porto Santo Sub operates all year round. Contact them to schedule dives outside of peak season.
How to get there
Estrada Jorge de Freitas - Penedo, Porto Santo - Madeira, 9400-240 Porto Santo, Portugal, Porto Santo, Porto Santo, PRT