Shenandoah Caverns

The caverns themselves were pretty cool, although they use lost of colored lights to «enhance» the formations. It’s more realistic and authentic to see them lit up with white/​natural light. The tour guide we had was a young woman who did not want to engage in conversation, even though people in our group tried. When we were on the tour, we would ask a question and she would give an «I don’t know» or a very brief answer, before continuing with her canned speech. It was almost as if we were taking her away from something else. So while the formations were beautiful, the experience with the young woman soured the experience. The gift shop had lots of items for sale and while we didn’t purchase any, it was enough to keep one entertained. There is a neat stairwell to the base of the cave but we weren’t allowed to use the stairs, probably for safety reasons. After the tour, we explored this weird add-​on area that housed former float décor and animated characters. They were really creepy and nightmare-​ish. It’s where the float characters come to die. Worth exploring because there isn’t much out there like it.

Had a good time learning a little bit of the history of the caves. It’s okay to shed the coat on a cold day outside because the caves stay a natural warm 55 degrees. The staff takes you on a one-​mile walking tour through the cavern and shows an impressive array of the natural formations built by mother nature. Who knew… aside from geologists. that is takes 125 years for a stalactite to grow 1 cubic inch?
Above the cavern is a general type store where you can grab a fountain soda at the snack bar or search through the souvenir shop to find that perfect and unique gift of collectible.
I would recommend Shenandoah Caverns for the rock enthusiast and naturalist types.

This is a great day trip within the DC area! The tour lasted an hour and was approximately one hour. One of the members of our group is in a wheelchair and most of the tour was available to him. There is an elevator down to the cavern and only two spots where he had to miss out within the cavern. We did have someone strong pushing and it was a bit of a challenge, but we made it work. The best part was that they did not charge us for his ticket. There is a cute store there as well with some great souvenirs. This is definetly worth a trip!

It was toss up between this place and luray. I had read that luray was super crowded and over the top. This place had a groupon and we decided to give it a try! Pretty easy and close off the highway.
A nice amount of parking, not sure what it is like in the summer, thinking it could get super crazy and you just park down below at the yellow bar or one of the other places.
The tour itself is an hour and at first you think that isn’t very long, but it is. The 1930’s elevator starts it off… dropping you 60 feet below the surface of the ground… yikes! ;)
The bacon «sheets» were indeed pretty amazing and it was fun to see «the one that was in the national geographic in 1964»
Definitely some different features than i have seen in other cave tours across the country. The «waves» and tubes and sheets and bacon and crystal ones were all neat too look at!
People were able to bring their kids in strollers. which i guess can be a bonus, to me it’s just annoying. There is one part where the strollers must be left behind.
what you see in these caverns is all their is. They have opened up all that they can for the public to view.
We enjoyed our time! The soda shop was closed — so that was a bummer.
The «main street» tour was open… it’s a good 10 min stroll but definitely creepy!
All in all — take a trip and enjoy the land under the ground!

Not as large and flashy as Luray, but you are able to get much closer to mother nature. There were only four of us on the tour so we got to ask a lot of questions. Got dripped on a bit but it was kind of exciting in its own way — I felt more like an explorer than a tourist! I am 5’6″ so the bending wasn’t too bad. I am glad I went. There were some gorgeous formations!

The single biggest thing that separates these caverns from any other place in the area is that they have an elevator! That means that really young children (strollers) and the elderly can visit here!
We came here on a Friday afternoon last month that the munchkins had off from school. Location-​wise this place is only a couple of hours west from Howard County and maybe only 2.5 hours west of the Baltimore area, so it’s definitely a day trip!
The caverns were pretty amazing. I’m a full-​on adult and I’d never been to see caverns. It’s one of those things that will still blow you away no matter how many fancy electronics you are used to playing with. The munchkins were pretty impressed.
The tour itself was about 1.8 miles, but all pretty much flat (see earlier comments about elevators).
The tickets are not very expensive (and they offer discounts every once in awhile as well), so take an afternoon and enjoy yourself.

Very nice one day trip. I am always amazed at natures beauty. About a mile and an eighth cavern total. Some spots were narrow and low. Very humid and damp naturally. You will get humidity hair lol.
There are two other attractions on the property. Don’t waste your time in the yellow barn but the building with the statue of liberty is full of huge parade floats from popular parades. This was different and pretty cool.

Loved it. Nice homey feel. Not as crowded as Luray. Had an elevator for handicapped. Everyone had a great time. Our guide was very knowledgable.

Went on a day trip to the Caverns with a great Group On deal. The caverns were beautiful but don’t forget to grab a sweater. I was a little disappointed that some stalagmite water dripped into my mouth and I didn’t get a superpower. After the caverns, we stopped by the 1957 diner. The diner was amazing and the two ladies working the counter and grill were on point! They hustled and were the perfect mix of kind and sassy. I’m almost positive that those ladies got their super powers from the stalagmite water… still disappointed I didn’t get any though.

Just returned from a visit to the caverns. The tour was well run and is about an hour. We picked it over luray caverns so we wouldn’t have crowds and we picked well. No crowds or lines. Tips:
1) bring a jacket or sweater
2) this is not for anyone who can’t bend over to duck under low rock formations and I can’t imagine someone doing this in a wheelchair.
3) wear close toed shoes unless you don’t mind the gravel getting between your toes!
4) the 1950s diner has basic American food and was tasty. Our expectations were low but my grilled cheese and my kids hamburgers were tasty. And it’s cheap.

Groupon-​ed a family trip to Shenandoah, the only thing I regret is not being able to explore around more!

A lot of fun down under! Spacious to walk with a few low spots but 99.9% open. Enjoyed the guided tour. There is a shop and little café as well. I had the root beer float. Yum!
With the ticket, you also get a ticket to the parade floats. That was really cool. See my review on that place.
If you are driving by or, like us, took a day vaca, go see these caverns and parade floats.

Awesome! Must see! We brought a groupon for entry for two for 27 bucks which included an additional 2 attractions which was a bonus! The tour lasted approximately an hour and was 1mile. The caves are breath taking!

I bought a Groupon for my daughter and I and we went on our way! It’s a beautiful drive and she had never been before.
The ticket for the actual cavern tour also includes admission to 2 other buildings and wine tastings — Bonus!
The building itself was great as while we were waiting for the tour to begin (they run almost every 20 minutes) there are plenty of things to look at and explore!
The tour itself was spectacular and very interesting. The history of the caverns was also very interesting. Our tour guide was very knowledgable and very funny.
I would definitely go again!

After many days of snow shoveling and deadline for projects at work, wife and I escaped to Woodstock Va to visit the Cavern at Shenandoah Virginia. We began our exploration of Shenandoah Caverns by boarding an elevator. They are the only Virginia Caverns with elevator service. The elevator was installed in 1931, and though it’s been updated, it still feels like you’re stepping back in time as you descend 60 feet to the caverns floor. Step off the elevator and enter into another world. Angel and I joined a tour that lasted for 1 hour walking through the various sections of the cavern. It was damp and a little muggy, but the sights far outweighed the 1−½ mile trek. My plan was to take awesome photos of the caverns main attractions. I highly recommend the visit to Shenandoah Caverns.

The caverns were great, the guides were helpful, careful, and knowledgeable. Lots of creative lighting, cool formations, and stories to go with the caverns.
Not so great? The creepy doll museums, and the tacky gift store with the same stuff as every other gift store attached to something that should be good enough on it’s own.
They start tours every 15 – 20 minutes, an elevator cut right out of the rock takes you down into the caves. You tag-​team with other tours in a coordinated way within the small spaces, it takes about 80 – 90 minutes to complete, and then you’re done!
Again, caves, good. All the other stuff, bad.

I’ve never been to any caverns and let me tell you, these things are worth seeing in person.
They are fantastic.
The shenandoah caverns were huge! The staff were friendly and we got a guided tour.
Trip took about 1.5 hours.
They have an elevator to go up and down the caverns. Lots of walking.

Make sure that you eat lunch (preferably with bacon if you’re an omnivore) before visiting this cavern. Because, when you leave here, you will be craving bacon like nobody’s business due to the formations shaped like them here. But vegetarians are not safe either since a lot of the formations here closely resemble carrots as well. There are more gastronomical looking geological formations here than I believed possible!
But besides the very unique bacon formations (thin brown, curvy, stalactites caused by the correct mixture of minerals and water droplets), there was not nearly enough to justify $ 23 a person in my opinion. Even though this admission fee includes not only the caves but a float museum next door.
The tour is a little over a mile and a little over an hour but it was far less interactive and informative than a lot of tours. And I felt like we didn’t see that many rooms. The ones we did see seemed really cold because the amount of white formations made it feel downright snowy inside the cavern.
One highlight I have to mention is a giant boulder that fell during the last earthquake to hit the caverns directly about 7000 years ago and is being held up, barely, by three walls of the cavern. Getting to go underneath it and seeing the exact points where it could come unstuck at any moment (I was scared to ask what happened in the cavern during the D.C. earthquake a few years back) was thrilling. There was also a cool echo chamber and some impressive rooms with very high ceilings. But a lot of the excitement of the tour came from florescent lighting and not from natural marvels.
But the completely natural food formations, while not worth the price of admission alone, are definitely a sight to be seen once.

The caverns tour is a lot of fun and definitely worth the trip to get out for the day and explore something new. I got a Groupon and was pleasantly surprised with the good deal. Our tour lasted a little over an hour, and we walked for a little over a mile I think. The formations are pretty impressive and our tour guide knew what she was talking about.
My wife and I brought some picnic food with us and had lunch after the tour in a tree-​covered grassy area by the building — it was was very nice.
All that said, the rest of everything surrounding the caverns — the shop, diner, weird American Celebration museum, etc — are all very gimmicky tourist traps that take away from the overall experience. So just go for the caverns.

I had a fantastic experience here. My friend boy and I came here yesterday (Friday day) to enjoy the sites. He has been previously a few times, but not in recent years. He decided we would go here on a whim. Oh how I love his spontaneity.
We arrived around 4pm. We got our tickets for $ 23 a piece. He generously picked that up since I got our lunch earlier in DC. Our tickets include entry to the caverns, the American Celebration exhibit and the Yellow Barn.
American Celebration exhibit holds old parade floats and random stuff. The contents of this exhibit really didn’t entice me so much as it would for children. What got me was the Yellow Barn where it had old bicycles, old cars, Virginia wine tasting, and a honey bee exhibit. All again sort of random. Consider these huge tourist traps that do not really contribute to any point of the actual caverns. The caverns are what I wanted to see, and that is what I was there to do. I guess these extra add ons are for the kids probably more so than the adults minus the wine sampling.
CAVERNS
I loved the caverns. Our tour guide did exactly what the other reviews say — he pointed out rock formations that looked like bacon and carrots. Though I appreciate the obvious gestures of him repeatedly pointing these out, I feel the actual tour guide was lacking information on the caverns. It was not very scientific or historical. Yeah, he gave us some info, but mainly it seemed like he was pointing out the obvious. Ever seen that dog treat commercial where they say ‘LOOK! IT’S BACOOOOOOOOOOON!’ I felt like that every time he pointed to another rock formation that looked like… well… bacon.
Regardless of the tour guide, the caverns themselves are absolutely stunning. It is worth the whole hour down there. They’re beautifully intact and well preserved. I sure hope that $ 23 admission fee goes to maintaining that place!
As previously mentioned, the lights are shut on and off by tour guide as you progress from one area to another. He was making sure everyone was out of the place before moving on – but if you bring your kids here, make sure you keep them in tow because it would take no effort to losing one of them in the pitch darkness when they have hide and seek on their mind. One of the kids on the tour attempted this and failed. It was funny seeing the parents giving him hell when he was at the age and knew better. He was probably 7.
Bring a light jacket for those of you who get cold easily. I wore mine at first, but ditched it half way through the tour. Some people went with and some went without. It is worth carrying even if you shed it for a just in case purpose.
Overall experience was great! I would totally recommend coming here. Even if you don’t like corny tourist traps, you should still check out the Yellow Barn and such. Get your full money’s worth of your visit by checking out the whole place, not just the caverns.