Gijón's dive clubs work the Asturian coast from Estaño and the Gijón zone to Cabo Peñas, whose dives are the most prized locally. Named sites run from 12 m at Cabo Torres and Las Gemelas to 30 m at Amosucas, and most of them are open to one-star (B1E) divers. The water is cool Bay of Biscay sea, about 12 to 22 °C through the year.
About diving in Gijón & Cabo Peñas
Diving here runs from Gijón's El Musel port and from the fishing port of Candás. In Gijón, a club based at El Musel runs guided boat dives along the coast near the city. One base moved from Gijón to Candás to be closer to Cabo Peñas, whose dives are the most prized on this coast and cover several levels of diver. Sites fall into zones: Estaño, Gijón itself, Antromero, Bañugues, Punta la Vaca and Cabo Peñas itself, and an all-levels outing pairs Peñas with El Corviru in a double dive.
The named sites split into two depth bands: shallow points at 12 to 16 m, such as Las Gemelas, Los Cañones, La Reserva and Cabo Torres, and deeper ones at 25 to 30 m, such as Norte, Los Merendalvarez and Amosucas. Common octopus and European lobsters live along this coast with tompot blennies and grey gurnard and goose barnacles, and the nudibranchs include Felimare fontandraui.
The coast suits newly certified divers: the shallow sites, no deeper than 15 m, are low in difficulty. Dives also run for B2E and Advanced divers and above, and sites deeper than 40 m off this coast are for divers with long experience. Anyone after warm water or reliably flat seas should look elsewhere: the Bay of Biscay is cool and sometimes storm-tossed.
Best time to dive Gijón & Cabo Peñas
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good |
The sea feels cold from January to April, when it drops to about 12 °C, and cool in May and June. From July to September it feels mild and reaches about 22 °C, then it turns cool again from October to December. Club dives run through the whole year, so the calendar is set by water temperature and weather rather than by a season of closures.
Best months: May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
Dive types & marine life
- Reef
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Nudibranchs
Best dive sites in Gijón & Cabo Peñas
- 1
La Herbosa
Cabo Peñas site at 14 m, open to one-star (B1E) divers.
- 2
Los Merendalvarez
Deeper Cabo Peñas point at 25 m, for three-star (B3E) divers.
- 3
El Corviru
Bañugues site at 12 m, paired with Peñas on all-levels double-dive days.
- 4
Amosucas
The deepest named Gijón site at 30 m, for three-star (B3E) divers.
- 5
Los Cañones
Estaño site at 16 m, open to one-star (B1E) divers.
- 6
Cabo Torres
Cape in the Gijón zone at 12 m, open to one-star (B1E) divers.
- 7
La Piedra el Xatu
Punta la Vaca site at 12 m, open to one-star (B1E) divers.
- 8
Norte
Gijón point at 25 m, for three-star (B3E) divers.
Site guides
A Gijón cape dive at the shallow end of the local sites
A shallow, one-star way onto Cabo Peñas
Reef
An Estaño-zone dive within reach of newly certified one-star divers
How to get to Gijón & Cabo Peñas
Asturias Airport (OVD) lies 30 km west of Gijón, near Avilés, and an ALSA bus runs direct from it to Gijón hourly, taking 50 minutes. From Gijón the AS-19 and then the AS-239 lead to Candás and Luanco. The dive centres sit in Gijón and at Candás.
Photos from Gijón & Cabo Peñas
daniel.julia · CC BY-SA 2.0
Questions divers ask
What certification is needed to dive at Gijón and Cabo Peñas?+
A one-star (B1E) card covers most named sites, which lie at 12 to 16 m. The deeper points at 25 to 30 m, such as Amosucas and Los Merendalvarez, are for three-star (B3E) divers.
How do divers get to Gijón from the airport?+
Asturias Airport (OVD) is 30 km west of Gijón, and an ALSA bus runs direct to Gijón hourly in 50 minutes. Candás, the base nearest Cabo Peñas, is reached from Gijón by the AS-19 and then the AS-239.
When is the sea warmest off Gijón?+
The sea feels mild from July to September, reaching about 22 °C. From January to April it feels cold, down to about 12 °C, though club dives run all year.
Sources
- Puntos de Buceo - Club Alpha Buceo — Club Alpha Buceo Gijón
- Actividades - Club Alpha Buceo — Club Alpha Buceo Gijón
- El Centro - Speedywater — Speedywater
- Orca Dive Club - cursos debuceo — cursosdebuceo.com
- Club Deportivo Orca - Yumping — Yumping
- Gijón Average Sea Temperatures — SeaTemperature.org
- Gijón - Wikivoyage — Wikivoyage
- Protected landscape of Cabo Peñas — Fascinating Spain
Photo credits
Embed
Run a dive centre, club or blog? Embed this map of 2 dive sites near Gijón & Cabo Peñas on your own page.
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