GROTTE DE LA VERNA
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Europe's largest underground chamber for an exceptional visit that will delight beginners and adventurers alike!
It is the largest underground chamber in Europe, ranked among the top 10 in the world and the first to be equipped for the general public. The dimensions are extraordinary: 250 m in diameter and 190 m high, with a surface area of 5 ha and a volume of 3.6 millionm3. For the record, students from Polytechnique took a hot air balloon ride there... that's saying something! In this abyss, 3 different types of terrain are in conflict, schists and limestones from the primary era (350 million years old) and limestones from the secondary era (80 million years old). In the middle of this mineral universe, a remarkable fauna has settled, small invertebrates, all blind and depigmented, theAphaenops loubensi and theAphaenops cabidochei, which need to live in an atmosphere saturated in humidity. "Discoverers, explorers or adventurers... to each his own! You start at the Welcome Center with a choice of 2 accesses: pedestrian by a marked path of 8 km round trip towards the GR10 and the ravine of Arpidia (2 hours round trip) or by shuttle for 30 minutes. According to your desires and your physical capacities are proposed: 1h of discovery for the beginners, 1h30 for the river exploration which allows to reach the spillway of the waterfall in the room, 2h for a sportive exploration with a caving guide. More of an adventurer? It's "La Verna Aventure Spéléo": a sporting visit with an introduction to caving from 3 hours to a whole day. Temperature of 6°C, even in summer, bring warm clothes, pants, walking shoes. Exceptional and unmissable site.
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Opening time and information on GROTTE DE LA VERNA
Quality Tourism. Open all year round. On reservation only. Prices vary according to the time of visit including access to the site with shuttle. Discovery visit 1h : adults : 18 €, children (from 5 years old) : 11 €, river exploration 1h30 : adults : 23 €, children (from 7 years old) : 16 €. Sporting exploration 2h : adults : 28 €, children (minimum age 10) : 21 €, Caving adventure - departure assured from 5 people - : 3h : 50 € (minimum age : 12), 5h : 68 € (minimum age : 14), 8h : 86 € (minimum age 16). Tourism & Handicap label. First prize in the 2013 Trophées de l'accessibilité in the Tourism and Disability category. Reduced rates except for holidays, school vacations and weekends on 1h, 1h30, 2h visits.
Owner's Message
The Grotte de la Verna is located in 3 communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques region: Sainte-Engrâce in the Basque Country, Arette and Aramits in Béarn.
An exceptional geological site, with extraordinary volumes at the heart of the Pierre Saint-Martin chasm.
The Verna cave is the largest illuminated underground chamber in the world, accessible to all.
The extraordinary human adventure of underground exploration, the discovery of La Verna and the Pierre Saint-Martin chasm, will be the main theme of your visit. Various types of tour (tourist and sporting) are available, supervised by speleologists. Reservations can only be made online. Access is by shuttle bus, on foot or, in exceptional cases, by private vehicle. For your visit, please bring warm clothing such as a jacket (ambient temperature 5°C all year round) and closed shoes.
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