Diving

Going diving is a fantastic way to round off a beach holiday. Ask scuba divers what the allure of their favourite sport is and they’ll likely say it’s the thrill of the unknown, not to mention that every dive is unique and amazing. Experienced and novice divers alike will find plenty of diving holidays at Barceló hotels, with 48 locations worldwide offering spectacular diving opportunities.

The Caribbean Sea is a fabulous diving destination, with Aruba being a great place for beginners. This island boasts warm calm seas, making swimming underwater and learning to breathe from a scuba tank easy. Moving up to Mexico, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef stretches from the southern Yucatán all the way to Honduras. Divers can explore this vast system thanks to the Barceló diving hotels located along the Riviera Maya, in Cancún, and on the island of Cozumel. Schools of shimmering fish and coloured coral clusters dotted with purple and orange sponges are sure to wow any diver. Thanks to conservation initiatives its easy to spot sea turtles and manatees, also known as sea cows. In fact, the reef is home to the world’s largest population of this chubby, friendly and docile mammal.

Palancar Reef in Cozumel attracts novice to expert divers from all over the world. Here, coral seabeds give way to deep crevices harbouring huge reef fish. On the Pacific coast, Banderas Bay is a top-rated diving destination, and Barceló hotels in Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta are perfect launching points. While pros can go on twin tank diving expeditions, beginners can head to Los Arcos, to see octopuses and eels sheltering in the granite caves and arches that have been carved out by the sea.

The Spanish Canary Islands, off the coast of Morocco, entice divers eager to explore the fantastic seascapes that formed when volcanoes erupted and lava hit the sea. Located in the Atlantic Ocean, these islands have warm ocean currents to thank for their mild climate. On the island of Fuerteventura, the Barceló Fuerteventura Thalasso Spa hotel has partnered with Deep Blue Diving School to provide diving excursions, for beginners and experts, where swarms of zebra fish and barracuda can be observed. Some divers bring sardines to feed the almost two-metre-long manta rays that sometimes hover close enough to touch. 

Night dives provide an incredible experience for visitors who want to catch a sight of amazing sea creatures that come out after dark to hunt. But exploring a shipwreck is every diver’s dream, and the Mediterranean Sea is littered with sunken ships from times gone by. Novice divers can get a chance to swim next to shipwrecks in the caves around the Bay of Palma, while experts can even go inside to explore some of them. One of the most stunning shipwrecks in the world, however, can be seen in the Red Sea. The Barceló Tiran Sharm hotel in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, is located near the Thistlegorm, a British ship sunk by German bombs in 1941. Resting at a shallow depth, it’s accessible to divers of all skill levels.