When you think of a “big” pool you probably think of something that’s longer than normal and maybe 10 to 12 feet deep. However, when scuba divers think of “big” pools, it’s something else entirely. Here’s a quick list of some of the deepest pools in the world.
| Name | Year Built | Location | Depth (ft) | Volume (gallons) |
| NASA NBL | +1995 | Houston, USA | 40 | 6,075,956 |
| DiveCube | 2017 | Taichung, Taiwan | 69 | 554,761 |
| K-26 | 2018 | Gapyeong, South Korea | 85 | 686,847 |
| Nemo33 | 2004 | Brussels, Belgium | 113 | 660,430 |
| Y-40 | 2014 | Montegrotto Terme, Italy | 138 | 1,092,351 |
| DeepSpot | 2020 | Mszczonów, Poland | 148 | 2,113,376 |
| Blue Abyss | TBC | Cornwall, UK | 164 | 11,095,224 |
| Deep Dive Dubai | 2021 | Dubai, UAE | 197 | 3,698,408 |
DAN (Divers Alert Network) published an interesting article on these locations. You can read it online here. Another very interesting read in regards to Deep Dive Dubai was published by InDepth and you can read that online here. At least a couple of these are definintely on my Scuba Bucket List. Here’s some additional information for your reading pleasure.
NASA NBL
The Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) is an astronaut training facility and neutral buoyancy pool operated by NASA and located at the Sonny Carter Training Facility, near the Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. Here, astronauts can perform simulated EVA tasks in preparation for upcoming missions. Trainees wear suits designed to provide neutral buoyancy to simulate the microgravity that astronauts experience during spaceflight.
The diving tank is 202 feet in length, 102 feet wide, and 40 feet deep. The NBL contains full-scale mockups of the International Space Station (ISS) modules and payloads, as well as visiting vehicles such as the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) HTV, the European Space Agency ATV, the SpaceX Dragon, and the Orbital Sciences Corporation Cygnus.[5] Full-scale mock-ups of equipment such as the Space Shuttle payload bay and Hubble Space Telescope have been removed, as they are no longer needed for training.
Obviously this one is not open to public diving, but just imagine how much fun it would be if it was!
More information: Wikipedia – NASA Facts PDF
DIVECUBE
There doesn’t seem to be much online regarding this location. What I was able to find seems to indicate this is part of a hotel and up until the K-26 pool was built in South Korea, this was the deepest pool in Asia. It seems geared towards Freediving, but I found pictures of scuba divers as well.
K-26
With a maximum depth of 85 feet, this pool will take you to the limits of recreational scuba diving and beyond. K-26 is currently the deepest swimming pool in Asia, toppling the record previously held by DIVECUBE. K-26 is open to the public and offers diving platforms down to 33 feet as well as wreck-like construction where you can swim-through and practice your buoyancy without the risk of hurting yourself on sharp edges or stirring up sediment like you would find on real world wrecks. Booking a dive here means booking a 3 hour entrance to the facility with 1 cylinder. You need to have a dive buddy or book an instructor guided dive (no solo diving). Admission costs 30,000 won, which (currently) comes out to be around $26 USD.
NEMO 33
Nemo 33 is another diving pool that will take you pretty deep. With a maximum depth of 113 feet, the bottom is still within reach for those with a Deep Diver certification. The water is highly filtered spring water and they keep it at a balmy 86 °F year-round. Due to the warm water temperature, divers can dive for extended periods of time without the need for a dry suit. Popular Mechanics even rated Nemo 33 as one of the top eighteen strangest pools in the world. Admission to Nemo 33 is 25 Euro which (currently) comes out ot be around $28 USD.
Y-40
Y-40 proclaims itself as ‘the deepest thermal pool in the world’. Y-40 is open every day for 11 months of the year and the water is kept at a comfortable 89°-93° F to allow maximum diver comfort. With a maximum depth of 138 feet, Y-40 held the Guiness World Record as the deepest pool until November 2020. When it was first created, it took 9 whole days to fill the pool with water. The depth of Y-40 is deeper than a 13 story building. There are many platforms for training as well as almost 200 feet of underwater caves for trainng and exploring. From what I can tell, dive time is booked by the hour which runs around 38.90 Euro or (currently) around $44 USD.
DEEPSPOT
Deepspot, like other pools listed here, is kept warm for divers at a water temperature of 90°-93° F. It offers features such as a maximum depth of 148 feet, a boat wreck, caves, ropes, and a freediving sled. Cost ranges from 229 PLN to 269 PLN or (currently) $58 USD to $68 USD, depending on day of the week and time of the day. Deepspot held the world record for being the deepest swimming pool in the world until June 2021. The pool cost an estimated $10.6 million USD to build over a period of two years. Currently Deepsot still holds the record as the second deepest pool in the world, but will likely drop to third once the Blue Abyss pool in the UK is completed.
BLUE ABYSS
Blue Abyss is a research pool planned for construction in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It will be 160 ft deep with volume of approximately 1,500,000 cu ft, making it the world’s second deepest pool after the Deep Dive Dubai.
The Blue Abyss pool will be used for training and development for commercial diving, space exploration, human life science, and submersibles. This pool could aid in reducing risk in extreme environments, including space and the sub-aquatic.
The pool itself will have several entrance points and includes a series of depths. The multi-level depths of the pool has many functions, including ‘Astrolab’ at 39 ft. The total surface area of the pool is planned to be 160 ft × 130 ft, and its deepest point at 160 ft.
DEEP DIVE DUBAI
Deep Dive Dubai is a 200 ft deep diving pool in Dubai. Containing 3,700,000 gallons of fresh water, it is the deepest swimming pool in the world. The structure has an area designed to resemble a ruined, sunken city, with walls, furnished rooms and a sunken car, and can also be used as an underwater film studio. The venue opened in July 2021.
Entry costs 1200 AES which (currently) comes to around $327 USD for a 100 foot deep dive. Deeper depths are available (and more expensive – up to $490 USD or up to $817 USD for their Platinum Package) with the proper certification(s).
This unique location should be on every diver’s bucket list.
