
Berlengas & Peniche · Portugal · Reef · Cave & cavern
Flandres
Sand, a small cavern and a broken wreck, all inside 15 m
Area photo: Tiago Thedim · CC BY-SA 4.0
Flandres is one of the gentler Berlengas dives: a shallow sandy bottom that leads to a small cave and the remains of a small wreck, all inside 15 metres. Portugal Dive rates it as a very easy and relaxed dive suited to divers of all experience levels, which on this archipelago is unusual. Bream shoal over the sand and octopus hold around the wreck.
Where it is and how deep
No published position for this site — the map shows Berlengas & Peniche and its other sites; operators know the mooring.
The dive
The dive commences on a shallow sandy area, which is where the boat puts you in and where the profile stays for the first stretch. There is little relief to work along here, so it functions as a settling-in leg: check the group, get used to the green Atlantic light, and follow the sand until the granite begins. Streaked gurnard sit on the bottom along this section, and schools of seabream and cowbream pass overhead.
From the sand the route progresses to a small cave. It sits shallow enough to stay in daylight but dark enough that a torch earns its place, and forkbeards are what you usually find inside it. Beyond the cave lies a small wreck, nothing that asks for penetration, and octopus are the animal to look for there, backed into the plating. With 15 metres as the maximum, the whole route runs well inside no-stop limits.
Marine life and season
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Reef fish swarms
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Off-season |
Season follows Berlengas & Peniche: June to October is the high season; from December to February the Atlantic swell allows diving only on occasional calm days.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Flandres?+
The maximum depth is 15 metres and much of the route is shallower than that, running over sand before it reaches a small cave and a small wreck. Portugal Dive describes it as a very easy and relaxed dive suited to divers of all experience levels.
Sources
- Flandres dive site — Portugal Dive
- Diving in Berlenga — Centre of Portugal
More dive sites in Berlengas & Peniche
Wreck
Boilers of a 1931 French steamer at 22 m
Wreck
The 1930 Nelson Line liner lost on Farilhão Grande
Reef
A platform at 25 m on the north side before the drop to 40 m
Cave & cavern
The archipelago's simplest dive, 6 m average in a sheltered bay
Wreck
A 1947 coal steamer, largely intact from 15 m to 30
A 1901 Greek steamer, still intact at 28–30 m
Canyons and underwater arches beside a dog-shaped rock
Wall
Gorgonian wall from 13 m to 35, conger in the cracks
Similar dives elsewhere
Three cannons and ammunition on the seabed at about 20 m
Reef
Arcos da Caloura
Azores · Portugal
Four rock arches at 16 metres in a sheltered bay
Volcanic caves and coral blocks inside 18 metres
Reef
Shark Bow
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Sand tiger sharks and stingrays on a reef that appears at 22 m

