Tritón Diving Llafranc
Family-owned dive center in Llafranc since 1979, with 4.9/5 on 717 Google reviews, covering 11 sites across two Costa Brava dive areas.
SSI5 services5 languages
Diving in Palamós
Central Costa Brava hub where a tug wreck, gorgonian pinnacles and a 16-islet archipelago sit a short boat run from one port, with no reserve permit.
Last updated October 2026
Overview
Palamós works as a boat-dive base: a wreck about five minutes from the marina, gorgonian pinnacles some 20 minutes north-east, and an archipelago 4.8 km offshore. The wreck is the Boreas, a 40 m former German-navy tug that was seized in a drug case and sunk off Palamós to make a dive site. Entry is around 22 m at the bow and the propeller lies at about 32 m. The hold, engine room, kitchen and a captain's cabin with a bathtub are what draw divers inside, and that is wreck-training territory.
The Ullastres give the area its wall diving. Three pinnacles rise off Llafranc, and the deepest, Ullastres III, has walls full of gorgonians. Barracuda, dentex and bream circle the rock, sunfish and John Dory come through in season, and nudibranchs and octopus work the crevices. The Illes Formigues, 16 islets with canyons, coral rock and more gorgonian walls, hold groupers, seahorses and octopus. A fishing-ban nature reserve there was planned for 2009 and halted for budget reasons, and no reserve has been established.
Planning your visit
Diving here needs no permit and carries no daily quota, and centres' price lists show no reserve fee. Palamós Dive Center, Gidive and H2O Diving Center work from Port Esportiu Marina Palamós. Gidive's team speaks Spanish, Catalan, English and French, and H2O is open every day of the year. Anemone Diving Center is under 100 m from La Fosca beach, not at the marina, and runs beach and boat dives. Fosca Divers is reported permanently closed.
Centres run all year. Surface water averages about 13 C in February and 23 C in August, and it is colder below the summer thermocline, so choose your exposure suit for the deeper figure. The Ullastres and the Formigues are shared with centres from other ports, so expect to meet their boats. Choose by level: Espigó and the Morro del Vedell cove for training, the Formigues and Llosa de Palamós to begin boat diving, the Boreas once you are advanced, and La Roca del Món only at advanced level. A single boat dive with cylinder and weights lists at 41 to 42 EUR in 2026, and Palamós Dive Center adds 8 EUR for nitrox.
Geology & underwater terrain
Submerged pinnacles (the Ullastres, Roca del Món), canyons at the Formigues and Tamariu, a shallow promontory at Llosa de Palamós and posidonia meadows between the hard structures.
Photos
Videos
Dive sites in Palamós
The diving here splits into 3 zones:
- Port and the shelf
- — The Boreas wreck about five minutes by boat from the marina, Llosa de Palamós close to port, and shallow training dives at Espigó and the Morro del Vedell cove.
- The Ullastres
- — Three pinnacles about 20 minutes by boat north-east, off Llafranc, with gorgonian walls on the deepest of them.
- Illes Formigues
- — A 16-islet archipelago 4.8 km from the port, with canyons, coral rock and gorgonian walls.
Port and the shelf
El Boreas wreckTop dive
Recently certified Advanced divers running their first wreck or first 30 m dive on the Costa Brava
Advanced32mBoatWreckArtificial reef
Llosa de PalamósTop dive
All-level divers wanting Palamós' shortest boat ride and a multilevel route from training shallows to a small wreck
Easy38mBoatReefPinnacle
Cala Margarida
Unhurried macro dive among small canyons, by boat or from the old ramp
Easy25mBoat & shoreReefSlope
The Ullastres
Ullastres IITop dive
Mixed-certification groups wanting one pinnacle that lets OW divers stay shallow on the south slope while AOW divers work the east-and-north gorgonian face
Moderate8–32mTech to 42mBoatPinnacleWall
Ullastres IIITop dive
AOW and deeper-experience divers who want the densest gorgonian wall of the Ullastres trio with depth and open-sea exposure
Advanced25–40mTech to 55mBoatPinnacleWall
Ullastres I
Newer Open Water divers and macro photographers wanting a sheltered offshore pinnacle with patient crevice exploration
Easy32mBoatPinnacleWall
More dive sites
Roca Roja
Multilevel divers who want barracuda encounters at the top and gorgonian walls at the bottom in a single dive
Moderate32mBoatReefPinnacleWall
El Tabal
Gorgonian wall and holed coralligenous slope on one circuit of a deep rock
Advanced40mBoatPinnacleWall
Pecio del Cairo
AOW divers running the Llosa multilevel and wanting a small second wreck after Boreas
Advanced34mBoatWreck
Roca del Món
Advanced divers chasing gorgonian walls and open-water fish schools on a serious depth profile with an optional eco-guided route for all certification levels
Advanced22–30mTech to 42mBoatPinnacle
Tamariu House Riff
Macro photographers and beginners seeking nudibranch diversity and seahorse encounters in a calm, shallow shore dive
Easy15mShoreReefSandy bottom
Marine life
Dive Centers
View allBook online or contact a centre that dives this area.
Anemone Diving Center
PADI, SSI, and CMAS center at Port Marina Palamós with year-round boat dives, small groups, and full MARES equipment. SSI Instructor Training Center.
PADI / SSI / CMAS5 services5 languages
Brava Divers
SSI dive school in Sant Antoni de Calonge on the Costa Brava, built around small-group try dives, Open Water, and specialty courses.
SSI3 services4 languages
Diversub
Small SSI center on the Cala Gogo beachfront near Sant Antoni de Calonge, capping discover dives at two and courses at four, with the boat from Palamos.
SSI6 services4 languages
Gidive Center Palamós
PADI 5-Star IDC Center at Port Marina Palamós with technical, recreational, and freediving programs and daily boat trips to Ullastres and the Boreas wreck.
PADI / SSI7 services4 languages
H2O Diving Center
SSI center at Port Marina Palamós, open every day of the year, with the 30-pax MANSABA boat covering Boreas, Ullastres, and Illes Formigues.
SSI9 services4 languages
Palamos Dive Center
Dive center at Port Marina Palamós, 20+ years running, with a full published price list and DPV rental under owner Jordi.
6 services4 languages
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Next available dives
View all 69 divesUpcoming trips published by dive centres in this area.
- Saturday, October 17
- 09:00Palamos Dive Center
- 09:00Gidive Center Palamós · Ullastres II
- 11:30Palamos Dive Center
- 12:30Tritón Diving Llafranc · El pinell l i ll
- Sunday, October 18
- 09:00Palamos Dive Center
- 09:00Gidive Center Palamós · Formigues / Gorgònies
- 11:00Tritón Diving Llafranc · Ullastres II
- 11:30Palamos Dive Center
Availability is read from each centre's public calendar and refreshed daily. Last checked October 16. Confirm with the centre before travelling.
When to dive
- Best season
- Year-round; warmest water July to September
- Water temperature
- About 13 C at the surface in February to 23 C in August
Centres run all year. Surface readings overstate what you dive in: below the summer thermocline the water is colder, so plan exposure on the deeper figure.
Safety considerations
What can go wrong here, and what divers do about it. Conditions change - take the briefing from the operator on the day.
- Depth: Ullastres III bottoms at 54 m on operator figures, past recreational limits, and Roca del Món is for advanced divers only.Plan the dive to your certification depth and leave the deep walls to divers trained for them.
- Conditions: One diver's 2015 account describes the Boreas as a direct descent down a line to 32 m and not suited to inexperienced divers.Ask the centre how the descent is run, and hold the wreck for Advanced Open Water experience.
- Surface and boat traffic: The Boreas carries heavy diver traffic in summer, and Sundays and the first departure are the busiest slots.Book a weekday or a later slot and brief the dive with your guide.
Rules and permits
Catalonia
- Can I dive here?
- Dive centres in Catalonia must require insurance from each diver and be able to offer it to anyone without; a minor on a centre's dives or courses needs a parent's or guardian's express authorisation.
- When not?
- A dive centre must keep you out of the water if the dive would be clearly dangerous for you.
Decree on dive centresGeneralitat page for dive centresChecked: Oct 2026
National rules also apply: Rules and permits in Spain
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Boreas a dive for a newly qualified diver?▾
The operator that runs it rates the Boreas advanced. The bow entry sits around 22 m and the propeller at about 32 m, and one diver's account describes a direct descent down a line to that depth and advises against it for inexperienced divers. The interior, with the hold, engine room, kitchen and captain's cabin, is a job for divers with wreck training. A newly qualified diver is better placed at the Formigues or Llosa first.
Who was the Boreas, and when was it sunk?▾
Divers' accounts and the operator agree on the outline: a Second World War German-navy tug, later seized in a drug-trafficking case and sunk off Palamós as a dive site. Only the operator gives a year, 1989, and the earlier name Pellworm, so treat both as that one voice.
Is Illes Formigues a marine reserve?▾
No. A fishing-ban nature reserve around the islands was planned for 2009 and halted for budget reasons, and no reserve has been established there. The islands are dived under the centre's own briefing and no special regime.
Where do the centres launch from, and where do I park?▾
Palamós Dive Center, Gidive and H2O Diving Center work from the marina quay, where Palamós Dive Center includes three free hours of parking with boat dives. Anemone Diving Center is based under 100 m from La Fosca beach, away from the marina, and offers beach and boat dives. Fosca Divers is reported permanently closed.
Is the town called Palamós or Palamós i Sant Joan?▾
Both appear. In a town-hall consultation on 24 November 2025 about 54 percent of roughly 1,650 voters chose to add Sant Joan to the municipal name, and press now uses Palamós i Sant Joan. Dive centres and sites keep the name Palamós.
Where does a newly certified diver start?▾
Espigó de Palamós is a training dive with a maximum of 18 m, and the Morro del Vedell cove is used for training. The operator rates the Illes Formigues, with depths of 4 to 30 m, as suitable for all levels, and Llosa de Palamós as basic.
Can you dive the Boreas at night?▾
Organised night dives on the Boreas ran from Palamós in May 2010. Palamós Dive Center lists a 9 EUR night-dive supplement, so ask the centre whether a night dive is scheduled for your dates.
Also known as: Palamos, Palamós i Sant Joan
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