Cave Wonders at National Showcaves Centre for Wales

Mind blowing place to visit, very reasonable on price too.

Great destination! Enjoyed the open trail and peaceful outdoor atmosphere.

Great destination! Enjoyed the open trail and peaceful outdoor atmosphere.

Great destination! Enjoyed the open trail and peaceful outdoor atmosphere.

A great day out for the family! Expect lots of walking and hills. Booking online was easy, we scanned the QR code on entry and staff told us where to go. They seemed friendly and smiley. The first cave, Dan Yr Ogof, was interesting. It involved a lot of walking but it was easy. There’s lots of steps but didn’t feel strenuous, but something to bear in mind if you struggle with steps. My 6 year old managed to walk around with no complaints. The cave was well lit, yet still dark enough to feel like a cave. The 2nd cave, the Cathedral cave, was incredibly beautiful! I appreciated the classical music playing in the background, which added to the ambience of it. This was the best cave out of all 3 and well worth seeing! The 3rd cave required us to wear hats, and it’s a good job we did as a couple of us knocked our heads a few times on the way! Nevertheless, we felt like true explorers with the hard hats. It was a steep walk, and at points required some awkward positioning to avoid getting hit in the head along the path and then again to duck into the entrance. This is something people may need to consider if they struggle with bending. The cave itself didn’t seem worth the effort, it was quite anti climatic and tiny. I felt claustrophobic with 7 people in there. If you don’t fancy the more difficult walk to the bone cave, you’re not really missing much. We loved the dinosaurs and felt that there were more here than the dinosaur park. We particularly enjoyed the ones that moved! We had some great photo opportunities with the dinosaurs. It’s a great way to keep the kids entertained as it’s a steep, but gradual, long, walk from the first cave to the 2nd and 3rd. Considering the amount of walking involved, there’s not a lot of resting spots to take a break or have a snack. People with disabilities may need to keep this in mind when visiting. You will find one bench now and again but I feel it needs more. It’s a lot to do in one go before coming back to the beginning to sit on the picnic benches/go to the cafe. My child’s favourite part of the experience was the interactive dinosaur painting, located within the museum. It was pretty cool seeing what she did on screen being projected on to the dinosaur in real time. It’s a lovely idea! We went to the gift shop, there were lots of nice things to buy. We bought ice cream, which was delicious! I really enjoyed the Welsh cake flavour, which I had never had before! I highly recommend it. Some family members thought the cafe was pricey. £3.50 for a small bottle of pop seemed excessive so we decided not to buy anything. I’m glad we walked past the car park to find the play area and animals. The animals were unbothered by our presence and it was really cute when the pigs ran up to us in their pen! The animals seem well looked after. We went on a weekday, during school hours, so my child had the play area to herself. She enjoyed exploring and tested all the slides, some had less friction than others. Overall, she had a lot of fun in there! The outdoor zip line and obstacle course were also a lot of fun and we really enjoyed the duck racing game! What a delightful addition to a children’s play area! We would definitely come back, but maybe skip the bone cave next time.