Off-Trail Tour

Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve Tours

Experience the wild wondrous Oregon Caves off-trail! Trained guides will teach you caving techniques, cave etiquette, and bring you face-to-face with the marble structure of Oregon Caves. This four-hour experience through tight squeezes and crawls will challenge and exhilarate you! This is a very strenuous, adventurous experience. Scramble boulders, belly crawl, negotiate uneven rock piles and squeeze yourself through confined cave passages as small as 11 inches by 19 inches. The only source of light is your caving headlamp! Youth must be a minimum of 15 years of age and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Participants must wear their own over-the-ankle hiking boots with good traction. All other gear is provided. Failure to provide proper footwear could result in denied cave entry. 

Select a date to see a list of times

Need to Know

• Payment

  Only credit/debit cards are accepted for all cave tour fees, campground fees, and Interagency Passes.

  Entrance to Oregon Caves National Monument and Preserve is free, but cave access is only available with a guide.

• Cave Entry:

  The Oregon Caves are not accessible without a guided tour. Advanced reservations are highly recommended. Limited same-day tickets are available for purchase first-come, first served at both of our visitor center locations.

• Claiming Tour Tickets:

  All Ticket holders must check-in at the Oregon Caves visitor center desk no less than 30 minutes prior to the reserved tour time for a safety message. Late arrival can result in denied cave entry. Allow 60 minutes drive time from Cave Junction to the Monument. NO REFUNDS for late arrivals. Parking lot check-in DOES NOT meet our reservation check-in requirements.

• Drive Time and Directions:

  The drive from Cave Junction to the Oregon Caves takes a minimum of 60 minutes. The last several miles are narrow, steep, and winding. Large RV's and Travel Trailers are not recommended. Vehicles over 46' are prohibited. Car sickness is a common occurrence.

  Please, DO NOT, trust Google Map, GPS devices and similar applications - from the east these direct you through Williams, Oregon and over a confusing route on mountainous gravel roads. Western travelers are promised an earlier arrival time than safely possible.

  Maintain your lane. We understand the route is narrow and mountainous, but for your safety and everyone else traveling Hwy. 46, please, maintain your lane at all times.

• Children's Age Requirement:

  Participants must be at least 15 years of age with a parent or guardian present. NO REFUNDS for children reserved under age or the adult that must remain with them.

• What to wear:

  You will be provided a jumpsuit to wear over your clothes. You will need to bring boots that cover your ankles (NOT high-top shoes).

• Protect the Bats:

  Do not wear clothes, shoes or other items worn or carried in another cave or mine. White-nose Syndrome is a fungus that kills 90-95% of bats it encounters. The fungus spreads with spores carried on clothes and other items. Washing detergents do not kill the spores. Wear nothing worn in another cave or mine!

• • Bags (including camera bags & purses)
  • Food, drinks, gum or candy 
  • Flashlights/headlamps
  • Walking sticks 
  • Tripods or monopods 
  • Pets 
  • Tobacco or vaping products 

  Limited lockers are available at the visitor center for a refunded 0.25 cent fee.

• Health Warning:

  Visitors with known heart or respiratory problems, poor circulation or difficulty walking long distances and negotiating stairs, should carefully consider their limitations. Evacuation from the cave to a hospital for medical attention could take several hours.  

  The Cave is very narrow in some areas and not recommended for those with extreme claustrophobia.

• Inter-Agency Pass Holder Discounts:

  Visitors with America the Beautiful Senior and America the Beautiful Access passes must apply their pass information to their reservation as well as bring both the physical pass and pass holder photo identification to the counter at check-in. 

  Tour discounts only apply to the pass holder, per pass. Misapplied discounts will be charged at the check-in counter.

  America the Beautiful Annual, Military, Every Kid Outdoor, and Volunteer passes do not apply to expanded amenity fees, such as tours. 

• Accessibility:

  Only the first room of the cave is wheelchair accessible. For safety reasons service animals are discouraged along most of the cave route, though at the owners discretion may be used to access the first room of the cave. With advanced notice, a ranger can be assigned to personally assist persons with sight impairments through the cave. Please see health warning. (For more information: www.nps.gov/orca/planyouvisit/accesibility)

• No Food Fuel or Lodging:

  The historic Oregon Caves Chateau is closed for repairs and rehabilitation. Fuel up in Cave Junction. Pack a lunch or eat before you come. Ask our staff for local camping or lodging. 

• Camping:

  Cave Creek Campground is open for tent camping Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. Sites are available to reserve on recreation.gov and cost $20.00 per night. Sites cannot accommodate RVs or Travel Trailers.

• Pets in the Park:

  Please, there is little shade in the parking lot. If you have a pet be prepared! Pets must be on a leash and stay on paved roads when not in a vehicle. Pets are prohibited on trails, inside the cave, and in park facilities. Pets may be left unattended in vehicles, however, please be aware that if pets display signs of distress due to conditions such as hot weather, owners may be cited for endangering an animal. Whenever possible, please leave your pets at home, or look into nearby boarding options. 

• Service Animals:

  Service animals are welcome in the visitor center and other areas where pets are traditionally prohibited. For safety reasons, service animals are discouraged from the cave. This is for the safety of the handler, the animal, and other people on the tour. Guide Dogs for the Blind, Portland Campus, advised not to allow service animals into the cave because the animals become nervous or disoriented. Contact us and we will work with you to make the cave a safe, accessible, and enjoyable experience for everyone. For more information on service animals, please visit our accessibility page: https://www.nps.gov/orca/planyourvisit/accessibility.htm

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