Cool little tour. I've been to a few caves and have also gone caving, but one that is wide enough to be carted around in was a first. They day we went was on a Sunday after the 4th of July and so we expected it to be a bit crowded, but honestly we had plenty of space. The tour guide went through his spiel, but it was still pretty informative and explained about about the caves of this area. Honestly the tour was not particularly long since you're on their preset schedule being driven around and if you have a chance Carlsbad at the other end of the country is way more impressive, but this is still a cool cave and would be tempted to stop by again if I were to pass by the area. Looking at the other comments, there may be other caves/caverns near by to visit, but still they are all unique in their own way. read more

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We stopped while driving through Missouri because of their effective advertising billboards! The tour was a little pricey (almost $200 for 5 adults), but we all thought it was worth it and we had a great time. We had a fun ride through the cavern with our very knowledgeable tour guide. We took a spin through the gift shop and then a walk through the grounds to the natural spring. It was a beautiful way to spend a few hours! read more

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This was really cool to see the underground caverns. However for the experience I don't feel like the price is justified. They do include a picture of you and your group on the jeep before exploring the cave. Grainy and slightly dark. I would have preferred each adult ticket be $5 cheaper and have the picture being optional to purchase. The tour is rather short and we would have preferred the tour guides knew more about what they were talking about. It was very much "here is some writing on the wall from the original 12 that found it. Next up...etc". Also if you are taller than 6 foot it will be hard to crouch down under some of the ceilings as they can be very low. read more

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This place is cool! Very reasonable as well. Everyone on staff are very knowledgeable about the cavern. Great gift shop too! read more

Fantastic Caverns - Historical Tours Near Me - Springfield, Missouri

Saw about 20 signs on the highway about the Caverns, and I thought "okay you got me I'll check it out." And it was very well worth the stop. To keep it short and still a mystery for you all, learning about the history of the cave was fascinating. The tour guide did an excellent job at keeping everyone informed and adding in a few jokes. I will say, you do at one point get to experience absolute darkness!! read more

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A very cool experience. The only cavern in the US where you can drive through. We made a pit stop at the Fantastic Caverns on our way to visit family for Thanksgiving. They open at 8:00 a.m. and we were there around 8:20 a.m. We had to wait about 20 minutes for the tour to start. I highly recommend arriving early to beat the crowds. There was only a handful of us on the tour. However, at the end of the tour we passed the next group and it was a packed house. It was in the 40's outside, but once inside the cave, it was much warmer. The tour was approximately 1 hour. I wish I remembered the name of our guide as he did a great job. I highly recommend if you are in the area. Like Lunna C. says "sit back and enjoy the ride." read more

We had a great time! I appreciated that she popcorn that you could take on the trip. I also enjoyed how thorough the tour guy was. We were able to ask him questions along the way, and he was very knowledgeable. The gift shop was good. The price overall was reasonable. Everyone on the tour even gets a photo keepsake of the expedition. We really enjoyed it. We'll definitely be back! read more

Fantastic is in the name so you know it's good! Our tour guide Carter was awesome, just a really great experience. Factual, some cheesy jokes but well presented. Workers were all great, kind, willing to answer any and all questions. Would definitely recommend! Plus, JEEPS!! read more

We had a "fantastic" time. You ride through the cave ... the only one is USA like that. As with all tours they give alot of history and information. It was hot day ... felt like heaven inside the cave but some might want a jacket or sweatshirt. U do get dripped on but its not like you feel wet. Gift shop had nice rocks. Felt it was worth the price. read more

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This was a very cool (not just in degrees) tour. The cave tour guide did a great job explaining everything about the cave and answered any questions we had. We had a very good time here. Thank you to the staff for a great tour. read more

Fantastic Caverns - Historical Tours Near Me - Springfield, Missouri

You can't miss the signs along the highway! It's worth a trip- especially if you are traveling with very young children or anyone who may have trouble with mobility- this cavern tour is a tram tour- no walking necessary! Lasts about an hour and the tour in and out is well orchestrated, full of very interesting bursting history, and loaded with terrible puns and "dad jokes." The cost of the tour for one hour is pretty steep- for anyone age 13 and up tickets were $32 each as of July 2024 and there are no service member, educator, or senior discounts. It was worth it for the novelty and getting out of the heat in the summer- bring a sweater- it's only about 60°F in the cave. read more

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Great value, huge cave. Focus is on the cave, history and geology and doesn't feel like a constant grab for your money. Even the gift shop isn't over bearing. All is very well maintained and a nice drive to get to. Love the museum type covered queue management area for crowded hot months. Would love to go on adventure tour! read more

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A fantastic experience! If you are a little older this is a great tour to take. The drive through nature of the tour saves your legs while you are still able to enjoy the beauty of the underground caverns. The guides do a great job sharing the history of the grounds and pointing out highlights inside of the cave. A comfortable 60 degrees F makes this a great thing to do rain or shine. Enjoy! read more

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This was a really fun side trip on our cross country road trip! Plan to spend a little over an hour here. Really interesting even for my tween. Tour guides are lively and full of great stories. Easy access for all abilities. read more

As you may imagine we saw a bill board and decided to give it a try. All I can say is that the fantastic caverns are a must see!! Our tour guide was Mark, he was great but he did try to over charge for the picture! Just kidding the picture was free! Go have fun read more

We loved it! Something so simple can be so much fun. It was easy enough to find, plenty of parking. they have a great gift shop and all of the staff was very friendly and helpful. The souvenir shop has reasonable prices and there's a lot of neat history to the cave system, our tour guide Mark made the trip through the caves A lot of fun, he's very knowledgeable. The tour we were on was full and everyone had a great experience. I can't emphasize how entertaining it was to learn the cool history of the caves. Thank you Mark for being so good at your job I'm glad you enjoy what you do. read more

interesting facts about the history of the caverns. Friendly & knowledgeable guide. Especially convenient for those who have mobility issues. Definitely recommend. read more

Unique adventure underground with a history lesson dating back to the discovery of the cave. For $30 per person you are able to ride a tram down into the depths as they explain how the cave was originally found by a bloodhound named Juno...as they say, the rest is history. Our tour guide did a fantastic job explaining the formation of stalagmites and stalactites... and other things that would make National Geographic proud. Overall, probably a one and done tour. Pace a little slow to keep little kids attention for long. Price point seems a little high for a tram ride in and back out of a cave. read more

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Fun way to Tour a cave! I was a bit skeptical, had seen the billboard many times while passing through but finally decided to check it out! My son and I had a blast! Plenty of parking and friendly staff. read more

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it's a drive thru cavern experience one of the few in the world. It's a classic that never changes in time. The tour guide is very informative about the history of the cave. read more

Fantastic Caverns - Historical Tours Near Me - Springfield, Missouri

This is a fantastic tour with well educated and entertaining guides. We loved Jared and all the information he provided while we enjoyed the 60 degree cave on a 100 degree day. FYI it's 60 in the winter as well. The jeeps drive down the old stream bed which can still fill with rain. The water drips on your head still forming these beautiful formations. The tour is 60 min and great for young and old. You are encouraged to ask questions and by the end of tour you are about 130 feet underground but don't worry if you are afraid of tight spaces you never feel closed in or like you can't get out. The awe and beauty are all you think about. Kids Under 5 are free and large groups are easily accommodated. I recommended this as a stop when you are in Springfield MO. read more

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Went here today on a spur of the moment. Saw the billboard on the side of the road and thought what the heck sounds like fun. The directions that were on the sides of the road were very good. The store for the tours was very nice and clean. They had a bunch of minerals, jewelry, stone chess sets and clothing. The tour of the cave was nice . Quite informative. Lastly it was about $72 for 2 of us. The tour lasted about a 45 min tour. Kinda expensive. The tour was given using a small jeep without a top. All the people on the tour rode in a long cart, like a hay ride. If u go to the web site u can see a pic of it. But..... the only thing we really didn't like was the exhaust from the jeep. When the jeep ran the exhaust blows towards all of us. Maybe they can reroute the exhaust and it would be much better read more

I finally made it to Fantastic Caverns after years of living up the road from it. It was worth the wait. Tour itself was short drive-wise in distance with an hour in the cave, but very informative with frequent stops, a short film and a free photo for your group. Cave is a perfect temperature for any time of year, cool in the summer and warm in the winter. They also offer outdoor walking trails I'd like to try out sometime. Gift shop has a variety of apparel and other cave-related souvenirs. Very affordable items. Most costly part is the cave tour. I'd recommend this place for a day trip. It is worth the trip up (or down) Highway 13 near Springfield. read more

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Here Today! I charted my group to Fantastic Cavers which was an exciting event for me and a mark off my bucket list of places to visit. It was an interesting tour of a real mine and absolutely beautiful inside as I could feel its energy of the different types of crystal underneath the ground and available for purchase. We took a real coal mining wagon tour as we went through the cavern. I listened intently as we were given a science lesson of how crystals are formed and the history of the cavern. The history of this cavern is a man and his dog discovered the hole that lead into the mineral mine, he even shut off the lights to give us an idea of what it looked like as his dog actually found the mine and he went looking for his best friend the dog. The guy kept the secret from his wife and public for many years due to timing of what was going on back then. If I'm not mistaken, the family is still receiving royalties from the discovery and responsible for its up keep. I'm not going to share too much of what I learned because you must visit and tour for yourselves:)) I would love to revisit and get more crystals which are priced much lower than what we find in local crystal stores or online. The store staff looked at me funny as I purchased many of the bracelets due to the nature of their benefits which I had to google cause they don't know the beneficial meaning of the crystal. Here Today There Tomorrow! read more

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This tour was unique and our guide knew a lot of information. There were some children talking when the guide was, so I wish there was some enforcement of not talking over the guide. When we went through, the screen that plays a short clip at the end was broken as well. Definitely a cool experience (both visually and physically!). read more

Really enjoyed this cave tour with our guide Caz. He was informative and fun. The cave is beautiful and relaxing with the trailer trolley ride through it. Lots of neat choices in gift shop and all the staff was friendly. Family owned and family friendly. read more

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If the cost was $15-20, totally worth it. We couldn't hear/undertand our tour guide at many times. He had such a thick accent, that we could only pick up every third word or so. The cave smelled like exhaust. The driving guide almost forgot to tell us to duck a few times. The lighting situation was weird. The guides were talking over each other. It's hard to see stuff from the wagon towed by a jeep. If you're ready to walk, there are so many better and cheaper caves to explore in Missouri. read more

Great tour of this cavern! Our guide, Mark did a great job of providing information and history of the cavern. The cavern tour includes some of the most interesting features of this landmark. I highly recommend a visit to Fantastic Caverns. read more

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10 out of 10 for this place. We were a little skeptical of the motorized part of this cave tour. Every time we have been on a cave tour it's always walking. So when I found out I would be sitting on a trailer. I had my doubts. But let me tell you I couldn't be further from the truth. Our tour guide was amazing and very knowledgeable. She kept it very interesting for the adults and kids in the group. It took us over an hour for the trip. So I actually like the motorized part of it. When we were done with the trip they gave everyone a free picture of our tour group. Once done we headed for the gift shop and was pleasantly surprised with their prices. We got multiple things for under $10. Definitely worth the 3 hour detour on our trip down south. read more

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June 3, 2024 and we were in the area... There are plenty of signs along the way. The parking lot is huge w lots of handicap spaces too. The gift shop is chilly. The clothing prices are reasonable. Our tour driver was Larry, was fabulous and we really liked that he interjected a lot of humor. A great history lesson is learned during the tour. Make sure to listen to the instructions and duck your head!! The tour is good for all ages and we recommend it. read more

In our advance planning for our trip to Springfield, we had included Fantastic Caverns in our plans (we were not drawn in by the many billboards) - although the ticket prices are a bit high. I have visited quite a few caves, and this one is in the mid-range of them in quality. For those who have not visited any (or many) caves previously, this one would be great. Of course, a major 'plus' is that the tour is conducted in a trailer pulled by a jeep, which is great for small children, older visitors, and those with physical handicaps. The only detraction for us, and it was a major one, was that our driver/guide was very difficult to understand. I would guess that she (Heather?) is/was a drama major in college, as she was rather dramatic and pretentious and used an obviously fake accent (perhaps attempting a Valley Girl accent?). My group agreed that we didn't understand at least 50% of what she said, which, of course, reduced our enjoyment and the educational benefit of the tour. Also, I had thought that, in that delicate cave ecosystem, the jeeps were to be electric - and it was disturbing to find that they are powered by propane engines!! Yes, such are considered to be 'relatively' safe; however, their exhaust includes carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide (and other poisonous oxides), and, of course, heat. All of these are a hazard to the cave ecosystem itself and/or those on the tour. This was a very disturbing find!!! In general, this cave is worth a visit, but improvement definitely is needed!! read more

Its more like a cave with only a few stalactites and stalagmites. Very short ride in the cave, No-one in our party was impressed. There are so many other cavern options to choose from. We thought this would be fun because you get a ride. The walking tour cavern are so much prettier and informative. read more

Fantastic Caverns - Historical Tours Near Me - Springfield, Missouri

Hubby & I explored Fantastic Caverns today. It was very educational & entertaining. Our tour guide Melody did a "fantastic job" informing & educating our group on the wonders & history of the cavern. They encourage group participation, questions & comments. The temperature in the cavern was a wonderful 60 degrees which was 30 degrees warmer then today's outside temperature. The gift shop had lots of souvenirs, information & popcorn to keep you busy until your scheduled departure. All the staff were friendly, knowledgeable & courteous. On a side note there were 3 large groups of elementary school students that were there today & we were rethinking our decision to stay for our tour when we were informed that the students would not be in any of our tours, they get a separate tour. This made the retired/older group of people happy. All in all a wonderfully fantastic day. read more

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Delightful! And an easy ride through. Beautiful sights. Our tour guide was great! Highly recommend stopping by. read more

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This place is extremely well ran. You show up and get on your wagon and tour the cave. The tour guide was incredibly informative. It was enjoyable for my whole family. There is a little gift shop that you can look through while you wait for your tour to start. The prices are all very reasonable. At the end of the trip you have option to upgrade your ticket to a season pass for 5$. It's worth a stop if you are in the area. read more

My family of four adults, two children, ages 7 and 10, saw this cave offered a tram ride through the entire cave, so, off we went!! It was great! Jarrod, our tour guide, was great!! He shares so much history and is funny, too! So we got a comedy show and a history lesson as well as a ride through a cave, at a very reasonable price!!! The gift shop is awesome and very reasonably priced too! I would definitely recommend this to anyone wanting to experience a cave tour, but not wanting to walk or maybe has a hard time walking long distances! read more

Cool little cave ride tour we stopped by while passing through Springfield Mo. Whole tour is a tram ride and probably took around 40 min. Being from the Louisville area we are spoiled bubbling around so many amazing and large cave and cavern tours. So most of the stuff we had seen or heard before. I did like the uniqueness of the tram ride however. Too me they were very expensive. 2 kids and 2 adults cost me just under $100. That alone hurts the revisit value for me personally. They do give you the group photo they take. And usually those things cost 15-25 bucks at tourists stops so maybe they are factoring that in. Maybe would be nice if they gave a cheaper option without the "free" photo. All in all was a nice and relaxing activity. Was worth it to say we done it. read more

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I have been to many caverns across the US. I highly recommend Fantastic Caverns. Our tour guide was magnificent, very informative and knowledgeable about the cave systems and the region. So much fun for kids and adults of all ages. read more

My husband and I stopped here on our road trip. We are so glad we did! The property is so beautiful and has walking trails and a guided tour. We were limited by time, so we only took the guided tour. There is a convertible jeep that pulls a small trailer. A guide drives the jeep pulling a trailer. Our group had a very knowledgeable guide with a wonderful sense of humor! The cavern was amazing! read more

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While traveling from Branson, MO to Kansas City, we saw these caverns. We had some time to waste so decided to visit. When you arrive, you must purchase a ticket at the counter. It was about $65 for 2 of us. You get a time to take the tour and while waiting there's a few items to look at and they have a gift shop with reasonably priced items. Once your tour starts you are guided to a tram. I've been to other caves before and have never driven through one. I've always walked, so this was a new experience. The tram begins and you're taken into the caves. There are several stops where the guide gets out and gives some history. The whole activity is about 35 minutes from start to finish. Inside the caves there are some really beautiful things to see. read more

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