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Sardinia, Italy

15 caves · down to 137 m · 6 suitable for an intro team

Cave diving in Sardinia

  • Caves15
  • Max depth137 m
  • Water temperature12–15 °C
  • Dive centres5
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Diving and fills

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Fills nearby

  • Fill stationProtec Sardinia1 kmAir, nitrox, trimix (helium), O₂ — mixing panel and boosterRoute ↗
  • Fill stationBluforia Diving Center (Cala Gonone)1 kmAir, nitrox, trimix and mixed gas; twinsets 12+12 and 15+15 and 3 l rebreather cylindersRoute ↗
  • Fill stationBase One Cave Diving1 kmAir, nitrox, trimix (helium), O₂ — mixing panel and boosterRoute ↗
All 5 providers ↓

Why come here

In the Gulf of Orosei, sea caves below high cliffs turn into freshwater springs as they run inland, and in the Supramonte hinterland lies the deep Su Gologone spring. From Cala Gonone a cave-diving centre takes you by boat, with a guide, to caves such as Bue Marino and Utopia: these are for full cave divers, and Utopia needs trimix and lots of deco. Near Alghero you dive the sea caves of the Capo Caccia–Isola Piana marine reserve with an authorised centre, or on your own with the reserve's authorisation and a cavern card, from open-water level up to real cave dives. The sea reaches 28–30 °C in summer, the fresh water in the caves stays around 15 °C (Su Gologone ~12 °C), with a halocline around -5 m. After heavy rain the springs flow hard and visibility drops to 1 m or less, and for Su Gologone you ask for permission in advance.

Don't miss

  • Grotta del Bue Marino: inside, fresh water at ~15 °C meets the sea, and along the way you pass fossil oyster beds, formations and remains of the monk seal the cave is named after.
  • Grotta del Fico: underwater you cross a halocline and thermocline from warm sea water into cool fresh water, over a white sand floor past formations and helictites.
  • Grotta di Nereo: tunnels, arches and air chambers with red coral, lobsters and morays in what is considered the largest underwater sea cave in the Mediterranean.
  • Grotta dei Cervi: through a small sump you reach an inner chamber with air and a small lake, where bones and antlered skulls of the extinct Sardinian dwarf deer are embedded in a niche in the limestone.

On a rest day

  • Grotta di Ispinigoli: A show cave near Dorgali that you visit on foot, with a column about 38 m tall and a deep abyss in its floor.
  • Tiscali: Hike through the Supramonte to the Nuragic village hidden in a hollow inside the mountain, with the remains of dozens of round huts.
  • Gorropu Gorge: One of southern Europe's deepest gorges, where after the walk in you scramble over boulders between walls that are sometimes only a few metres apart.

All 15 caves

Configuration
My certification
SiteMax depth
Grotta dei CerviPermission neededEntry or dive feeNot known yet · Cavern20 m
Grotta dei FantasmiPermission neededEntry or dive feeNot known yet · Intro to cave–
Grotta del Bel TorrenteBackmount · Full cave40 m
Grotta del Bue MarinoBackmount · Full cave20 m
Grotta del CabirolNot known yet · Cavern25 m
Grotta del FalcoPermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead–
Grotta del FicoBackmount · Full cave28 m
Grotta della MadonninaPermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead18 m
Grotta di NereoPermission neededEntry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead35 m
Grotta di Sa OchePermission neededEntry or dive feeSidemount · Full cave–
Grotta Masseduoe📍 Location not public – only via Protec SardiniaSidemount · Full cave70 m
Grotta Sifone📍 Location not public – only via Protec SardiniaSidemount · Full cave35 m
Grotta UtopiaBackmount · Full cave125 m
Risorgenza di Cala LunaSidemount · Full cave40 m
Sorgente di Su GologonePermission neededNot known yet · Full cave137 m

Certification requirements, configurations and trimix depths are estimates for planning. Always check them locally and dive within your training.

Map

Cave Dive centre

Dive centres and fill stations

5 dive centres, fill stations and instructors

  • Dive centre

    Protec Sardinia

    Via Collodi 9, 08022 Cala Gonone

    Fills
    Air, nitrox, trimix, O₂ — mixing panel and booster · Not stated — ask
    Training
    Full cave, CCR, Sidemount, Trimix
    Guided dives
    Grotta del Bue Marino, Grotta del Bel Torrente, Risorgenza di Cala Luna, Grotta Utopia
    Rental
    Seacraft scooters, CCR cylinders, sidemount cylinders and doubles
    Website ↗Route ↗

  • Dive centre

    Bluforia Diving Center (Cala Gonone)

    Vico II Palmasera 4/A, 08022 Cala Gonone – Dorgali (NU)

    Fills
    Air, nitrox, trimix and mixed gas · Not stated — ask
    Training
    Intro to cave, Full cave, Sidemount, Trimix, CCR · TDI, PADI
    Guided dives
    Grotta del Bel Torrente, Risorgenza di Cala Luna, Grotta del Bue Marino, Grotta del Fico
    Rental
    Recreational and tech gear, KISS rebreathers, scooters and drysuits
    Website ↗Route ↗

  • Dive centre

    Base One Cave Diving

    Viale Colombo 15, 08022 Cala Gonone (Dorgali)

    Fills
    Air, nitrox, trimix, O₂ — mixing panel and booster · Daily 8:30–18:30
    Training
    Full cave, Sidemount, CCR, Trimix · GUE
    Guided dives
    Grotta del Fico
    Rental
    Doubles (€20), stage and deco cylinders (€10) and CCR cylinders O₂/diluent (€20); scooters Suex XJS €75/day and XK €90/day (backup scooter free), Eron dashboard €50/day, Sinapsi navigation €75/day
    Website ↗Route ↗

  • Dive centre

    Alghero Divers

    Lungomare Rovigno, 07041 Fertilia (Alghero)

    Guided dives
    Grotta dei Cervi
    Website ↗Route ↗

  • Dive centre

    Capo Galera Diving Center

    Località Capo Galera, 07041 Fertilia (Alghero)

    Fills
    Not stated — ask · Not stated — ask
    Training
    Cavern · PADI
    Guided dives
    Grotta di Nereo, Grotta dei Fantasmi, Grotta dei Cervi, Grotta della Madonnina
    Website ↗Route ↗

Order: partners first, clearly marked as partner; then dive centres by distance from Cala Gonone and independent instructors by name. Not a recommendation: check what they offer yourself.

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Where to stay

Find a place near Cala Gonone, Dorgali, Oliena, Baunei, Alghero

Villages that work well as a base for the caves in this region. Find a place for your team:

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Practical info: rules, fills and emergency numbers

Emergencies

  • 112; coast guard 1530; DAN Europe +39 06 4211 5685.
  • Hyperbaric chambers (SIMSI list 2024): Cagliari – Ospedale Marino, Lungomare Poetto 12 (daytime +39 070 609 4424, nights/holidays +39 070 609 4345); Sassari – Centro Iperbarico Sassarese, Via Venezia 3 (+39 079 310514); La Maddalena – Ospedale Paolo Merlo, Via Ammiraglio Magnaghi 3 (+39 0789 791200). The list has no chamber in Nuoro province; from Cala Gonone every chamber is hours away — call 112 and DAN first.

Access and rules

  • Gulf of Orosei: the sea caves lie below high cliffs and are reached only by boat; in practice you dive them with a Cala Gonone cave centre (Base One, Protec Sardinia, Argonauta, Bluforia), which provides boat and guide. No marine protected area is in force here yet: an AMP 'Golfo di Orosei–Capo Monte Santu' was being prepared in 2019.
  • Bue Marino (Dorgali) and Grotta del Fico (Baunei) are also show caves where tour boats call daily; the Fico is open May–October, tours 10:00–15:30.
  • AMP Capo Caccia–Isola Piana (Alghero, 2025 rules, unchanged in 2026): no diving in zone A; zones B/C only with authorisation from the managing body (independent divers €10 a day in 2026). Unguided diving: daytime, max 4 divers, within 50 m of the buoy, at least a 2nd-level certification. The 15 named underwater caves (Nereo, Falco, Fantasmi, Cervi, Madonnina, Pozzo, Tunnel Azzurro and others) you dive on your own with that authorisation and a Cavern Diver card (Fantasmi: Cave Diver), or as a guided dive with an authorised centre (guide at least Cavern Diver, max 4 divers per guide and 8 per dive); per cave max 6–10 divers per dive and 3 dives a day; training only in the Grotta del Pozzo; no night dives. Capo Caccia and Punta Giglio thus hold a cluster of about seven cavern and sea-cave dives (Nereo, Falco, Fantasmi, Cervi, Madonnina, Cabirol and others) run by the dive centres of Alghero and Fertilia.
  • Supramonte: Su Gologone is a natural monument (1998) in a managed site (Società Le Fonti); no diving rules are published — ask for permission in advance. Sa Oche (Valle di Lanaittu) has paid entry.

Gas and fills

  • Gas and rental: Base One (Cala Gonone) fills nitrox, trimix and O₂ and rents CCR cylinders and scooters (Suex XK/XJS). Protec Sardinia (Cala Gonone) also fills air, nitrox, trimix and O₂ itself (mixing panel and booster) and rents Seacraft scooters, CCR cylinders, sidemount cylinders and doubles.

Water and season

  • Water: sea in summer 28–30 °C; freshwater caves a constant ~15 °C (Su Gologone ~12 °C); halocline around -5 m. After heavy rain the springs flow hard and visibility drops to 1 m or less.

Rest day

  • Rest day: the Bue Marino and Grotta del Fico show caves, the Su Gologone spring and the Valle di Lanaittu (Sa Oche, the nuraghic village Sa Sedda 'e sos Carros).

News

News articles that mention one of the caves in this region, collected automatically and not checked by us.

Access and rules change: check what applies locally right before your trip. Source: GDELT Project and the news feeds of diving magazines.

Searched automatically, last on 13 Nov 2026.

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Compiled from web research (Sardinian regional cave cadastre, dive centres, DeepDivingAcademy, Scintilena, Wikipedia, Capo Caccia AMP rules, news reports; Sept 2026); Capo Galera, Alghero Divers, PADI and it.wikipedia for the caves at Punta Giglio and Capo Caccia (Oct 2026); Protec Sardinia (message, Oct 2026; the Grotta Sifone and the Grotta Masseduoe confirmed by Protec Sardinia, without a public location); the AMP rules (disciplinare) of 2025 and 2026 and Portoconte.it for the Capo Caccia caves (Nov 2026). Pins from the cadastre unless stated; the Grotta dei Fantasmi from OpenStreetMap, the Grotta del Bel Torrente from Grottocenter, the Grotta dei Cervi and the Grotta della Madonnina from it.wikipedia; ~ = estimate. Rules change — check locally.