Ferox, a purpose-built Malpelo shark expedition boat

Ferox is for divers who are coming to Malpelo for the place itself, not for a resort-style week at sea. Exclusive access matters here: the reserve allows only one boat at a time, so the liveaboard is not sharing a famous pinnacle with a line of other dive boats. The route is built around steep volcanic rock, strong currents and pelagic encounters, with guides who have been diving Malpelo for more than ten years. This is a demanding trip. The minimum is 50 logged dives, including 35 in the ocean, plus Advanced Open Water or an equivalent qualification. Divers should already be comfortable in current. In return, Ferox puts the focus where it belongs: several days in the water, small dive groups, free Nitrox and access to sites where hammerheads, whale sharks and other large animals gather offshore.

Ferox makes a solid first impression rather than pretending to be a floating boutique hotel. Its steel hull and working-boat layout suit a remote Pacific expedition, where the useful parts of the boat matter more than decoration. The 2017 renovation supports the practical side of the vessel without erasing its older working character. Once aboard, divers move between private cabins, the dive deck, the indoor saloon, the bar and the sun deck. The air-conditioned saloon gives the group a place to regroup after the crossing, while the open deck keeps the attention on the sea. Ferox carries the equipment and tenders needed to reach Malpelo's exposed sites, then returns divers to a boat arranged around the next briefing, meal and dive.

Ferox carries a small enough group for the people aboard to become familiar quickly, with a maximum of 12 divers and two guides. The crew's real role is to keep a remote, current-heavy operation orderly: brief the sites, organise the tender departures and bring divers back to the boat ready for the next stage of the day. The guides have more than ten years of experience diving Malpelo, and the crew speaks English and Spanish. Evenings are quiet rather than programmed. Divers eat, compare what came past in the blue and prepare for another demanding day. The operation also avoids shark feeding. That leaves the encounters wild, and keeps the trip focused on observing Malpelo rather than altering the behaviour that makes the sanctuary worth reaching.

Malpelo is a volcanic island surrounded by open Pacific water, and the named sites reflect that setting. Aquamarina is a volcanic pinnacle with strong current and a maximum depth of -35m, where hammerheads, silky sharks and other pelagics can pass through. At David, vertical granite walls drop to -45m, giving the dive a deeper, blue-water character as schooling pelagics and large sharks move along the wall. La Catedral reaches -40m and adds a natural tunnel through a massive pinnacle, a passage where schooling fish shelter from the open ocean. Los Tres Mosqueteros reaches -35m and puts divers on current-swept pinnacles at recreational depths, with concentrated pelagic encounters. Recorded Ferox departures include Malpelo trips with 6, 7, 9 or 10 diving days, lasting from 9 nights to 13 nights, as well as a Gorgona and Malpelo combination with 8 diving days and 11 nights.

Aquamarina →

Max. depth · 35 m

David →

Max. depth · 45 m

La Catedral →

Max. depth · 40 m

Los Tres Mosqueteros →

Max. depth · 35 m

Hammerhead sharks and reef sharks are recorded across all four named sites, while whale sharks appear at three. That gives the route a clear purpose: the animals are not a single lucky-site attraction, but part of the pelagic life drawn to Malpelo's currents. Aquamarina is the place for the route's specific possibilities, including manta rays and amberjack. La Catedral adds tuna, lobsters and jacks to the list around its tunnel and schooling fish. Silky sharks, Galapagos sharks, eagle rays, dogtooth tuna and barracuda also appear in the site records, depending on the dive and conditions. Seasonal tendencies can shape the spectacle. November to April is associated with better chances of seeing large schools of hammerheads, while May to October can bring more silky sharks, Galapagos sharks and whale sharks, with manta rays also possible.

Whale Shark →

Rhincodon typus

Manta Ray →

Mobula birostris

Two guides work with up to 12 divers, giving a maximum of six divers per guide. Briefings and daily organisation are handled in English or Spanish, and the guides bring more than ten years of experience diving Malpelo. This is not an entry-level expedition. Divers need Advanced Open Water or an equivalent qualification, at least 50 logged dives including 35 in the ocean, and real comfort in current. Certification must be shown before booking or boarding. The trip includes a navigation and briefing day before the main diving begins, so the group can understand the site procedures and tender operation before entering the water. Full boat safety is provided, but the decisive safety factor remains the diver's ability to manage current, surface with an SMB and stay with the assigned group.

Diving is organised from a dedicated dive deck, with three tenders for reaching the sites: two AVON SR 6 boats and one DELTA. Divers do not enter directly from Ferox. Each Zodiac carries up to six recreational divers plus staff, which allows the two guides to work with groups of no more than six. The boat uses Nuvair 26 compressors and a Nuvair LP420 membrane Nitrox system. Nitrox is free and required for all divers, with certification available onboard. Rental equipment is available at extra cost, while the standard kit list includes the diver's own BCD, regulator and octopus, mask and snorkel, fins, computer, knife, whistle and SMB. Technical diving is not supported. The tender system is central to the Malpelo experience: the boat stays clear of the rocks while the smaller craft place each group at the chosen site.

Between dives, the sun deck is the place to dry out and watch the volcanic island rise above the Pacific. The indoor saloon and its bar offer shade and air conditioning when the deck is too bright or the crossing is rough. Audio and video entertainment is available, but Malpelo does not come with Wi-Fi, so there is no easy way to fill every quiet minute with a screen. The useful habit is simpler: check the next dive, eat, rinse the salt away, and find a place to sit before the tender call. On navigation and briefing days, the saloon and deck become the spaces for settling into the expedition.

The expedition begins with the crossing from Buenaventura, followed by a navigation and briefing day before the main diving starts. Once Ferox reaches Malpelo, the day is built around three dives, with the briefing and tender launch coming before each descent and food and rest filling the intervals. The boat remains the base while the Zodiacs carry each group to the pinnacles, walls and tunnel. After the last return, divers have the saloon, bar or sun deck before the next meal and briefing. On the final diving day, there are two morning dives, then Ferox leaves Malpelo for Buenaventura. There is no night-diving program in the published itinerary. The rhythm is therefore clear and demanding: wake, prepare, dive, eat, recover, dive again, then do it once more while the Pacific moves around the boat.

Meals are served buffet-style and combine Western food with Colombian and Pacific flavours. The kitchen serves beef, pork, chicken and seafood with rice, salads, natural juices and dessert, while vegetarian and vegan meals can be arranged when notified in advance. Soft drinks, snacks and non-alcoholic drinks are included during the liveaboard trip; alcoholic drinks are not. Food arrives around the diving rhythm, giving the group a proper pause between water sessions rather than turning every meal into a long event. Snacks remain available through the day, which matters on a route where the next briefing can come soon after the last boat return.

The cabins are private, air-conditioned and fitted with an ensuite bathroom with hot water. Main-deck single cabins have a 2 m by 0.80 m bed and a porthole for natural light. Lower-deck single cabins offer the same bed size, while the Full Cabin gives one diver a 2 m by 1 m bed. The two Queen cabins have a 2 m by 1.60 m double bed and three portholes, making them the natural choice for two people travelling together. Towels and personal care items are provided in the cabin categories that list them. There is no Wi-Fi, so the evening is shaped by the people aboard, the next day's plan and the fact that Malpelo is far beyond an ordinary coastal trip. The cabins are places to sleep well between dives, not places to spend the day.

The expedition starts in Cali, with transport from Cali to Buenaventura taking about two and a half hours, and the return transfer going back to Cali after the boat trip. Airport transfers between Cali airport and the hotel take about 50 minutes and are included for foreign passengers. Two hotel nights in Cali are included for foreign Ferox passengers, one before the expedition and one afterward. Arriving in Cali the day before departure and flying out the day after the expedition gives the transfers room to work.

Malpelo Tours contributes to a foundation that protects Malpelo's sharks for every diver travelling with the operation. The trips also reject shark feeding, so the animals' behaviour and food chain are not deliberately altered for divers.