The Marian platform is one of the most demanded dives in Formentera. It is also a unique dive in all the Balearic Islands and offers a spectacular diving experience.
The Espardell Marian platform
As much as this dive site is called a “mariana platform” it is simply an old fish farm for sea bream and sea bass, abandoned in the 1990s. After it stopped receiving maintenance the sea simply sank it after several storms and now its entire structure is sunk on its side at a depth of 32 meters. Therefore, to enjoy this dive to the maximum and to be able to descend to the bottom you will need the Advanced Open Water Diver level.
Interesting aerial photograph of the fish farm in the 1990s.
In the following photograph taken by the the Spanish Geographical Institute (IGN) during one of the orthophotographic flights over Formentera in the 90’s we can see the fish farm on the island of Espardell still afloat, on the left side of the image. As can be seen, the fish farm is hexagonal in shape and had 4 rearing nets.
Like in a science fiction movie
Diving in the Espardell platform is like being transported to the scene of a science fiction movie: when we are at medium depth we will be able to observe a The columns of this huge hexagonal structure, sunken on one side, are still more or less standing. At the bottom we can find some remains of parts of the now non-existent fish farm, such as the feed tanks to feed the fish.
Lots of life and fauna
Life has taken over this old abandoned fish farm and has filled it with spectacular fauna for the enjoyment of divers eager for unforgettable experiences. The shoals of barracudas are very present and common, which are already accustomed to the presence of divers and simply ignore them. Conger eels, moray eels of considerable size, scorpion fish (scorpionfish) and other fish species are commonly found among the metal and concrete debris at the bottom.
