Caverns Tours
Visit Virginia’s most unique and beautiful underground wonder at Shenandoah Caverns!
The only Virginia caverns with elevator service!
Since 1922, Shenandoah Caverns has been a premier tourist destination in Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley. Visitors from around the world marvel at our breathtaking natural wonders, incredible geology and extraordinary crystalline formations found 200 feet below ground level.
- See the famous “Breakfast Bacon” formations so unusual that they appeared in National Geographic magazine
- Be amazed at the size of our soaring Long View Hall
- Look for formations like Capitol Dome, Rainbow Lake and Beyond the Veil
- View the extraordinary crystalline formations of Diamond Cascade
- Welcome a “cave kiss” that brings good luck
- Elevator access!
Shenandoah Caverns Tour Details
All tours are personally led by knowledgeable guides who will highlight the wonders of our underground world and answer questions as you walk through 17 spectacular rooms and passageways. Tours take one hour in a year-round 56-degree temperature. Bring a light jacket and comfortable walking shoes.
Caverns tours cover one mile on a crushed gravel pathway, with some inclines and declines. Shenandoah Caverns is the only Virginia caverns with an elevator to access the caverns, however, since the caverns are a natural wonder, they cannot be made 100% ADA accessible without destroying their natural qualities. For questions about accessibility, please contact us at (540) 477-3115 to discuss your visit.
How Shenandoah Caverns was Formed
Shenandoah Caverns was begun millions of years ago by underground rivers and earth movements.
As water flowed through the soil above, the droplets picked up minerals and deposited them on the ceilings, floors and walls of the open space, creating stalactites, stalagmites, and crystalline formations.
Different types of formations grow depending upon the minerals and the speed of the water as it drips, as well as the rock onto which it is dripping.
For example, to create the bacon formations, the water runs down the sloped surface of the rock above, leaving a long, thin strip of minerals behind.
Formations grow at only one cubic inch every 100-125 years!
Take home a special memory from the Shenandoah Caverns Gift Shop
Open during lobby hours
Our large Gift Shop at Shenandoah Caverns is located in our lobby and features a wide variety of items ranging from caverns-logo clothing and memorabilia, geodes and handmade jewelry, to our Shenandoah Caverns wine selection. Arrive early and select an item to remind you of your trip here.
Don’t Miss our Post Office!
Our Lobby area also features what could be the Smallest Post Office in America! Purchase a postcard in our gift shop and mail it from the post office to your friends and family back home.
