11 Magical Caves in Germany You Can Visit

Atta Cave

Atta Cave is often listed among Germany’s most beautiful limestone caves and draws no less than 40 million people underground each year. Approximately 90 kilometres (56 miles) from both Cologne and Dortmund, the queen of all dripstone caves encompassed an area of more 6 kilometres (3.7 miles), though only a third is accessible to visitors. Tours explore the dazzling labyrinth of stalagmites and stalactites almost daily.

Finnentroper Straße 39, Attendorn, Germany, +49 9 2722 9375 0

Atta Cave I Courtesy of Atta Höhle

Kalkberg Cave Bad Segeberg

Bad Segeberg is small town all the way in northern Germany, 60 kilometres (37 miles) from Hamburg. The cave was discovered in 1913 and has since fascinated visitors from across the world. But tourists are not the only ones who feel drawn to the underground world – more than 25,000 bats use the sheltered system to hibernate each winter. To protect the animals, tours only run in the summer months.

Oberbergstraße 27, Bad Segeberg, Germany, +49 4551 8082 0

Kalkberg Cave Bad Segeberg I Courtesy of Noctalis picture archive

Devil’s Cave

The Teufelshöhle, or Devil’s Cave, is found in Pottenstein, a good one-hour drive north of Nuremberg. Over a period of nearly three million years, faults and rainwater have created a 3 kilometre (1.9 mile)-long maze of delicate and vast dripstone caves. Today, the underground attraction draws tourists to the site but the unearthed skeletons of the now-extinct cave bears proves that the large mammals inhabited the caved some 25,000 years ago.

Teufelshöhle, B470, Pottenstein, Germany, +49 9243 208

Devil’s Cave I Courtesy of Tourismusbüro Pottenstein

Klutert Cave

Underground lakes, bizarre rock formations and a maze of 380 tunnels traverse the Kluterhöhle cave system. Fossilised remains of shells, corals and sponges plaster the rocky walls and bear witness to the time when a reef covered the region near Dortmund. Themed tours highlight various aspects of the cave. Adventurers should look into the ‘XX-Treme tour’ which guides guests through narrow passageways and pitch-black caverns.

Gasstraße 10, Ennepetal, Germany, +49 2333 9880 11

Klutert Cave I © Jens Pommerenke

Schellenberg Ice Cave

At the southwestern tip of Germany, near the Austrian border, the Schellenberg ice cave grants views into the permanently frozen underground of the Berchtesgaden Alps. The fascinating cave is open to the public though visiting is reserved for those who undertake several hours of hiking up to an altitude of 1,000 metres (3,281 feet). In winter the entrance is snowed under, but with the warming temperatures in spring, the meltwater runs off and congeals to bizarre ice formations. The cave can only be explored as part of a guided tour between May and October.

Marktschellenberg, Germany, +49 8650 270

Schellenberg Ice Cave I Courtesy of Berchtesgadener Land Tourismus

Kubach Crystal Cave

This cave is the only one of its kind in Germany and wows walls adorned with glistening crystals that shine in myriad colours. Tours take visitors underground and into the 30 metre (98 feet)-high cave that has been carved into the 350 million-year-old limestone by natural processes.

Auf dem Kalk 1, Weilburg/Kubach, Germany, +49 6471 9400 0

Kubach Crystal Cave I Courtesy of GEOPARK Westerwald-Lahn-Taunus

Syrau Dragon’s Cave

Drachenhöhle translates to ‘dragon’s cave’ – this cave is made up of mystical rock formations and crystal-clear underground lakes that gleam in a green colour. Construction workers discovered the cave by chance in 1928, and it was made accessible to the public a few months later. Today, several events draw people to the cave, including laser shows which illuminate the spectacular ‘Walhalla’ cavern in the summer months.

Höhlenberg 10, Paul-Seifert-Straße, Syrau, Germany, +49 37431 3735

Syrau Dragon’s Cave I Courtesy of Drachenhöhle / Andreas Wetzel

Baumann’s Cave

In the midst of the Harz mountains, Baumann’s Cave was opened as Germany’s first show cave in 1646 and has since welcomed millions of visitprs. Fascinating forms of stalactites and stalagmites decorate the many caverns, and the largest hall has been named after the cave’s most famous visitor, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Today, the room sees occasional concerts and plays and a stage and seating have been installed for that purpose.

Blankenburger Straße 36, Oberharz am Brocken / Rübeland, Germany, +49 3945 449132

Baumann’s Cave I Courtesy of Tourismusbetrieb der Stadt Oberharz am Brocken / Jan Reichel

Unicorn Cave

For centuries people flocked to the large cave on the western end of the Harz region, spurred on by the hope of finding unicorn bones, which were a popular remedy in the Middle Ages. In the 17th century, it became clear that the ‘unicorn’ bones stemmed from the ancient cave bear rather than unicorns, and the hype subsided. Today, guided tours take visitors into the 600 metre (1,969 feet)-deep cave system.

Im Rott, Herzberg am Harz, Germany, +49 5521 9975 59

Unicorn Cave I © Unicorncave / WikiCommons

Do you need more travel inspiration for an enchanting holiday in Germany? Then take a look at our list of 17 magical places.