Meramec Caverns

Cool little place to check out when you have the time. Lots to do Ziplining, cavern tours, food & gift shop. Normally visit everytime my family & I are in the area. Tours seemed overpriced so mever checked it out but definitely worth checking out even if you dont spend a dime.

I did a cave tour today at Meramec Caverns (11÷7÷15). We did have to wait about 25 minutes for the next available tour. The gift shop, restaurant and little museum that’s in front of the caves are a little out dated but not bad. Our tour guide was named Shawntell. It was actual quite impressive how well she was able to recite a script word for word. at least that’s what she sounded like, very monotone. She seemed kind of pushy, like she wanted us to hurry up to the next thing. Also I was in the front but if I can imagine the back of the group missed a lot of information because she would start talking before everybody got there. Overall the cave is cool especially if you have never been in one before. Its a fun thing to experience. Its also a great place to take kids so they have some fun and knowledge instead of just taking them to the McDonalds playground. We were a little disappointed because the other shop, a candy store and the «mine your own gold» shop were both closed but it could be because its getting late in the year. Overall I recommend this place if you have never been to a cave before.

Pretty cool place especially on a long road trip with the kids who needed a break from the car. Never been to a cavern so I had nothing to compare it to. The food wasn’t so great, in fact, it was pretty terrible, but we enjoyed the tour, got some fun gift shop items, and enjoyed throwing rocks into the water. Exactly what we needed for entertainment.

I’ve been in other caverns and this one definitely sticks it to you. Price is EXTREMELY high, the guide could barely speak, I could only understand about 1 in 10 things he said. I heard some of the other guides and they were much better. To make matters worse, the sold «miners hats» to the children before the tour and let them wear the hats during the tour so I got lights flashed in my eyes about every other minute. The guide rushed us through interesting formations and pushed the whole tour. When we got to the end we were told the projector wasn’t working right, you miss the finale, too bad.

If you have ever been to any other caverns, don’t go. Had this been my first time visiting a cavern I would have thought it was pretty cool. Although since I have seen other in New Mexico, it is severely overpriced and not nearly as impressive. They try, but the price is ridiculous when put in comparison with other caverns.

The tour itself wasn’t bad since the caverns are absolutely beautiful. However, when I pay $ 20 a person I would at least appreciate a knowledgeable tour guide. Our tour guide, Emily, couldn’t explain anything without stuttering and ending each sentence with «umm, yeah it’s like that I think.»

I am a big fan of all things kitschy and tourist trapping, so when I saw billboards for this place on my way up to Ste. Genevieve, I knew this place was a must. We took a tour of the caverns, which were quite spectacular (at least for me, who had never been in a cavern before). Our tour guide was very friendly and informative, and it was interesting learning about the caverns and it’s different elements. The tour was capped off with a short film projected onto a cavern wall that was quite spectacular and beautiful. They also had a cafeteria area (which was alright), a gift shop, zip lines (which we did not do), mining for gold (which my girlfriend insisted we do), and a river boat ride (which was pretty relaxing). The main gripe about this place is that it was not the most fun drive to reach (lots of windy roads and speed changes). Overall though, I’d recommend if you’re like me and enjoy tourist traps and natures beauty.

Expensive and tourist trappy… our guide was extremely inappropriate… I am not fat, but was extremely offended by the Rosie odonnel, Marie osmond, and Kirstie alley fat jokes throughout the tour. He thought he was hilarious and it was very redundant… even my 8 yr old commented on it. The tipping comments/​jokes every stop too made me NOT want to tip him… and I didn’t AND he made a crude comment my way on the way out… despicable

My honey surprised me by taking me to the meramec caverns. Our tour guide was Tia. She was sweet, funny, and very informative in regarding the history of the caverns. It was about an hour and a half of walking through the cave. I have to say the hole in land formation was beautiful. We were allowed to take pictures by some massive minerals and gaze upon 600 year old lustrous elements up above. As for a souvenir I ended up with one of the pressed pennies that showcases a little bit of the cave:) everyone should experience this once in their life! Makes you appreciate what nature created.

Big cavern, but only a small area of the cave was pretty to look at. If you’ve never been to nicer Caverns, you can add another star to this review. Luray Caverns in Virginia is the best I’ve seen. This was very commercialized, but then they all are.

The tour was great. It was interesting and kept our attention for the 1.5 hrs. It is a guided tour that’s the highlight of the trip.
The restaurant has pretty good burgers and there’s ice cream for the kiddos.
The entire place is a bit run down and dated. It makes you wonder where the $ 20 dollar admission fee goes. You can google a $ 5 off coupon.
If you are an RV’er don’t stay here at the campground. It consists of a parking lot and four grass sites. The tent camping is nice but the RV camping is bad. Go to KOA up the road. Unreliable power.
The float trip is way too long. The 5 miles takes about 6 hours because the last hour there is no current. The float trip employees watch as you pull your raft out and do not offer to help.
Don’t waste your time on the boat tour.
Caveman zip line is def worth it!

I took tour #13 of Meramec Caverns in Stanton, MO on 8÷9÷1986. It was my first time there. Missouri is the Cave State, and Meramec is the largest in Missouri — so it’s well worth seeing. Quoting the prices from back then won’t do any good, but I do have proof that I was there (I’m in the back row of the photo).

Visited on 09/​21/​2012. Nice experience. Because it is a guided tour, there is no time to get the correct camera settings to take pictures, as every part of the cave has different lighting. A separate adventure at the Caverns is the Caveman Zipline. That is fun, but it is $ 50.00 per person.

I went and did the Caveman Zipline yesterday and it was a pretty fun experience. The staff was very friendly and did their best to make everyone feel comfortable. My only complaint is that the course could be longer! Either way, it was worth the drive out there. Now I just have to go somewhere like Costa Rica so I can do it up big!

I scheduled a group and had to reschedule due to a death in the family. There were no issues rescheduling. When we arrived we were welcomed by a friendly and helpful staff. Thorough explanations and reassurances were provided for those who were somewhat apprehensive about zipping. By the time I made it to the second landing I was loving it and wishing that this would go on longer. Emily and Josh? were our guides and made this a very memorable occasion. I highly recommend zipping here!

I overall enjoyed my tour of Meramec Caverns. You could tell the staff was well trained and very knowledgeable about the caverns and formations within them as well as the history. The cave itself was very pretty and really large. It definitely had a lot of different types of formations which made it quite interesting to look at.
The only thing that struck me as somewhat odd was there are artifacts throughout some of the rooms that have nothing to do with the history of the caverns, they were just put there because they looked nice essentially. They don’t hide this and the tour guides are very upfront from the beginning of the tour about these items.
One thing I would like was less of the «pretty colored» lights in the caves themselves. I liked seeing the different areas lit, but not with red, or blue or green lighting, it made it a little on the cheesy side and feel slightly less natural.

Kinda fun, kinda cheesy. The guy flipping the switches at the end for the light show finale was absurd. It all seemed more amateur than I expected, but it was still fun.
If you have been on other cave tours, this one is certainly (no surprise) geared more to the touristy aspect than the cave and technical information type. Nice cave anyway. Pleasant drive in.

Two words: CAVEMAN ZIPLINE. You need to try this as soon as it opens back up for the next season. A big group of us went this summer and I can’t wait to do it again.
Meramec Caverns is close to my heart because my family went camping there every summer while I was growing up, so I was really psyched to go back. Beautiful scenery, a café with the greasiest (aka yummiest) food ever, a huge tour-​able cave, and tons of corny items in the gift shop. It’s really quite an experience.
We were a tad hungover during this escapade, which I don’t recommend if you’re ziplining, but it was awesome nonetheless. I believe you can go in groups of 12 or less. We showed up, got strapped up with harnesses, put on helmets and gloves that have obviously been used for many years. Basically we looked really official.
If you’re not cool with heights (I happen to fall into that category) the walk up the first platform is probably the scariest part. The guide leads you up about 20 flights or so on a wobbly wooden deck. You then have to decide who’s going first out of your group of friends… a brave, brave soul. I went second, and the guide quickly fastened me to the line. In a moment of sheer panic I looked at him and asked, «Are you sure I’m in good enough?» He replied, «You’re either in or you’re not.» Fair enough, and off I went!
The first course takes you over a parking lot (not very scenic) and over the river… and yes, through the woods. Basically you go through four different courses. Pay attention to their tips on stopping yourself, or you’re likely to smack right into a «padded» pole. Ouch.
If you like adventure and want to try something a little different, definitely check this out. They also take pictures of you when you’re coming in from your last line so you can remember how freaking brave you were!

OMG I am such a cheeseball for things like this and haunted farms and things of this sort, but the Meramec Caverns is AWESOME!
It’s in the middle of no where which is perfect for what they were used for back in the day (Jesse James’ Hideout) which the tourists walk through everything with you. The tour is about 2 hours and is worth every second of it.
They have a great shop connected to it as well as at the end of tour they have a dedication to the USA which unless you see my video of it OR see it for yourself, you will never fully appreciate it!
Another cool thing is that the caverns are sooo large that not all of it has been explored! JESSE JAMES MAY STILL BE THERE! Wait, wasn’t he assassinated by Robert Ford?
Enjoy!

fantastic day trip. what a better way to escape the brutal Missourah heat by going inside a mountain where it never gets above 58′. The snappy tour guides give a great walk-​through. it’s fun and engaging, but not too long. they say to bring a light jacket, but it wasn’t that cold. Definitely wear comfy sneakers tho, since the path can get slick. I was the annoying guy with my camera & tripod at the end of the group (no, not the pack of 20 Indian guys), but I think I got a few good pics, includin the panorama at the top: