Vigo, Galicia, Spain

Illas Cies (Vigo)

The Cies Islands are the heart of the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park, declared in 2002 as the only national park in northwest Spain. Diving here is a different experience from the warm-water Mediterranean and Canarian sites: water is cooler, ranging from 13 C in winter to 18 C in late summer, and the underwater landscape is dominated by granite reefs, gullies and seasonal kelp forests of Saccorhiza polyschides. Visibility averages 10 to 15 metres and the season is typically restricted to summer months when swell calms. The dive sites around the islands shelter exceptional fish life, including very large European seabass schools, ballan wrasse, conger eels under boulders, common octopus, spiny lobsters, large brown meagre, John Dory and the occasional sunfish in summer. Bottlenose dolphins are common in the channels between islands. Current is moderate and the site is reserved for intermediate divers comfortable with surface chop and lower visibility.