What to see in the Marble Cave in Crimea and how to get to it?

Crimea is not just relaxing on comfortable beaches and swimming in the warm sea. Many tourists prefer to climb the mountain peaks, and an even greater number of visitors combine both types of activities. It is these enthusiasts who are interested in the famous Marble Cave. It is known that Crimea hides many miraculous miracles, and deep in its bowels no less interesting than on the surface.

Marble cave is the main attraction of the Chatyr-Dag massif. It is located on the lowest plateau, the complex itself includes three caves, which are recognized as the most beautiful in the Crimea and are included in the TOP 5 most interesting in Europe. The cave is recommended for visiting all vacationers on the peninsula. The marble cave was discovered relatively recently - in 1987, and a couple of years later it was opened for visiting tourists.

It should be noted that the history of this unique place is completely different from the usual stories of serious speleological expeditions. The cave, which at that time was called "Afghan", was opened by an ordinary shepherd who was looking for a sheep behind the herd on the side of the mountain. However, the official honor to be considered the pioneers of this natural monument belongs nevertheless to Simferopol speleologists.

The marble cave got its name immediately after it was established that approximately 90% of its entire surface is marble limestone. The entrance to the cave is located at an elevation of 920 m. It is established that it appeared many millions of years ago, due to erosion of rocks.Currently, the cave is fully adapted for visits to excursion groups: paths are laid here, lighting is organized, and protective fences are erected. Tourists can go along one of several routes of varying difficulty.

The total length of the Marble Cave is about 2 km, and includes 3 tiers. It should be noted that not all grottoes of this unique place are accessible for visiting - to be in some areas, you need serious mountaineering training, which not every visitor to the Marble Cave can boast of.

However, this is not the only reason why many grottoes of the Marble Cave are closed to tourists. The fact is that people can cause significant harm to a natural monument even by their presence in it - together with drafts, gusts of wind, carbon dioxide and dust, green algae penetrate inside, which under the backlight begins to grow, destroying fragile rock.

Of course, the cave ministers periodically clean off growths, maintain the necessary temperature and a given level of lighting in the room, but still it is difficult to resist nature. All this led to the fact that in the cave there are not just closed, but even cemented halls, access to which only selected scientists have access, and even once every several years. This precaution is by no means superfluous - the fact is that natural gems die not so much from human touch, but from heat, light and breathing.

The marble cave consists of several levels, each includes several halls. At the very top you can find the Fairy Tale Gallery - from here all the routes begin. Here you can find The owner of the cave, the Frog Princess, Mammoth, and even Santa Claus - they all seemed to be frozen in stone. These figures were created by nature itself, and with all its appearance resemble the favorite heroes of children's books - hence the name of the cave.

Some other sculptures are more reminiscent of beautiful stone flowers growing directly on the walls. Huge stalactites with gigantic Druze hangs everywhere, taking the most intricate forms.

On the side of the Tales Gallery opens the Tiger Run with a length of about 400 m. It was discovered in the 90s of the last century, and was named after the remains of a large beast found here, which were first mistaken for one of the most dangerous ancient predators - the saber-toothed tiger. Later it turned out that it was a cave lion, but they did not change the name of the passage. Tourists note that the Tiger's passage is much more beautiful than all the other passages of the cave.

Of great interest is also Perestroika Hall 150 meters long. Here you can find stalactites, called Minaret, Dragon, and also Zombies.

Returning to the Gallery of Fairy Tales, you can move to the second level. Opened to visitors since 2006 The Pink, Luster and Theater Halls, as well as the Hall of Hopes and the Vernadsky Hall. Their total length is 600-700 m. The Pink Hall got its name thanks to stone flowers, similar to roses - they literally strewn the cave arch. By the way, it’s over this place that the Tiger's Movement passes.

In the Hall of Hopes visitors discover cascades of golden-colored streams that form something like altars, where the inhabitants of ancient civilizations left their sacrifices to higher powers. Outwardly, these altars are vaguely reminiscent of giant jellyfish, which launched their stone tentacles into the depths of the cave.

The largest hall of the second level - BalconyIt is divided into two floors by a huge step.The upper compartment resembles a balcony decorated with fancy shades. Of great interest is the Chandelier Hall, the arch of which is decorated with hundreds of very thin tubes that resemble surreal chandeliers - some of them hang almost to the floor.

The halls located on the first, lowest level are currently closed to tourists. Here, over millions of years, water has cut openwork pools at the bottom, so it seems that the whole space under your feet seems to be covered with pearls.

For lovers of everything mystical and mysterious, there are a couple of grottoes here that will make you really start to be afraid of ghosts. For romantics, in the Marble Cave there are stone pillars created by stalactites and stalagmites fused with them, popularly called “kisses”.

The issue of opening routes for people with speleological training is currently under consideration. In the Marble Cave, concerts of symphony music orchestras are quite often arranged, and each such performance is always accompanied by a full house. Lovers of good music know that the acoustics of even the best halls cannot be compared with the sound features of the caves. In such a place, classical music sounds more cameral, strong and incredibly epic.

Marble Cave is a rather unusual tourist attraction, so for all visitors installed strict rules that they must follow.

• It is forbidden to visit the cave on your own, only tour groups are allowed inside, in which professional cavers act as accompanying.
• When viewing the cave, all visitors should stick together, any lagging behind the group is fraught with the most dangerous consequences.
• It is strictly forbidden to visit the cave when intoxicated or intoxicated. Inside, tourists with animals and weapons are not allowed. Smoking inside the cave is not allowed.
• No special climbing equipment is required to visit the natural site, but it must be borne in mind that a sharp drop in altitude can cause adverse symptoms from the cardiovascular system of visitors, many complain of tinnitus, like in an airplane, so it’s not out of place to stock up candies that cope with this problem.
• Please note that the air temperature in the cave never rises above 9 degrees, while the humidity is 98-100%, and the minimum duration of the excursion is half an hour. Therefore, it is advisable to dress warmer in advance, children will need a hat. However, at the entrance to the cave you can always rent jackets and sweaters.
• Tourists are not allowed on the first floor, but if the visitor still decides to go down there, he will need sports shoes (we recall that visiting the lower tier is possible exclusively for people with professional speleological training).
• Well, of course, do not miss the moment to photograph all the beauties of the place you were in - on the way back the guide will not give you the opportunity to stop to capture all the works of miraculous art that are unparalleled in the whole world.

The price of the tour in 2019 is:

• Fairy Tale Gallery - 30 min. /500 rubles;
• transition "Gallery of fairy tales - Pearls of the lake" - 50 minutes / 600 rubles;
• transition "Tales Gallery - Tiger Trail" - 60 minutes / 600 rubles;
• visiting all rooms - 80 minutes / 700 rubles;
• tour of the caves of Chatyr-Dag - 1400 rubles.

Children under 5 can enter the cave for free. For children aged 5 to 12 years, a discount of 50% is provided. Some tourists are eager to save money and buy a ticket for the cheapest excursion route, however, such an excursion turns out to be short, and neither morally nor financially “discourages” the effort and money spent on getting to the cave.

The marble cave is located immediately below the lower part of the Chatyr-Dag plateau, and there are a couple of caves nearby: Thousand-headed and Cold. According to the map, the village closest to the natural monument is Mramornoye. The Marble Cave can be reached by car or public transport. To do this, take the buses on the route Alushta-Simferopol or Yalta-Simferopol, get to Marble, and then go on foot a path of 8 km.

The easiest way is to take a taxi or sign up for an organized excursion, which includes travel on the ordered bus. This kind of service is provided by travel agencies of all cities of Crimea, including the capital.

Marble Cave, without a doubt, is one of the most attractive places in Crimea, which is very popular among all tourists who come to relax on this peninsula. This is one of the main miracles for which the Crimean peninsula is famous, and which attract tourists from different parts of our country, and not only to it. The marble cave far from completely revealed to people all its mysteries, you can come back here again and again, each time discovering something new and not previously known.

See how to get to the Marble Cave in the next video.