Cave Without A Name: Why You Must Visit!
Cave Without A Name is one of the most beautiful caves in the Texas Hill Country that you must visit.
It is hidden underground about eleven miles northeast of Boerne, a charming Germantown between San Antonio and Fredericksburg.
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Book your tour ticket here: Cave Without a Name Admission Ticket with Guided Cavern Tour.
Size-wise, Cave Without A Name is not humongous like Natural Bridge Caverns in nearby San Antonio. But it is probably as large as Longhorn Cavern in Burnet.
Cave Without A Name has everything that huge caverns have. You will find spectacular formations of stalactites and stalagmites, delicate soda straws, cave drapery, magnificent flowstones, rimstone dams, and more.
But there is one feature that not every enormous cavern system in the world has. Cave Without A Name has one room with fantastic acoustics where they conduct a concert regularly.
And that’s not all! A subterranean brook (or river) awaits you at the end of the tour. It leaves you with spectacular reflections of the stalactites and the stalagmites.
That’s why you must visit this hidden gem in the Texas Hill Country, where some people claim it is the most beautiful cave in Texas.
Not to mention that the ground is fairly flat, and there are no up-and-down tracks during the tour. Except when you enter and exit the cave. 😉
The Cave Without A Name is a natural, living cavern. It is not a state park. It is owned by a private entity.
The National Park Service recognized the cave as a National Natural Landmark in 2009.
Cave Without A Name Tour
A tour is the only way to see the magnificent Cave Without A Name. Reservations are encouraged due to a limited capacity.
The tour begins on a stairwell spiraling down the original sinkhole opening. You must be careful here as the stairway might be slippery.
Once at the bottom, you will see an expansive chamber with intriguing stalactites and stalagmites that are ready for you to explore.
The tour guide will take you to the left room first. It’s the smallest one where you will see a whale tail and an over-easy egg.
As you move to other rooms, you will see grapes, draperies, soda straws, and more interesting shapes created by nature. There’s even a stormtrooper! And you know that everything is bigger in Texas, right? You will see giant bacon here!
There are six major rooms in Cave Without A Name. The tour guide will explain everything about them as you move from one room to the other room.
As mentioned above, there’s a room that has fantastic acoustics. When we walked through The Throne Room, they were preparing chairs for the concert in the evening.
If you have a singing voice, you may ask the tour guide if you can test the acoustics of the room.
A river (or brook) is running through the cave. The water looks clear and makes you think the river is not deep.
At the end of the tour, you will go out from the same spiral stairwell.
You can continue hiking above ground, go back to the store for some shopping, or do some gemstone/fossil sluice.
The tour is approximately one hour. They encouraged you to take lots of pictures.
With cave temperature constantly around 66°F, it makes Cave Without A Name the best place to visit in all seasons. It’s just a bit humid, though.
Why It Called Cave Without A Name
During the name the cave contest, a local boy said the cave was too pretty to have a name. He won the challenge with his suggestion: Cave Without A Name.
My family and I couldn’t agree more. My husband said Cave Without A Name is prettier than Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. I said it’s a little version of Carlsbad Cavern National Park in New Mexico.
Cave Without A Name Concert
The Cave Throne Room has an incredible dynamic acoustics. They conduct a monthly concert in a cave (sometimes more than once a month) that will make you speechless.
Check the event calendar for the year 2024 concert in the cave.
A couple of my friends who watched the concerts said it was fantastic! I hope to watch it sometime this year.
Cave Without A Name Tickets
Cave Without A Name is open seven days a week, except on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.
Hours are 10 am to 5 pm from Labor Day through Memorial Day, with the last tour at 4 pm.
From Memorial Day to Labor Day, hours are 9 am to 6 pm, with the last tour at 5 pm.
You must reserve a spot for the tour by calling (830) 537-4212 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Or contact them with your date, preferred time, and number in your party.
If you come without a reservation, they will put you on the next tour available.
We visited the cave on Sunday before Memorial Day at 9 a.m. There were no other visitors, so it felt like a private tour. It was led by a local high school senior who planned to attend Texas A&M in College Station.
Arrive 15-20 minutes early on your scheduled time tour to purchase your reserved tickets.
Check out here for tours & prices.
Who discovered Cave Without A Name?
Siblings James, Harold, and Mary McGrath found the cave in 1938 when chasing a lost sheep.
Where is Cave Without A Name?
You can find Cave Without A Name in Boerne, another Germantown in the Texas Hill Country.
Location: 325 Kreutzberg Rd., Boerne, TX 78006. Ph.: (830) 537-4212.
It is around one hour north of San Antonio, almost two hours northeast of Austin, and an hour south of Fredericksburg.
If you come from Dallas/Fort Worth like us, you can spend a night in Boerne or drive from one of the closest cities above.
Cave Without A Name Campground
We pitched a tent for two nights on Cave Without A Name campground when we visited Boerne during a Memorial Day Weekend.
There weren’t too many campers during our stay. It was so quiet.
We stayed on one of the electric sites because we needed an electric connection for our camping equipment.
Restrooms and showers are at the Visitor’s Center. They were clean during our visit, and water was abundant.
They sourced the water from the cave. So, it’s non-potable. Bring your drinking water.
As I write this post, the nightly rate for an RV site with power/non-potable water is $32. It is $25 per tent for tent camping with power/non-potable water and $15 for primitive camping. The rate is up to eight guests per site.
There are a Campground, Sinkhole, and Loop Trails near the Visitor’s Center and a Rim Trail that goes to the entrance gate. They are all easy trails.
Our dog, Snoopy, was with us. So we could take him for a hike, and he could stay outside most of the time.
Cave Without A Name is one of the two caves in Boerne TX. The other one is Cascade Caverns, a little over six miles southeast of downtown Boerne. But they don’t have concerts in caves like Cave Without A Name.
In my opinion, if you must choose one between the two, go with Cave Without A Name.
It’s so beautiful in there! I really like visiting caves when I travel, and I love the use of light in this one. I’ve only explored Houston and Dallas but I definitely need to get into this area and explore. Although cave concerts may not be as unusual as you might think. I was just in Mallorca and heard a concert, too. Visiting the caverns would definitely be a highlight of my trip, especially if I could beat the Texas heat if it’s as cool as you say and also to hear a different type of concert in the US.
The Cave Without a Name sounds like one of the most intriguing cavern systems in the world with some cool stalactites and stalagmites formations. I like the names of the rock formations on their shapes – the bacon, the whale tail, draperies, eggs, and soda straws. And it’s so interesting to have an acoustics room for concerts which is truly amazing! And nice to know you had scope for camping on the Cave Without a Name campground which makes it more special. Also loved the way how the Cave got its name from a child.
wow this place looks incredible!! The initial spiral stairs down, what an entrance! Good to know you can only visit by tour, that keeps everyone safe and the cave well looked after as well. I love how it got it’s name and that concert room – can imagine how amazing hearing music in there would be
Laura x
This is definitely a place I would put on my places to visit. Cave Without a Name certainly packs a lot of pluses and highlights to visit. The pictures of the stalactites and stalagmites formations are just incredible. Attending a concert here would be a dream come true for me.
Cave without a Name is very unique. I think it’s so cool there are concerts here, but I couldn’t probably stay for it as I would feel too claustrophobic! The tour sounds like great fun and I wasn’t expecting the giant bacon! I would like to see it for myself if I ever visit Boerne Texas one day.
I love visiting caves and therefore have already visited a lot of them in different countries. Cave without a name looks spectacular! I have been to a cave in Switzerland, in St Leonard, where they also do concerts and they do have a lake too. It was one of the most spectacular caves I have seen. That is why I think I would enjoy Cave without a name too!
Even without a name this underground cave in Texas would draw out attention. We would love to spend time exploring the formations of stalactites and stalagmites, delicate soda straws, cave drapery and flowstones. Always amazed at the beauty that nature creates. But I don’t have a singing voice so I will be whispering in the echo chambers. A concert must be amazing to see in this spot.
This is truly a hidden gem in Texas. I am amazed that this cave offers so many things to see inside, including a little brook with water so clear that not only it reflects but you can see the stones underneath. I would love to attend a concert there, the acoustic must be insane! And i love how the cave got its name, when a child said it was too beautiful to be named, so it was decided that its name will forever be Cave Without A Name.
Right!! Cave Without A Name is definitely a hidden gem in Texas Hill Country and Texas in general.