Flores and Corvo

The two westernmost islands of the European Union sit at the edge of the open Atlantic where three ocean currents converge, creating some of the most dramatic pelagic diving anywhere in the world. Flores and tiny Corvo rise from seamounts on the North American tectonic plate, and their underwater flanks plunge in sheer volcanic walls draped with black coral trees and orange gorgonians. Blue sharks appear in such numbers that encounters are virtually guaranteed from May through October, while Atlantic bluefin tuna, manta rays, and massive dusky grouper add to an open-ocean cast that feels genuinely wild. The surrounding Marine Protected Area keeps fishing pressure low, and visibility regularly exceeds 30 metres in the blue Atlantic swell.