The company was founded in 2012 by Filipe Ávila and Pedro Filipe. They both have great passion for the Azores which results in the best and most authentic experiences for customers.
Filipe has been working in tourism for quite some time now, guiding visitors, uncovering secrets and telling stories. By chance, he met Pedro – from Portugal mainland, passionate for the Azores and a “whale geek” – who he found to be the perfect partner to start this company.
Filipe mostly works on land, and Pedro on the ocean, which is the perfect combination. The mission is simple: to provide the best experiences possible. We wish to show everyone who joins us our knowledge and passion for the islands.
Team
Pedro Filipe Manager and Skipper
Fell in love with an Island girl, and has lived in Faial since 2003. The whales are his life, and you can tell by the way he talks about and executes his job. He has had many jobs prior to this one, but now he has “the best job in the world!"
Filipe Ávila Manager and Land Guide
Born and raised in Faial, he is the brain of the operation! Not only does he have great organising skills, he has a deep and proud knowledge about his Island and its traditions. He is also an amazing storyteller; he loves nature and the outdoors. He is the main guide on our land activities.
Marc Perrussel Guide, Naturalist and Photographer
Marc is a french experienced sailor and photographer. By chance (a happy one!) he crossed paths with us and his passion for the whales and dolphins became common ground. A gentle man, great listener and great friend.
Carla Gomes Marine Biologist and Marine Educator
Carla is Pedro´s wife. She is a Marine Biologist and a native of Faial, she dedicates her life to her project Oceans-on® which she founded and developed. Loves the Ocean and the Children! Carla believes that, on the Ocean, the animals are watching us!
Fátima Patrocínio Designer
Fátima is our designer, she is in charge of the most creative parts of the operation. Always available to help in all situations, her presence and kindness are noticeable.
Marta Riera Buch Oceanographer and Guide
Marta is our lead guide at sea. Graduated in Marine Sciences and Oceanographer from Mataró (Barcelona), she is focused on developing a sperm whales’ catalogue.
Hugo Martins Guide
Born in Lisbon, Hugo has been passionate about Faial since 2010, when he made the island his home. He is a land guide and has a deep knowledge of Faial, its traditions and history.
Ana Casaca Marine Biologist and Guide
Originally from Porto, Ana is a biologist, and also the responsible for our social media, who came to Faial to be closer to the animals and the ocean.
Susanne Rohl Front office
Born in Germany, Susanne moved recently from the Algarve to Faial. She is in charge of managing bookings and organizing our external gift shop.
Cristiana Antunes Marine Biologist and Front office
Cristiana is a marine biologist from Leiria and an experienced guide since 2015. She manages bookings and organizes our base.
Nadia Florio Summer Team
Nadia, a Swiss-Italian veterinarian fascinated by the sea and the animals that inhabit it, especially cetaceans, joined us during her internship period.
Yoann Secci Summer Team
Yoann, a veterinarian form Italy, passionate about the sea, joined us for an internship to learn everything about cetaceans.
Luisa Borchardt Summer Team
Luisa is taking a gap year right now and is volunteering with us. She fell in love with the Azores and is at her best when she's in nature.
Lara Monteiro Summer Team
Lara, a German student, joined us for a two-week internship. Passionate about the ocean and dolphins, she also has strong ties to Portugal, where she grew up.
Catarina Dias Summer Team
Catarina, a tourism student, is doing an internship with us. Born and raised in Faial, she is passionate about the sea, especially dolphins.
Pedro Garcia Summer Team
Pedro, a tourism student, is doing an internship with us. Born and raised in the Azores, he aims to showcase our island in the best possible way to those who visit us.
Inga Zurhelle Summer Team
Inga studies tourism in Germany and joined us for an internship. She loves being by the sea and is passionate about wildlife.
Eva Rietveld Summer Team
Eva, a student from the Netherlands studying Ecology & Wildlife, joined us for her second-year internship to learn more about whales and marine life.
Catarina Amaral Summer Team
Catarina is completing her degree in Marine Biology. She has a strong interest in conservation and marine ecosystems, fields she is passionate about.
Margarida V. Summer Team
Margarida Vicente, a final-year Marine Biology student in Peniche, hopes to fulfil her dream of working with cetaceans in the future.
Eduarda Santos Marine Biologist and Front office
Eduarda, a marine biologist and master’s student at DOP, helps us with bookings and organising our base.
Our team is dynamic! Filipe and Pedro are always present and available, but every year , new members join us,
adding value, passion, action and quality to our work.
If, like us, you are passionate about the ocean and nature, you wish to learn more and acquire experience in the tourism industry,
you can join our team via internship applications or volunteering.
Internships
We value a dynamic and diverse team, and we always look forward to teach as well as learn, and grow with everyone who joins us. We firmly believe that learning within a work environment is a fundamental tool to those who graduate from high school, university or even to someone with a masters. So, we wish that our interns become more qualified, learn new concepts and techniques, allowing them to become an added value to our team.
At the moment, our main areas of interest are:
- Marine biology
- Nature guides
- Tourism
- Business and Management
- Communication and Multimedia
You can look up these internship programmes:
EURODISSEIA | www.eurodyssee.eu
this is a European programme, providing 3 to 7 months internships to foreign youngsters, between 18 and 30 years of age, looking for a job. It allows the students to acquire professional experience, simultaneously allowing the opportunity to learn a foreign language and improve their knowledge of it.
PROGRAMA ESTAGIAR | www.estagiar.azores.gov.pt
This programme is aimed at Azorean youngsters, recently graduated from technical courses or university, that wish to begin their professional career.
Volunteering
A volunteer is someone who “freely, responsibly and without mental reserve, commits to, according to his or her personal ability and free time, develop volunteering activities within the organization promoting the activities”.
In Azores Experiences, we provide training to all volunteers, hoping that in the end of the period, they leave enriched with the experience and spread the word about their time with us!
So, we are looking for volunteers that are:
- Passionate for the ocean and nature.
- Curious about the surrounding environment.
- Proactive in life.
- Supportive with the fellow human.
- Fluent in English and/or another language.
Duration of the volunteering:
June, July and August | minimum: 1 month
Rest of the season | minimum: two weeks
Our Customers!
Throughout the years, from all over the world, many people have already experienced adventures with us. Some of them, more than customers, became friends! Staying in touch and having returning customers, showing that they did not forget us, helps us realise our work is really worth the effort and means a lot to so many!
Licenses and Registries