10 sites · down to 80 m · 7 suitable for an intro team
Cave diving in Catalonia
- Sites10
- Max depth80 m
- For intro teams7
- Dive centres3
Diving and fills
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Fills nearby
- Fill stationKraken Dive (Tossa de Mar)Air and nitroxRoute ↗
- Fill stationCosta Brava DiversAsk (not published)Route ↗
- Fill stationFreatic SportsAir, nitrox 32, trimix (O₂ and helium per litre)Route ↗
Why come here
Catalonia has two faces. In the Pre-Pyrenees around Organyà lie deep, silty springs such as Forat de l'Or: exploration caves for full cave divers, with restrictions, trimix for the deep sections and visibility that disappears quickly. Forat de l'Or and Fou de Bor flood after rain, so plan them for a dry spell, and the springs lie at altitude. No fill station is known around Organyà; trimix comes from Barcelona, about a 2 h 15 drive away.
On the Costa Brava the diving is easy instead: sea caves and tunnels at the Medes Islands, along the Montgrí coast and at L'Escala, most of them fine for open water divers. Every dive at the Medes needs a permit, arranged by an authorised dive centre. Unknown sea caves are not for divers without cave training: in 2012 a diver died in a narrow, unmapped sea cave near Les Betes.
Don't miss
- Túnels del Dofí (Illes Medes): tunnels cutting right through the island, from Dofí Nord with its entrance at -5 m to Dofí Sud, home to groupers, morays and lobsters.
- Túnel de la Pedrosa (Illa Pedrosa): a wide, high tunnel with a roof that opens up in many places to let in daylight, with red coral and lobsters in the chimney.
- Coves de Cala Viuda: caves with windows to the outside, backlighting and two air chambers, and an underground beach in the large hall.
On a rest day
- Mont-rebei Gorge: Walk the path cut into the cliff of the Noguera Ribagorçana gorge, high above the water.
- La Seu d'Urgell Cathedral: Santa Maria d'Urgell, the only Romanesque cathedral preserved in Catalonia, a short drive upriver from Organyà.
- Empúries: The remains of a Greek and a Roman town by the sea, next to L'Escala.
All 10 sites
1 closed not shown ·
| Site | Max depth | Type | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Les Cambres (L'Escala)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 22 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Cova de la Fou de BorSidemount · Full cave | 61 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Cova de la Vaca (Illes Medes)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 25 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Coves de Cala ViudaBackmount · Cavern | 20 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Coves de Port SalviBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 32 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| La Foradada (Cap Castell)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 12 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Forat de l'OrSidemount · Full cave | 73 m | Sidemount | Full cave |
| Túnel de la Pedrosa (Illa Pedrosa)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 24 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Túnels del Dofí (Illes Medes)Backmount · Open water / no overhead | 28 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
Certification requirements, configurations and trimix depths are estimates for planning. Always check them locally and dive within your training.
Map
Dive centres and fill stations
3 dive centres, fill stations and instructors
Fill station
Kraken Dive (Tossa de Mar)
Playa Mar Menuda, 17320 Tossa de Mar
- Air and nitrox
- Full kit and single items
Fill station
Costa Brava Divers
Passeig Marítim 7, 17258 L'Estartit
- Ask
Fill station
Freatic Sports
Castillejos 166, 08013 Barcelona
- Air, nitrox 32, trimix
Order: partners first, clearly marked as partner; then dive centres by distance from Organyà and independent instructors by name. Not a recommendation: check what they offer yourself.
On this list, or should you be? Get a free partner card →Where to stay
Find a place near Organyà, Coll de Nargó, Tremp, Bellver de Cerdanya, L'Estartit, L'Escala
Villages that work well as a base for the caves in this region. Find a place for your team:
- OrganyàBooking.com ↗
- Coll de NargóBooking.com ↗
- TrempBooking.com ↗
- Bellver de CerdanyaBooking.com ↗
- L'EstartitBooking.com ↗
- L'EscalaBooking.com ↗
The links to Booking.com are affiliate links: if you book through one, DiveTripPlanner earns a small commission. You pay the same.
Practical info: rules, fills and emergency numbers
Emergencies
- 112. Hyperbaric chambers: Hospital de Palamós (C/ Hospital 36, Palamós, +34 972 600 160) and Hospital Moisès Broggi (C/ Jacint Verdaguer 90, Sant Joan Despí, +34 935 531 200) — call 112 first. DAN Europe: +39 06 4211 5685.
Access and rules
- Medes Islands: marine reserve within the Parc Natural del Montgrí, les Illes Medes i el Baix Ter (since 2010). Every dive needs a permit, with a daily quota: you go with an authorised dive centre, or with your own boat after booking a mooring buoy and paying the fee at the port office (natural park, November 2026); according to one source €5.15 per person plus a federation licence or diving insurance. For cave dives the park recommends a guide to reduce the impact of the visit. Besides the short and the long tunnel there are other cavities that are dangerous for divers without cave training. The park has no detailed maps of the caves yet, beyond what is on Itineraris (Parcs naturals de Catalunya).
- Montgrí coast (Illa Pedrosa, La Foradada, Cala Viuda): same natural park, boat access only from L'Estartit or L'Escala. Ask your dive centre about the current park rules.
- Pre-Pyrenees: Font Bordonera and Forat de l'Or are exploration caves with sediment, restrictions and deep sections. The Organyà council does not allow recreational diving at Font Bordonera, because the spring supplies the drinking water of the whole municipality; authorisation for any use of the water lies with the Confederación Hidrográfica del Ebro (Nov 2026). For Forat de l'Or no permit system is known.
Gas and fills
- Fills: trimix at Freatic Sports in Barcelona (~2 h 15 from Organyà); no fill station is known around Organyà, so bring gas and a booster. On the Costa Brava: ask the centres in L'Estartit.
Water and season
- Altitude: Font Bordonera ~765 m, Fou de Bor ~1,160 m — set your computer for altitude.
- Water levels: Forat de l'Or and Fou de Bor (back-)flood after rain; plan them for a dry spell.
Safety
- Accident: in August 2012 a diver died in a narrow, unmapped sea cave near Les Betes (Montgrí coast) at ~-45 m; the passages were 0.8–2 m high and stirred-up sediment killed the visibility. Do not enter unknown sea caves without cave training.
News
No recent news found about the caves in this region.
Searched automatically, last on 13 Nov 2026.
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