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🇧🇷 Brazil · Goiás
♨ Temperature
42°C
⛰ Altitude
795 m
⚗ pH
7.1
💧 TDS
520 mg/L
🌊 Flow rate
—
📅 Established
Springs discovered 1772; resort development 1930s+
✓ Verified on 2026-07-22
Caldas Novas is a thermal resort city in the state of Goiás, Brazil, centred on a geothermal aquifer system covering approximately 3,500 square kilometres of the Brazilian Cerrado plateau. The water emerges from deep Precambrian crystalline basement rocks approximately 600 million years old that retain residual geological heat. Temperatures range from 37°C in shallower pools to over 52°C at the hottest artesian wells. The thermal area encompasses both the city of Caldas Novas and the adjacent Rio Quente resort complex, where a naturally warm river flows at comfortable bathing temperature for several kilometres. The region offers hundreds of thermal pools across dozens of resorts, hotels, and public parks — statistically the largest thermal water tourism complex in the world by visitor numbers. The water chemistry is mildly mineralised with a near-neutral pH, making it agreeable for extended soaking by visitors of all ages.
| Sodium | 48 mg/L |
| Bicarbonate | 185 mg/L |
| Silica | 22 mg/L |
| Calcium | 18 mg/L |
| Fluoride | 0.6 mg/L |
The Cerrado plateau of central Brazil — one of the world's most biodiverse tropical savannas — sits atop geological basement rocks dating to the Precambrian era. The thermal springs of Caldas Novas emerge from fractures in this ancient rock, documented by Portuguese colonists in 1772. The region's name literally means 'new hot springs', a nod to the discovery's impact on colonial settlement of the interior.
Caldas Novas is primarily a domestic Brazilian tourism destination: families from Goiânia, Brasília, and São Paulo travelling by road for weekend and holiday stays. The thermal pool culture here is informal, social, and family-centred — grandparents, children, and teenagers sharing the same warm water in a setting that is more beach resort than European spa. This democratisation of thermal bathing — accessible, affordable, and abundant — is one of Caldas Novas' most distinctive features.
The Precambrian aquifer beneath Caldas Novas is studied for long-term sustainability given the large volume of water extracted across hundreds of artesian wells. Brazilian federal and state environmental agencies regulate well drilling and extraction volumes. The naturally warm Rio Quente river represents the most energy-efficient expression of the thermal resource, flowing without pumping.
Websitewww.caldasnovas.go.gov.br
AddressCaldas Novas, Goiás, Brazil