Cave diving · South America
Cave diving in Brazil
Brazil's documented cave and cavern diving is concentrated in the limestone country of the Serra da Bodoquena around Bonito and Jardim in Mato Grosso do Sul, where privately run attractions such as Abismo Anhumas, Lagoa Misteriosa and Gruta do Mimoso offer dives in flooded caves and sinkholes. In Bahia's Chapada Diamantina, flooded caves such as Poço Azul are better known for Ice Age fossils recovered by cave divers than for recreational diving.
How access works
Natural caves are federal property under Brazil's 1988 Constitution, and diving at the Bonito-area sites happens inside licensed private or municipally managed attractions rather than on open public land. In Bonito, visits to attractions have been controlled since 1995 by a municipal single voucher (voucher único) bought through registered local agencies, with mandatory guides and daily visitor limits per attraction. Dives are run by each attraction's own staff, under requirements each operator publishes. The sales model was under public debate in 2026, with the municipality opening a tender for a digital voucher platform in August 2026.
A general summary; each site page gives its own dated access information.
5
Cave systems
Abismo Anhumas
Gruta do Lago Azul
Gruta do Mimoso
Lagoa Misteriosa
Poço Azul
5
Entrances and dive sites
| Site | Cave system | Type | Access | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Abismo AnhumasBonito | Abismo Anhumas | Sinkhole | Open to qualified divers, with conditions |
 |
Gruta do Lago AzulBonito | Gruta do Lago Azul | Cave entrance | Restricted access |
| Gruta do MimosoBonito | Gruta do Mimoso | Cave entrance | Open to qualified divers, with conditions | |
 |
Lagoa MisteriosaJardim | Lagoa Misteriosa | Sinkhole | Open to qualified divers, with conditions |
 |
Poço AzulNova Redenção (Chapada Diamantina) | Poço Azul | Sinkhole | Access status not verified |
3
Dive centres and guides
| Provider | Where | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| Abismo Anhumas | Bonito | 2026-10-14 |
| Gruta do Mimoso | Bonito | 2026-10-14 |
| Lagoa Misteriosa | Jardim | 2026-10-14 |
A listing is not an endorsement.
Every fact on this page, with its source (5)
| Fact | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Under the 1988 Constitution, natural underground cavities are property of the federal Union.Stated in 2021 coverage of the Gruta do Lago Azul cession; constitutional text not opened. | Reported | [3] |
| Bonito's single voucher (voucher único) was instituted in 1995; visitors buy it through agencies and need it to enter attractions.Press sources; the 2012 IMASUL visitation order for Gruta do Lago Azul (s4) also requires the voucher único for that site. | Reported | [1] [2] |
| A 1995 law made guides mandatory for visitors at Bonito's attractions, and attractions limit visitors per day and per activity.Law number not given in the source. | Reported | [1] |
| In September 2026 the municipal administration and some business owners were arguing for attractions to be allowed to sell visits directly; the city had opened a tender for an integrated digital voucher platform in August 2026, and some attractions already sell directly according to the attractions association Atratur.No formal proposal had reached the City Council at the time of the report. | Reported | [2] |
| Lagoa Misteriosa reopened in late July 2011 after the state environment agency IMASUL issued its operating licence on 22 July 2011; it had been closed since 2005 for lack of an environmental licence.2011 press report. | Reported | [5] |
Verified: stated by an official or primary source we opened. Reported: from a secondary source only. Sources conflict: the note gives both versions. May be out of date: the newest source we found is old.
Written in our own words from the sources above. Report a correction