Exploration
Subterranean trailblazers
Caving: The ultimate underground sport
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Exploration
Family-friendly caving in Canada: Five underground adventures for kids
Offering a unique mix of discovery and challenge, these caving destinations make exploration beneath the surface both accessible and exhilarating
- May 08, 2026
- 1,220 words
- 5 minutes
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The first time I went caving (or spelunking, if you want to sound official), I was 12 years old, on a school activity holiday in Wales. My classmates and I had already been abseiling, surfing, kayaking — even tried out archery and orienteering around some of the region’s most picturesque coastlines. But when we donned our helmets and jumpsuits and headed underground, I felt the first pangs of nervousness.
Deep inside the cave system, we crawled on our bellies through slick, cold tunnels that felt tight against our small bodies. When we finally emerged hours later, blinking in the daylight like moles, we felt like true adventurers.
Natural or show caves?
Despite those early nerves, I found caving exhilarating. When I became a parent, I longed to take my son on similar outings. Years later, when he was about five, we ventured underground together for the first time at Hato Caves in Curaçao.
Since then, through conversations with Adam Walker, owner of Canmore Cave Tours, which leads trips into Alberta’s Rat’s Nest Cave, I’ve learned that Hato is classified as a show cave.
To make caves more accessible, show caves are “tourist caves” that have been modified for easier exploration. Visitors are usually able to walk upright along a smoothed floor, with lights and handrails often guiding the way. These caves are perfectly designed for first-time cavers and those with children, as they provide the thrill of going underground without the physical demands, making them more approachable. However, for those who find themselves hooked, there’s another level to explore.
Natural, or wild, caves typically involve climbing, crawling, and scrambling to navigate passages, often requiring special equipment and a guide.
Throughout Canada, both show caves and natural caves are available, allowing families to choose the perfect underground experience.
Here are the top caving adventures across the country to explore with kids.
Cave and Basin National Historic Site, Banff, Alta.
Ages: Infant and up
Opening times: May 15 to Oct. 15 (daily) 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 16 to May 14 (Thursday to Monday) 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tip: Pick up an Xplorers club activity booklet for kids to enjoy during the visit.
As the birthplace of Canada’s national parks, Cave and Basin National Historic Site operates 30-minute, fully accessible guided tours, which Walker describes as an “amazing historic site that you can actually push the stroller right into.” Here, visitors can step into a natural grotto, where steam rises from sulphurous (yes, it does smell like rotten eggs) hot springs, and mineral water cascades over rocks. Guides also teach visitors about Cave and Basin’s significance to Indigenous peoples and the endangered Banff Springs snail.
Horne Lake Caves, Vancouver Island, B.C.
Ages: Six and up
Opening times: Open year-round
Tip: Look out for harvestman insects and bats in winter
With more than 1,000 known caves, Vancouver Island boasts Horne Lake. These wild caves have tight climbs and squeezes, as well as large chambers to explore.
Although you can take kids ages six on the Riverbend Cave Explorer tour, to complete the multi-cave experience, they need to be 8 and up. There are also two other options, the Achilles Challenge and the Max Depth Adventure, which require visitors to be 13 years old or older.
From October to April, there can be water in the caves, so if you plan to visit during these times, don’t forget to bring rain gear and rubber boots.
Caverne Laflèche, Val-des-Monts, Que.
Ages: Five and up
Opening times: Activities are offered year-round, but check the website for booking availability
Tip: Prepare to stay all day. Besides the cave, there is a massive treetop trampoline course called uplå park.
Home to little brown myotis bats in the winter months, Caverne Laflèche is the largest show cave in the Canadian Shield. During the 60 to 90-minute tour, visitors will experience true darkness when their guide instructs them to turn off their headlamps. “It’s complete dark, you can’t see your hand in front of your face,” says Arielle Patrice-Paré, Park Manager at Arbraska Laflèche. “The silence, you just hear the droplets of water.”
According to Patrice-Pare, the best time to visit the cave is in winter, when beautiful ice candles form. This is also when frost-covered bats hang from the ceiling, glittering in the headlamp glare. My son called them “disco bats,” and it’s an apt description. Be careful not to lean on the cave walls, as you could accidentally disturb one of these tiny sleeping mammals.
“We’ve got 160 years of stories to tell you about the cave. It’s gone through a lot,” shares Patrice-Paré. Apart from a set of stairs, the cave is easy to walk through, but it does have smaller caves for kids to slide and crawl through, while adults can either follow along or walk around to meet them at the other end.
Bonnechere Caves, Eganville, Ont.
Ages: Infant and up
Opening times: May to Sept., tours typically run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., but check the website for availability
Tip: Arrive early, as admission is first-come, first-served, and it can get busy in summer
Family-owned and operated by Chris and Val Hinsperger, the limestone Bonnechere Caves make an excellent first show cave for beginners. While there is a set of stairs to navigate, making strollers impractical, this experience is suitable for all ages, from infants right up to seniors — babies in carriers are also welcome. The tour starts with a lesson on fossils, as the Bonnechere Caves were once part of a tropical sea just 500 million years ago. Challenge your kids to find more fossils and stalactites in the caves, which have welcomed visitors for more than six decades.
Rat’s Nest Cave, Canmore, Alta.
Ages: Ten years for the Explorer Tour, 12 years for the Adventure Tour
Opening times: Open year-round
Tips: Dress in layers under your coveralls as the cave stays at a chilly 4.5 C year-round.
Exploring Rat’s Nest Cave, Canada’s fourth-largest cave system, with Canmore Cave Tours, can be physically challenging. The tour begins with a 30- to 40-minute hike through the forest up Grotto Mountain to the cave entrance, followed by a thrilling underground experience. Inside the cave, visitors will need to squeeze and climb through the caverns, which can be daunting for some. Between the two tours on offer, visitors can expect to spend between two and a half to four hours underground — the Adventure Tour also includes an 18-metre rappel.
Walker describes the cave as “a giant jungle gym, [kids] get to crawl through crevices and cracks and climb on things, it’s just a strange world of wonder for them.”
Ready for a caving adventure with your kids?
Whether it’s an easy stroll through a show cave or an adrenaline-pumping adventure, squeezing through tight gaps and rappelling into the depths, caving offers something for every kind of family.
Take it from the expert: Walker calls caving “the perfect field trip,” combining activity, adventure, and learning into one unforgettable experience.
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