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's the largest underground chamber in Europe, ranked among the top 10 in the world, and the first to be equipped for the general public. Its unusual dimensions: 250 m in diameter and 190 m high, it covers an area of 5 ha and has a volume of 3.6 millionm3. For the record, Polytechnique students took to the air in a hot-air balloon! In this cave, 3 different types of terrain meet: schist and limestone from the primary era (350 million years ago) and limestone from the secondary era (80 million years ago). In the midst of this mineral universe, a remarkable fauna has settled in: small invertebrates, all blind and depigmented, theAphaenops loubensi and theAphaenops cabidochei, which need an atmosphere saturated with humidity to live. "Discoverers, explorers or adventurers... to each his own! You start at the Visitor Center, with a choice of 2 access routes: on foot along a signposted 8 km round-trip path to the GR10 and the Arpidia ravine (2h round-trip - 1h30 return), or by shuttle bus for 30 minutes. Depending on your desires and physical abilities, we offer a 1-hour discovery tour for beginners, a 1.5-hour river tour with access to the waterfall spillway in the hall, and a 2-hour sport tour with a caving guide. More of an adventurer? La Verna Aventures Spéléo": a 4-hour to full-day caving tour with an introduction to caving. Temperature 6°C, even in summer, so bring warm clothes, pants and walking shoes. An exceptional site not to be missed.
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Opening time and information on GROTTE DE LA VERNA
Tourism and Handicap. Quality Tourism. Open all year round. By reservation only. Prices vary according to length of visit, including access to site with shuttle bus. Visits : Discovery 1h: adult: €19, child (age 5 and over): €12; River 1h30: adult: €24, child (age 7 and over): €17. Sportive 2h: adult: €29, child (minimum age 10): €22. Aventures Spéléo - departure guaranteed from 5 people - : 4h : 50 € (minimum age 12), 6h : 68 € (minimum age 14), 9h : 86 € (minimum age 16). 1st prize in the Trophées de l'accessibilité 2013 in the Tourisme et Handicap category. Reduced rates except on public holidays, school vacations and weekends for 1h, 1h30 and 2h tours.
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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