There are numerous options for unique underground adventures in the United States and around the world.
If you want to mix up your next adventure, consider going below the surface.
An additional perk of an underground adventure is the consistent temperatures year-round, out of the elements.
Beat the heat with cooler temperatures underground in the summer and enjoy warmer temperatures below the surface in the winter as an added bonus.
I’m sharing underground adventures that I’ve personally experienced that you’ll want to add to your list.
This article contains affiliate links.
Explore Former Brewery Tunnels With American Legacy Tours
1332 Vine St, Cincinnati, OH
Mix things up and explore the history of Cincinnati beneath the surface on an Underground tour by American Legacy Tours.
You’ll learn about the area’s history both above ground and below ground, from knowledgeable guides who are fantastic storytellers.
I grew up in the Cincinnati metro and had no idea what was hidden below the surface in downtown Cincinnati before taking my first tour with their company over a decade ago.
American Legacy Tours offers several amazing underground tour options in Cincinnati.
Underground Tour highlights include exploring the former lager tunnels used for the Linck Brewery and Jackson Brewery, which date back to pre-prohibition.
Check out the following themed tours
American Legacy Tours also offers haunted tours by flashlight in Cincinnati, if you dare, for a spookier option where you’ll hear stories of paranormal activity in the tunnel.
Enjoy a Cocktail Four Stories Underground at Ghost Baby
1314 Republic Street, Cincinnati, OH
Open Tuesday through Sunday
This is THE place to go for a great date night or evening out with friends, 4 stories below Vine Street in the former lager cellars of a Cincinnati German Brewing Company.
Beer production for the company discontinued in the 1850s, and the tunnels remained vacant until they were converted into this amazing lounge and bar.
You’ll understand why reservations for the “den” with the lounge featuring live music fill up quickly after experiencing the cool vibe for yourself.
The Over the Rhine cocktail tour by Riverside Food Tours includes a stop at Ghost Baby on the tour, if you don’t want the hassle of making a table reservation in advance.
Ghost Baby doesn’t serve food, and you can visit the “Rattle Room” with a bar without a reservation.
You will need a reservation for the “den” where the lounge and live music are.
Zipline Underground and More at Louisville Mega Cavern
1841 Taylor Ave, Louisville, KY
Louisville Mega Cavern lives up to its name with 4,000,000 square feet of offices, storage spaces, and tourist activities within the cavern.
The Mega Cavern is approximately 100 acres, created by a massive limestone quarry that was mined from the 1930s to the 1970s. It’s also classified as the largest building in the state of Kentucky.
You may have tried a few of these adventures above ground, but underground is even better.
Fully Underground Zipline Course
I’ve been fortunate to go zip-lining many times, and now I’m at the point where I try to find unique zip-lining experiences.
If you’re looking for something unique, Mega Cavern has bragging rights as the world’s only fully underground zipline course.
You’ll learn more about the history of this man-made cavern, which boasts over 17 miles of underground passageways underneath the city of Louisville.
The zipline course includes 6 zip lines, two challenge bridges, and a dual racing zip.
Underground Aerial Course
Louisville Mega Cavern also offers the Mega Quest, an underground aerial course, featuring 76 challenging elements for ages 5 and up.
World’s Only Underground Holiday Light Show Drive-Thru Experience
Lights Under Louisville is the world’s only underground holiday light show drive-thru experience, or experience their Christmas Express open-air tram tour during the holiday season at Mega Cavern.
Explore and/or Sleep Overnight Inside Marengo Cave
400 East State Rd 64, Marengo, IN
Marengo Cave is Indiana’s most visited natural attraction, featuring unique formations to explore and admire.
The cave’s discovery is credited to two siblings, Orris and his sister Blanche Hiestand, on September 6, 1883.
In 1984, Marengo Cave was designated a National Natural Landmark as the most highly decorated cavern in the Interior Lowlands of the United States.
Marengo Cave is 5 miles in length, hosting two parallel underground rivers and drier upper-level passages, and 122 acres cover the grounds above the caverns.
There are two public Marengo Cave tours to choose from. The Crystal Palace Tour is a 40-minute tour that takes guests past flowstone deposits and through rooms filled with formations.
The other tour at Marengo Cave is the 60-minute Dripstone Trail, which features a penny ceiling, delicate soda straws, and totem pole stalagmites.
Spend The Night in a Cave
If you’re feeling extra adventurous, you can book an overnight to spend the night in Marengo Cave.
The Night in a Cave (NIC) sleepovers in Marengo Cave offer guests an unforgettable overnight for ages 10+ and groups of 12 or more, with four different overnight package options to choose from.
*Cave Overnight requires at least 2 weeks’ advance notice.
Paddle Through a Former Limestone Mine at The Gorge Underground
2478 Glencairn Rd, Rogers, KY
Experience Red River Gorge from another perspective below the surface with The Gorge Underground.
Paddlers are guided through an abandoned flooded limestone mine with over five miles of tunnels that date back 100+ years.
This is the coolest place to be in the summer with 52-degree temperatures year-round.
The water levels inside the cave can vary depending on the weather and the season.
In addition to kayaks with clear bottoms and fully clear kayak tours, The Gorge Underground offers boat tours and guided stand-up paddleboard tours through an abandoned Limestone mine.
The clear kayaks are VERY popular, so you’ll want to make advanced reservations for your desired dates and time.
View the Tallest and Deepest Underground Waterfall in the US at Ruby Falls
1720 S. Scenic Highway, Chattanooga, TN
Ruby Falls is the tallest and deepest underground waterfall open to the public in the United States.
Your adventure starts by descending 26 stories inside a glass-front elevator. It’s the tallest elevator shaft in Chattanooga, and the elevator goes very fast, in case that’s a concern.
All visitors to Ruby Falls must take a guided tour to view the falls. Your guide will share more about the cave and point out unique formations along the way to the falls.
The guided tour lasts about 1-1.5 hrs. Guests need to be able to walk for 1.5 hours, and it’s a half-mile walk to the waterfall, out and back.
Inside the Ruby Falls Cave, you’ll see stalagmites, columns, stalactites, flowstone, and drapery, natural rock formations.
When you reach Ruby Falls, you are 1120 ft beneath Lookout Mountain’s surface.
You can see the beauty of the 145-foot waterfall through the colored lights that change during your viewing.
Ruby Falls is a top-rated attraction for all ages. Multiple generations of families return to Ruby Falls to experience the natural beauty with the next generation.
There are also specialty tours available, including lantern tours, to experience the cave in a new light, similar to what Leo Lambert experienced back in 1928 when he discovered the falls.
There are different themed events throughout the year, including Christmas and Valentine’s Day, that are very popular.
Tickets for Ruby Falls are only available online in advance, and all tickets are timed entry to the cave.
Tip – For fewer crowds, the first tour of the day typically has the least number of people. Group tours have up to 38 people.
A One-of-a-Kind Dive Bar at the Rattlesnake Saloon
1292 Mt Mills Rd, Tuscumbia, AL
The Rattlesnake Saloon is a unique dive bar inside a cave in Northern Alabama.
The land has been in the family since 1916, and the saloon location was formerly the shelter for the hog pen.
The Rattlesnake Saloon opened Labor Day weekend in 2009, and it only took 49 days to construct.
It feels like you’re driving to the middle of nowhere, so be on high alert for deer during your drive, 30 minutes from Muscle Shoals.
After parking in the large lot, you wait at the stand for a “taxi,” aka truck, to take you down the narrow, steep road to the saloon. You can’t walk or drive to it because of its steep grade.
I’ll admit that riding in the back of a stranger’s truck down a steep road to a cave in the middle of nowhere had me laughing at the randomness of our spontaneous adventure, but it was absolutely worth it.
The family-friendly saloon serves food and drinks, and guests can enjoy live music on weekend nights.
Alcohol is only served after 5 PM, and you need to have your ID ready.
Explore the Largest Underground Cave System in the World at Mammoth Cave National Park
1 Mammoth Cave Parkway, Mammoth Cave, KY
Mammoth Cave National Park is the longest known cave system in the world and lives up to its mammoth name.
There are more than 426+ miles surveyed and mapped by explorers, and they continue to discover new parts of the cave.
The cave also has bragging rights as one of the oldest tourist attractions in North America, dating back to 1816.
You must be on a cave tour to enter the cave, and cave temperatures stay around 54 degrees year-round.
Ranger-guided tours are offered year-round, and self-guided tours are available seasonally.
Tours range in length and difficulty, and advanced reservations are strongly encouraged.
See the Largest Geode in the World at Crystal Cave on Put-in-Bay Island in Northern Ohio
978 Catawba Ave, Put-In-Bay, OH
Crystal Cave is home to the largest geode in the world, housing celestine crystals up to 3 feet in width.
The cave is located at Heineman Winery, which gives you an excuse to try a wine tasting while you’re in the area.
In fact, the cave was discovered by miners who were digging a well for the winery in 1897.
The owners had to pivot and started offering cave tours and unfermented grape juice to keep afloat during prohibition, while the other wineries on the island closed.
The walls shimmer and sparkle, covered in strontium sulfate, a bluish mineral called celestite, and the crystals can grow anywhere from 8 to 18 inches in length.
Tours are offered seasonally, 7 days a week, from late April until late October.
Tour the Former Traverse City State Hospital Asylum Steam Tunnels
The Village at Grand Traverse Commons – 1200 W Eleventh St, Traverse City, MI
You can take a tour of the asylum’s steam tunnels, which were previously used at the former Traverse City State Hospital, opened in 1885.
This wasn’t what you typically think of when it comes to an asylum. “Beauty is Therapy” was a central belief of Dr. Munson, the founding medical superintendent responsible for treating patients.
This complex has creatively transformed from a historic hospital into a shopping, dining, and nature destination with 480 acres of preserved parkland.
The main building for the complex was over 300,000 square feet and almost a quarter mile long.
But what’s even more interesting is that you can explore 1.5 miles of tunnels of the former state-run asylum.
There are several tour options offered year-round, ranging in length from 1 hour, 1.5 hours, and 2 hours that take guests into the 1883 brick steam tunnel.
Take an Underground Boat Tour at Lost River Cave
2818 Nashville Rd, Bowling Green, KY
You can touch the ceiling of a cave on this underground cave boat tour at Lost River Cave.
The 45-minute tour starts with a 20-minute guided walk along the river’s edge.
When you reach the massive cave entrance, you’ll board the boat for a 25-minute ride through the cave, where your guide will share more about the cave’s history.
Reservations are recommended in advance, and the boat tour is appropriate for all ages.
The cave temperature is around 57 degrees year-round, so plan accordingly.
Tour Marvel Cave Under Silver Dollar City Amusement Park
399 Silver Dollar City Pkwy, Branson, MO
A tour of Marvel Cave is always included with your admission ticket to Silver Dollar City Amusement Park.
Guided tours are available throughout the day, weather permitting.
Guests will descend and climb stairs reaching a depth of 500 feet during the 60-minute tour to view formations that are still alive and growing in the wet limestone cave.
The Cathedral Room, 300 feet below the surface, is one of the highlights of the tour, as the largest cave entrance room in the US.
At the end of the guided tour, guests will travel on a unique cable train that takes them up to the surface on a half-mile, 1070-foot climb.
Explore a Replica Cave Inside the Museum of Natural History & Science at Cincinnati Museum Center
1301 Western Ave, Cincinnati, OH
If you’re not quite ready for cave exploration, the replica cave inside the Museum of Natural History & Science at Cincinnati Museum Center may be a good start.
You can choose between beginner and advanced expeditions in the cave.
Below ground, the cave has 500 feet of twists and turns to explore, water to follow, and a drop in temperature that mimics a real cave.
Visit The Salt Cathedral of Zipaquirá in Colombia
Parque De La Sal, Zipaquirá, Cundinamarca, Colombia
(30 miles from Bogota, Colombia)
This underground Roman Catholic church was built within the tunnels of a salt mine, 660 ft underground.
Guests enter the mine through an original fortified tunnel.
There’s a shaft with 14 small chapels, representing the stations of the cross, of Jesus’ last journey.
Each station has a cross and several kneeling benches carved out of the halite salt deposit.
Most guided tours last between 1.5-2 hours, and you can book your tour here.
Melissani Cave and Drogarati Cave in Greece
6JGH+WC, Sami 280 80, Greece
These unique caves are within a 10-minute drive of each other in
Melissani Cave is an underground lake with beautiful turquoise water surrounded by limestone formations.
The 20-minute tour in a traditional wooden boat with a local guide has a few tight squeeze moments before reaching the large opening.
The cave was discovered in 1951, and ancient Greeks believed this space was home to nymphs and the god Pan.
Drogarati Cave in Greece
This cave was discovered over 300 years ago when the entrance was created by an earthquake, but it didn’t open to the public until 1963.
The cave features different colored stalactite and stalagmite formations, and has a depth of 65 meters and a height of 20 meters.
Book a tour for Drogarati Cave-Melissani Lake, and Antisamos Beach here.
