Natural Bridge Caverns is in San Antonio, Texas and was approx 1 hour and 15 minutes away from our hotel in Austin, Texas. You can read about it’s history here but it was discovered in March of 1960 and is open to the public through 75 minute private group or guided general admission tour.
We took the Discovery Tour (180 feet) which is perfect for those with young children. There are no strollers allowed so we didn’t bring Cutie Pie, and I think that was a good decision. Parts of the tour are very humid, wet and slippery. The formations were amazing and our tour guide, Rachel, did a great job explaining the formations to the children and even reviewing with them what they had learned. Our favorite formations were: soda straws, curtains, ribbons, chandeliers and columns.
Afterward we visited the gift shop and purchased some bags of dirt to try our hand at panning. It was a lot of fun and the kids enjoyed finding fossils, gems, and arrowheads. I was very impressed with the set up for this activity. Not only were there quite a few “stations” but they were also at varied heights so that children could easily participate. If you visit Natural Bridge Caverns, don’t pass this activity up.
Visit the Natural Bridge Caverns website for more information or to download lesson plans. The pictures below just cannot do the place justice. It was by far one of the most memorable field trips we had in Texas. Please be patient for the photo widget to load!
Also near Natural Bridge Caverns is a drive through safari. In my opinion it does not compare to Lion Country Safari so I did not take any pictures.
I can’t believe that I have lived in TX most of life and have never been to the Caverns. But I’ve seen tons of billboards for them!
We went there on our honeymoon. We were kids! I guess we need to take our kids there.
Cute header on your blog.
Great field trip! Makes me want to plan a cave theme field trip!
I know what you mean about the pictures not doing the experience justice. Same here with the Ape Cave in WA state (lava tubes by Mt. St. Helens).
And we’ve done Carlsbad, too, and these wonders are so memorable!
Sounds like a wonderful trip!
Angela
I love cave trips. We actually have been to a Natural Caverns up in our part of the world (southeast) and loved it.
That looks like fun! My son is learning about cave formations presently in science. 😀