Haliotis Madeira
PADI dive centre at Hotel Dom Pedro Baía, Machico, part of the six-base Haliotis chain, diving nine named sites plus Desertas Islands day trips.
Last updated September 2026
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About
Haliotis Madeira runs from Hotel Dom Pedro Baía on Machico's coast, near Madeira Airport. It's the Madeira base of Haliotis, a Portuguese PADI chain with five other bases: Peniche and Sesimbra on the mainland, Faial and Santa Maria in the Azores, and São Vicente in Cabo Verde. The chain says it was founded in 2004 and has certified more than 15,000 students since, a chain-wide figure, not one specific to Machico. The Madeira base is a PADI Partner Center, licensed under Alvará de Animação Turística 9/2009 and Maritime Tourism Operator License No. 17, and affiliated with IFCN, the body governing Madeira's protected diving areas.
Two named staff lead the base: Joana Câmara, a PADI instructor and local skipper, and Rita Gonçalves, a PADI divemaster and local skipper; reviews also name further guides working trips, including Victor, Mario, Pedro and Dulce, alongside the two leaders.
Diving here covers nine named sites from 16 to 40 metres, reached by boat or from shore, with outings running from single and double boat dives to night dives. Sites listed by the centre include a shallow, beginner-friendly stretch at Reis Magos with seahorse sightings and night diving, a horizontal tunnel inside the Garajau Reserve, and several deeper wall dives worked by black coral. The centre also sells a standing Desertas Islands day trip, about an hour out by boat, for the nature reserve's monk seal colony; other Madeira operators run the same trip too.
What divers say
Hygiene stands out in reviews of Haliotis Madeira more than it does for most dive centres: one reviewer describes disinfection and cleaning routines well beyond anything else they had encountered at a dive operation, alongside clean restrooms, hot showers and changing cabins. Staff come next: Joana and Rita are named repeatedly across years of reviews for organising courses and trips, sometimes for guests booking from abroad, and further guides (Victor, Mario, Pedro, Dulce) are credited on specific outings. The boat itself, a rigid-hulled inflatable, gets a mention for being well equipped, and reviewers describe a relaxed but guided pace that still leaves room for independent divers to enjoy the dive their own way. The one recurring constructive note, from an otherwise five-star review, flags guided dives running under 45 minutes and one week without nudibranch sightings; beyond that pair, reviewers report no other complaint.
Dive Sites (3)
Facilities
Pricing
We do our best to show current pricing, but rates may change without notice. Last verified September 2026. Always confirm the latest prices on Haliotis Madeira's official website before booking.
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Courses
Other Services
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Haliotis Madeira's deepest sites match what an Advanced Open Water diver is trained for?▾
Not exactly. The centre's own site lists four sites at a 40-metre maximum depth (Parede da Queimada, Baixa de Santa Catarina, Baixa do Lobo and a wreck it calls Badejeira) and labels all four 'PADI AOWD level'. PADI's Advanced Open Water course itself trains to 30 metres; 40 metres is the separate Deep Diver specialty limit. Divers planning one of these four on an AOWD certification alone, without the Deep specialty or an equivalent, should check with the centre what depth their group is actually taken to.
What does the Desertas Islands day trip involve?▾
It's a boat trip of about an hour each way to the Desertas Islands, a nature reserve and the location of Madeira's monk seal colony. Haliotis sells it as a standing, bookable product, not a one-off charter, and it is not exclusive to this centre; other operators on the island run trips there too.
Was Haliotis Madeira previously known under a different name?▾
Possibly. Old review-listing web addresses for the same business carry the name 'Anthia Diving Center', pointing to the business trading under that name before the current one. That isn't settled fact, so treat it as a likely earlier name rather than a confirmed one.
How long do guided dives with Haliotis Madeira typically run?▾
One detailed 2026 review describes dives capped around 45 minutes, often surfacing with well over 100 bar still in the tank, which points to a pace the guide sets, not one air consumption forces. That is a single account, not a published house policy, so treat it as one diver's experience, not a guarantee.
Can I book online with Haliotis Madeira, or only by phone or email?▾
Phone and email are the two contact routes listed; there is no online booking widget. If you want written confirmation before travelling, email is the more reliable of the two.
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