Scuba Diving at Princess Alice Bank

Princess Alice Bank is a submerged seamount roughly 45km offshore between Faial and Pico in the Azores archipelago, where the seabed rises from deep Atlantic water to within about 35 metres of the surface. The pinnacle sits in a Gulf Stream current that concentrates plankton and draws mobula rays in large aggregations, along with seasonal sightings of blue sharks, mako sharks, and occasional whale sharks. This dive site is for certified divers only, typically requiring an Advanced Open Water certification or equivalent due to the depth, open-water drift conditions, and distance from shore; operators generally set a minimum logged-dive count before accepting bookings. Full scuba kit, including a 5-7mm wetsuit for the cooler deep water, is available to rent from dive centres in Horta and Madalena, though divers should bring their own certification card and logbook. Norberto Diver in Horta and Pico Sport in Madalena, the two main operators running this trip, are established PADI-affiliated dive centres with local instructors familiar with the site's currents and marine life patterns. Every trip opens with a safety briefing covering the boat's dive plan, buddy checks, surface signalling equipment, and the nearest hyperbaric chamber location, since the offshore distance means evacuation takes longer than for coastal dives. The crossing itself can be choppy, and the site is only diveable in calm-to-moderate sea states, so trips are cancelled or rescheduled at short notice when swell picks up. The best season runs June to October, when sea conditions are calmer and mobula ray numbers peak; winter months bring rougher Atlantic swell that makes the long boat transit impractical for most operators.