Doolin Cave

Doolin Cave is located in the Burren north of Doolin Village. This cave is home to the "Great Stalactite" and is considered a world class natural tourist attraction. I love visiting natural attractions like this. Nature always amazes me.

 We arrived early in the day and had a small tour group. It was my friend and I, a couple from New Mexico and their driver. We had a great tour guide, Jim, who was extremely knowledgeable about the cave and surrounding area. The tour starts out by entering the cave and descending about 80 feet underground. At the bottom of the entrance everyone is given hard hats before continuing further into the cave.

The cave is low in some spots and you have to occasionally bend over. There were a couple times where my hard hat scraped against the cave. There is a reason for those hard hats! The stalactite is around 23 feet long. We learned that it is the longest free hanging stalactite in the northern hemisphere. It's quite a thing to see. It's amazing to walk into the cavern and see it hanging from the ceiling as if it's a chandelier. The stalactite is definitely the centerpiece of the room. At the top of the room everyone poses for pictures with the stalactite in the background. The tour guide was kind enough to take pictures of everyone.

 

There is a platform at the bottom of the cavern that everyone is able to walk down to and take more pictures. Unfortunately, I didn't have the flash attachment on my camera and had to rely on my friend for all the pictures. Our guide informed us that they are opening another cavern and was hoping to have it finished by November of 2013. If I'm every in the area again I will have to stop and see the new cavern. This isn't a strenuous or challenging walk through the cave. I think anyone could do this, except very small children and older people who are not in shape. The only things I could see presenting a challenge would be the amount of stairs you have to climb up and down, bending over and the metal walk ways are wet and slippery.

This is an attraction that you want to wear comfortable, closed toe shoes. I wore my Merrell hiking shoes for most of this trip. Remember it is always cold in caves, so dress accordingly. At one point you are about 200 feet below ground. Chilly! Once the tour is over (about 45 minutes to an hour long) there is a nature trail you can walk or enjoy food at their café.

There is a café, gift shop and bathroom facilities on site. We chose not to walk the nature trail, because we had a busy day ahead of us. Flash photography is allowed: don't forget your flash attachment like I did!

The cave is opened from March to November from 10am until 5pm. Tour times are at 10am, 11am and every half hour starting at 11:30am.

                             Tour Prices:
Adult: 15 euros
Child: 8 euros
Family: 50 euros

If you book your tour online there is a discount. I was able to get a student discount off my prices with an id. It's not advertised, but I would ask. Doolin Cave is truly a hidden gem and I highly recommend stopping if you are in the area. Check out their website: http://www.doolincave.ie/

Aillwee Caves

Aillwee Caves are karst caves located underground. They are located in County Clare, Ireland. This is area is commonly referred to as the Burren. The region itself is a wild, beautiful, dramatic scenery. I loved driving through it. Ireland is a abundant in breathtaking scenery. I'm discovering that I favor wild, dramatic beauty. When you pull up you are greeted by a guard. She explained everything that was offered at Aillwee Caves and that is when you purchase your ticket.

 There is plenty besides the caves to do here. They have a lord of prey center, the hawk walk (I don't think this was offered while we were there, but it looks pretty cool), the wolf den (survival skills) and a farm shop. We only paid for the cave, but we stopped at the farm shop on our way up the hill. They have homemade goods for sell, drinks, cheese and fudge. They offered us free samples of the cheese and fudge. The cheese was so good that we bought some to take with us. I still talk about how good that cheese was and how I wish I could have some right now! It was delicious!
Once you make it to the top of the hill, there is parking available and you enter Aillwee Caves. Outside of the entrance you have a prime photography spot of the burren. There is a panoramic view of the burren. The town and coast look like tiny little dots! Inside is where you wait for your cave time. There is a gift shop to browse and a cozy tearoom.

 

The tour is 30 minutes and it's all walking. The cave floor and metal bridges are damp and wet, so plan your footwear accordingly. For the majority of our trip I wore my Merrells and my friend wore her converse with no problem. This was not physically active, especially the other cave we toured. I saw families with very young children in the tour groups before and after us.
At one point inside the cave they do turn the lights off. It was pitch black and you could see nothing. I have never been in darkness like that before. I imagine that is what a black hole would look like. I stuck my hand in front of my face and I still could not see it . . . not event the outline. I don't know how the people who discovered it kept digging in such darkness.

It was a good tour filled with local history. They explain how the cave was discovered. There are even bones inside the cave of a 2,000 year old brown bear that is now extinct. It used to roam that area, but no longer. I would recommend this cave to visitors. We did visit another cave and in comparision Aillwee Caves seemed more commercialized and touristy, but I'm still glad I visited. Don't forget your cheese on the way out!

If you purchase tickets online it will save you money! Check it out . . . http://www.aillweecave.ie/.