Santa Catarina – Southern Brazil's Diving Paradise

About Santa Catarina – Florianópolis, Bombinhas & Ilha do Arvoredo

Santa Catarina is southern Brazil's premier diving destination offering a remarkable variety of underwater environments from granite walls draped in gorgonians to kelp-like Sargassum forests and deep offshore seamounts. Ilha do Arvoredo Marine Reserve features granite walls with schooling fish, groupers, turtles, eagle rays, and occasional manta rays in nutrient-rich waters. Sacola do Arvoredo provides calm bay diving with seahorses, macro life, and excellent night dives. Bombinhas offers Praia da Sepultura with shallow reefs, pipefish, frogfish, and a turtle cleaning station while Ilha do Campeche off Florianópolis features unique Sargassum forests, large stingrays, morays, and archaeological rock inscriptions. The deep offshore Laje da Jaguaruna seamount attracts pelagics, amberjack, and dolphins with southern right whale watching from July to November. Florianópolis adds several accessible wrecks including the Vale Feliz cargo ship and the Pirapó trawler for macro enthusiasts. The combination of marine reserve protection, diverse habitats, and southern Brazil's spectacular coastline makes Santa Catarina an essential diving destination.

Highlights

• ✓Ilha do Arvoredo Marine Reserve granite walls
• ✓Sacola do Arvoredo night diving and macro
• ✓Sargassum kelp forests at Ilha do Campeche
• ✓Laje da Jaguaruna offshore seamount with pelagics
• ✓Southern right whale watching July to November
• ✓Multiple accessible wrecks off Florianópolis

Getting There

Fly to Florianópolis (FLN) which has direct connections from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Porto Alegre. Bombinhas is 1.5 hours north by car. Ilha do Arvoredo is accessed by dive boat from Bombinhas or Porto Belo. Ilha do Campeche is a short boat ride from Florianópolis.