Other Places of InterestGrottes des Demoiselles

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91 out of 100 (7 Sources)

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squidge (39)
Occitanie, France

95%

excellent

This cave makes a nice day out. Plunging into the depths of this mountain is discovering another world.

80/100

Accessibility
100/100

"Must See"-Factor
80/100

Budget Friendliness
The Grottes des Demoiselle is a classed UNESCO site. It is situated on the east side of the Herault department (county equivalent), near the Gard, not far from either Montpellier or Nimes. The road to get there is well indicated and the 3 huge car parks seem sufficient. The entrance of this cave is half way down the cliff side of the mountain. This makes that, unlike most caves, instead of going down into the mountain, a funicular drives 160 metres up into the mountain.

The entrance is visible from far with its modern structure which shelters a large souvenir shop, ticket office and the funicular train. That way, even on a rainy day, which it was when we went, there is plenty of space to shelter a large queue of visitors. Having been here in October, the ticket queue was surprisingly short and the funicular queue was about a quarter of an hour wait, which I guess must be way longer in the summer.

The ambiance was electric as soon as we got into the train. It drove up a narrow tunnel into the heart of the mountain. Half way up, a stuffed, or fake bear shows its claws in a little alcove of the tunnel. Once at the end of the rail track, the guide led us through the cave path.

Having taken my camera, I stayed behind the other visitors to take tonnes of photos without having an unfamiliar head in each. This meant however, that I did miss a good deal of the guides explanations. I also found that he went way too fast, and found myself having difficulties keeping up with our group. When we caught up the group from the previous train, I realised that our guide was going way too fast. I guess he was in a hurry to get home, as we were on the last train of the day.

What did seem odd with this cave is that it wasn't very wet inside. Stalactites, stalagmites and columns of all shapes and sizes seemed to have stopped dripping! Whilst dangerously sharp needles cover the ceilings, organ like walls decorate the cave. Narrow tunnels lead from one chamber to the next. The highlight of this visit is the 52 metre high "cathedral" in the centre of the mountain. It is very impressive, with human like shapes lifted from the depths of this immense cathedral. Amongst all these shapes, a statue like Virgin and child faces the tourist path.

In the last part of the visit, our guide asked if there were any percussionists in the group. I designated my husband, who discovered a new instrument... a cave drum. It just looked like a piece of cave wall, but let out a loud deep drumming bass sounds when he banged on it making the cave and its visitors tremble. Terrific!

The visit took about an hour in all, and was certainly worth the entrance price (8€ adults, 6€ kids). The tourist paths within the cave are very well thought out and blend in nicely with this exceptional attraction.