Carlsbad Caverns National Park, NM

If you love caves, stalactites or stalagmites, then you need to plan a trip to Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico! Guys, this place is beautiful! There are more that 119 caves below the surface, which was formed when sulfuric acid dissolved limestone leaving behind caverns of all sizes. What’s crazy is all of the cavern used to be underwater and filled with coral reef & aquatic life! They also have a FREE nightly bat flight show (call the office to find out the exact time each day, although it’s normally in the 7-7:45pm time frame) where you can see 300,000 to 400,000 exiting the cave to go hunting! Unfortunately there is no photography or filming the flight but it’s impressive none the less and who doesn’t like free?? The stairway you see winding down wasn’t created until 1925 and before that patrons would take an old guano mining bucket down, yikes! (See picture below from the national park services website)

Fun random fact: Amelia Earhart was briefly a cave guide at the caverns!

You can either do a self guided tour, Learn about the park with a ranger, or a self guided audio tour. You also have to option to walk down the natural cave entrance or if you would rather not walk the steep path down, you can take the elevator right to the Big Room (which is almost 4,000 feet long), walk around for a bit, then head back up the elevator. We elected to walk the entire system and boy, it didn’t disappoint! The Big Room is the 5th largest chamber in North America and the 28th largest in the world (that’s been uncovered so far).

There is also a very limited “snack bar” inside the Big Room by the elevators as well as a “gift shop” (circular counter with t-shirts, etc). You can bring your own water only, no other drinks or food since it can mess with the entire ecosystem in the cave, but for sure bring water if you’re walking the entire path like we did.

The temperature stays moderately cool but I’m a little hot natured so I really wish I would have worn shorts in addition to my tank top, but live and learn in my case!

The caverns are a must see if you’re in the area & we can’t wait to go back one day!!

One side note: while the caverns itself isn’t dog friendly, you can kennel your beloved pooch there in what I’ll call a “doggie storage room” for just $10 for the day! They are unattended kennels so make sure to walk them before you put them up. They give them water and you’re allowed to bring their bed/blanket, toys and food so for $10 it’s worth it. You are ONLY allowed to leave them in the vehicles IF the temp is 70 degrees or below, but I’d still rather kennel them personally. In town you will also find an awesome store called Leslie’s Antiques & Kennels with the most friendly owner, Leslie!