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Travel: Carlsbad Caverns


Carlsbad Caverns is located in Carlsbad New Mexico. It is a National Park and features more than 100 caves in the area. You don’t need a reservation to be able to walk through the caves, but if you do want a guided tour you have to call in ahead of time. Adults 16 and up have to pay an entrance fee of $15 per person and kids 15 and under are free. Additional fees may be included if you choose to do a guided tour. The park entrance is on US Highway 62/180, and is approximately 18 miles away from the city of Carlsbad. If you prefer flying, the nearest airport is Cavern City Air Terminal, which is 6 miles away from Carlsbad. Costs for flights vary, depending on where you are coming from. The cheapest flights start at $79 and can be as high as $1,000.


There are 2 main ways to enter the cavern, the Big Room or the Natural Entrance. The Big Room has an elevator and descends 754 feet down, and has a short walk to get to the Big Room. It is 3,600 feet long and 600 feet wide, where the largest formations are found. The cave itself is dark, and the path is lit with electric light to give a more astounding view. The lights are all white to give a more natural glow to the rocks. Inside the cave is the Bottomless Pit, which is 120 feet deep and no one is allowed down there. The other entrance is the Natural Entrance. This is a long path that zigzags down into the darkness of the caves. This entrance is where Mexican free-tail bats live, and you can watch up to 300,000 bats emerge from the caves at sunset. Some of the stagmalites in the narrow tunnels are Devil’s Spring and Boneyard. This entrance also leads to the Big Room, after walking down the paths, where you can take the elevator back up to the surface.


If you want to take a break and go to a hotel, there are plenty in the surrounding areas in Carlsbad. Most of the hotels are around 17- 18 miles away from the National Park, and depending on the hotel the prices range from $42 per night up to $180 per night.






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