An indoor pool in Italy is giving new meaning to the deep end and it's slightly terrifying.
It's not quite as scary as swimming in a glass-bottom pool above the Shanghai skyline or as overwhelming as the world's largest pool in Chile, but the Y-40 pool in Italy is equally cool.
The pool was designed by architect Emanuele Boaretto and is housed on the grounds of Hotel Terme Millepini near Padua, Italy. According to the project's website, Boaretto's goal was "to build the best swimming pool in the world." While that measurement is a bit subjective, the pool is Guinness World Records-certified as the world's deepest swimming pool for diving.
Y-40's name is a reference to its depth, with the "-40" denoting that the pool plunges about 40 meters -- or about 131 feet -- at its deepest. (Guinness claims it's even deeper).
According to Guinness, the pool holds 1,135,939 gallons of thermal water and is currently "used for dive training, leisure diving and scientific research." It's easy to visit the hotel and explore the adjoining Y-40 pool, as you can just sign up to book a hotel room and a dive at the same time.
Visitors who don't feel like diving can walk through the pool's transparent tunnel to see divers and then venture out to explore the beautiful Euganean Hills.
The hotel also has fun for families who just want to splash around in the whirlpool or spa-goers who crave a relaxing vacation weekend.