Mallorca · Spain · Reef
Formentor Island
An arch and a cave with barracuda schools, over sand and posidonia
Photo: Olaf Tausch · CC BY 3.0
The islet in Formentor Bay is a rock-and-sand dive to 22 m rather than a wall: scattered boulders, white sand channels and posidonia meadows, with an arch to swim through and a cave to look into. Scuba Mallorca rates it for Open Water divers and up, and it is one of the livelier sites on this coast for fish.
Where it is and how deep
39.9208° N, 3.1499° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
The boat drops you beside the islet and the dive works round it over a mixed bottom: boulders scattered on white sand, channels of sand cutting between them and posidonia meadows filling the gaps. The maximum is 22 m in the deeper parts, so this is a relaxed profile with plenty of time. The route leads to the arch, which you swim through, and on to the cave beside it, and both are where the barracuda gather; Scuba Mallorca's brief is simply to swim the arch and circle the cave looking for the schools.
In between, the sand and grass are busy. Octopus are easy to find in their holes, cuttlefish sit on the sand, and schools of saupe, seabream and damselfish move over the boulders, with starfish on the bottom and the occasional grouper in the deeper sections. Finish by working back up over the shallower rock around the islet, where the sand channels give you a clear path to the boat and a comfortable place for the safety stop.
Marine life and season
- Barracuda
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Reef fish swarms
- Groupers
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Mallorca: May to October is the season, with boats out daily; the Alcúdia centre dives all year. Water peaks at 26°C in August and falls to 14–15°C in February and March; winter is wet and windy.
Photos from Formentor Island
Zairon · CC0
Defisch · CC BY-SA 3.0
Questions divers ask
Is Formentor Island suitable for Open Water divers?+
Yes. Scuba Mallorca rates it intermediate and suitable for Open Water and experienced divers, with a maximum depth of 22 m; the arch and cave are the features to see.
Sources
- Formentor Island — Scubago
- The Dives — Scuba Mallorca
Photo credits
- Small wooded islet of Illa de Formentor sitting in a turquoise cove by Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Aerial view of the Formentor peninsula with the small islet visible offshore by Zairon, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Panoramic bay view with sailboats anchored near the Formentor islet by Defisch, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
More dive sites in Mallorca
Wreck
The Ghost Ship: an intact 20 m motor-sailboat on sand at 38 m
Drop-off to 40 m with boulders and swim-throughs on an exposed cape
Vertical walls to 50 m with barracuda schools and hunting amberjack
Cave & cavern
Surface inside a stalactite-hung air chamber reached through a gallery
Cave & cavern
Narrow swim-throughs and a small air pocket inside the rock, 18 m max
Cave & cavern
Vertical chimneys with sunbeams in a 12 m shore-entry cavern
A long arch descending the wall next to the Formentor islet
Seahorses, cuttlefish and rays in the sand and posidonia at 12 m
Similar dives elsewhere
A plateau below the lighthouse with barracuda, groupers and cuttlefish
A whitewater reef to 21 m that has taken ships for centuries
Try-dive shallows at 3-5 m, groupers on the way to 16 m
Blocks, caves and furrows in the south face that took ships' anchors