NSS-CDS
Cavern · Apprentice / Intro-style progression · Full Cave · specialty cave training
Official website →caves · sumps · mines · exploration · rescue · science
Cave Dive World
A growing DiverInterCom KCore research catalogue of cave and overhead diving around the world — from recreational cavern sites and training regions to expedition sumps, flooded mines, deep resurgences, rescue history and underwater science.
catalogue · information · knowledge base
Cave & Overhead Diving Around the World
Cave Dive World covers recreational cave and cavern diving, training locations, major cave systems, active exploration, historically important sites, local cave-diving cultures, explorers and personalities, cave rescue and accident history, flooded mines and artificial overhead, science, archaeology, biology, conservation and access.
Some locations are established recreational or training sites. Others are highly advanced expedition environments, research sites, restricted systems or historically important caves that are not accessible to ordinary divers.
This is an information and research catalogue — not a substitute for cave-diving training, local permissions, current access information or professional dive planning.
Before I learned to dive caves, I first learned how to travel through caves. In many parts of the world underwater exploration is only one part of a much larger speleological journey — involving dry cave travel, crawling, climbing, rope work, equipment carries and sumps deep inside the system.
quick locator
Find a Cave
The finder does one job: type a known cave or system name and jump to the correct country catalogue.
40 researched countries & regions
Cave Dive World
Explore 40 researched countries and regions covering recreational cave diving, major cave systems, sump exploration, flooded mines, deep resurgences, history, rescue, science and conservation.
Europe · 21
France
Deep resurgences · Lot · Ardèche · Mediterranean springs
Integrated research · v0.4Germany
Alpine springs · source caves · restricted research systems
Integrated research · v0.2Poland
Tatra sumps · flooded mines · cold technical overhead
Integrated research · v0.1Slovakia
Karst springs · internal sumps · mountain speleology
Integrated research · v0.1Slovenia
Dinaric karst · Divje jezero · underground rivers
Integrated research · v0.1Czech Republic
Hranice Abyss · Moravian Karst · research diving
Integrated research · FINAL v1.0Italy
Sardinian springs · sea caves · deep resurgence exploration
Integrated research · v0.1Spain
Pozo Azul · Mallorca cave systems · coastal karst
Integrated research · v0.1Portugal
Almonda · central karst · spring exploration
Integrated research · v0.1Austria
Alpine karst · sump exploration · caver-first tradition
Integrated research · v0.2United Kingdom
Classic sump diving · CDG · caver-first exploration
Integrated research · v0.1Finland
Flooded mines · Ojamo · cold-water technical overhead
Integrated research · v0.1Sweden
Flooded mines · cold-water exploration · industrial overhead
Integrated research · v0.1Hungary
Thermal caves · Molnár János · Kőbánya mine
Integrated research · v0.2Norway
Plura · cold cave systems · deep rescue history
Integrated research · v0.1Switzerland
Alpine springs · multi-sump systems · cave training
Integrated research · v0.1Malta & Gozo
Marine caves · caverns · wreck-overhead culture
Integrated research · v0.1Greece
Vouliagmeni · Kefalonia · deep internal sumps · Lavrio
Integrated research · v0.1Croatia
Dinaric springs · vrulje · Velebit deep sumps
Integrated research · v0.1Romania
Tăuz · Isverna · deep resurgences · Salvaspeo
Integrated research · v0.1Bosnia & Herzegovina
Dinaric resurgences · post-siphon cave · groundwater science
Integrated research · v0.1North America · Central America · Caribbean · 5
Mexico
Yucatán cenotes · giant systems · world cave-diving centre
Integrated research · v0.1Florida, USA
Springs · long cave systems · historic training culture
Integrated research · v0.1The Bahamas
Blue holes · anchialine caves · archaeology and science
Integrated research · v0.1Dominican Republic
Caribbean cave systems · deep sinks · archaeology
Integrated research · v0.1Belize
Giant Cave · Chiquibul · Great Blue Hole · Maya cave heritage
Integrated research · v0.1Asia · 8
Thailand
Sump exploration · rescue history · tropical karst
Integrated research · v0.1Indonesia
Island karst · submerged caves · exploration frontier
Integrated research · v0.1Philippines
Research frontier · Enchanted River · marine and inland caves
Integrated research · v0.1Japan
Limestone springs · island caves · specialist exploration
Integrated research · v0.1China
Du’an · 200 m+ springs · WUD / GXKSP exploration
Integrated research · v0.1Vietnam
Sơn Đoòng sump · Phong Nha · caver-first exploration
Integrated research · v0.1Malaysia
Mulu sumps · Sipadan Turtle Tomb · flooded mines
Integrated research · v0.1Türkiye
Suluin · Morca · Taurus karst · marine caverns
Integrated research · v0.1Pacific & Oceania · 2
Africa & Red Sea · 3
training · safety · community
Learn Cave Diving Safely
Cave Dive World is a research and information catalogue, not a substitute for formal overhead-environment training.
Cave diving is an overhead-environment discipline requiring dedicated training, experience and judgement. If you want to learn cavern or cave diving, train with a recognized cave-diving instructor and progress gradually through the appropriate overhead-environment levels.
DiverInterCom does not rank cave-diving organisations. Training quality depends heavily on the individual instructor, current standards, student preparation, location and the cave environment. Always verify the organisation’s current standards and the instructor’s active teaching status.
international training organisations
NACD
Cavern and cave-diver education with a long Florida cave-diving heritage
Official website →GUE
Cave 1 · Cave 2 plus standardized team, propulsion, DPV and exploration pathways
Official website →IANTD
Cavern · Intro Cave · Cave · Technical Cave and related technical programmes
Official website →TDI
Cavern · Intro to Cave · Full Cave plus sidemount / DPV / CCR cave pathways where offered
Official website →CMAS / National Federations
Cave-diving programmes through participating national federations; availability and standards vary by country
Official website →SSI Extended Range
Overhead / cavern / cave pathways where currently offered by qualified XR centres and instructors
Official website →PSAI
Technical and overhead-environment training through qualified instructors and regional programmes
Official website →WUD — World Underwater Discovery
Chinese-origin cave and technical training system with Cave 1 · Cave 2 · Cave 3 and exploration-linked pathways
Official website →speleological & cave-rescue organisations
Some of the world’s strongest cave-diving knowledge comes from caving, exploration and rescue organisations rather than commercial scuba agencies alone.
Cave Diving Group — CDG
Speleology, cave-diving community and/or cave-rescue knowledge relevant to overhead exploration and safety.
Swiss Cave Diving
Speleology, cave-diving community and/or cave-rescue knowledge relevant to overhead exploration and safety.
FFESSM / FFS structures
Speleology, cave-diving community and/or cave-rescue knowledge relevant to overhead exploration and safety.
HGSS
Speleology, cave-diving community and/or cave-rescue knowledge relevant to overhead exploration and safety.
Salvaspeo România
Speleology, cave-diving community and/or cave-rescue knowledge relevant to overhead exploration and safety.
ECRA
Speleology, cave-diving community and/or cave-rescue knowledge relevant to overhead exploration and safety.
Explore the history. Study the caves. Respect the people who discovered them.
And if one day you want to go beyond the daylight — learn how to do it properly first.
And if one day you want to go beyond the daylight — learn how to do it properly first.