Brave the Cave at Florida Caverns State Park

The Florida Caverns is located just outside the city of Marianna. It is the only air filled cave in Florida that offers public tours. Most other caves in Florida are found underwater. So trade in those flip flops for some sturdy shoes and get exploring this rare Florida gem.

Florida Caverns State Park

The cave at Florida Caverns State Park began its formation over 35 million years ago with the lowering of sea levels. Stalactites and stalagmites can be found in the cave.

The land was acquired in 1935 and began the development to become a state park. The Civilian Conservation Corps helped turn the cave into a tourist destination by carving out walking paths. The CCC also is responsible for the construction of several buildings and features throughout the park. This labor intensive work was done mostly by hand. In 1942 the Florida Caverns State Park official opened to the public.

Cave Tours

We didn’t even set up our campsite before heading to grab a spot for the next cave tour. You can make reservations in advance online, but they go quickly. We did a walk up at the gift shop, and luckily spots were available for the 2:30 tour on a Friday afternoon.

We joined our tour group and headed off to explore the depths of the cave. Just note that some parts of the cave are narrow and have a low ceiling. If you are claustrophobic this might not be the tour for you.

If you brave the cave it is truly a magical experience. We were in absolute awe at the beauty of this underground world.

As you can see from my pictures this is one tour you don’t want to miss while visiting Florida Caverns State Park. The tour guides were informative and best of all got us all out of the cave at the end of the tour.

Campsites

As many of you know Hurricane Michael hit the Panhandle in 2018. The Florida Caverns State Park suffered extensive damage. The campground was basically rebuilt and many improvements were made. Shade trees are lacking, which is to expected after a major hurricane, but new trees have been planted to replace them.

We loved our campsite. If you need to pick a site, Number 1 is a great choice. All campsites are well maintained, you really can’t go wrong with any site. Each campsite comes with a picnic table, fire pit, cooking grill, and double hammock camping hooks. Electric, water and sewer and are also provided. Having a sewer hook up at a Florida State Park is rare, so my husband was pretty excited about this. A dump station is located in the park, but it is a bit of drive away from the campgrounds. There is a bath house located at the Blue Hole Campground as well as the Equestrian Campground. We did not explore the Equestrian Campground so I can’t speak as what their campsites offer.

Blue Hole Swim Site

We were not brave enough to swim at the Blue Hole. Besides the water being cold, the caution alligator sign was a deterrent as well.

This is a great location to walk to from the campsite, so definitely check it out.

Hiking

The Florida Caverns State Park has several hiking trails to explore. I think we hiked bits of almost all the trails. The trails for the most park are well maintained and marked. This is a great way to explore the park, view the wildlife and get a bit of exercise. We did see deer on a morning hike on the Shortcut Trail.

If you are into geocaching the Bumpnose Trail is a great hike to take. There are several finds on this trail.

Before You Go

Florida Caverns State Park is a popular park with good reason. Be sure to make camping reservations well in advance, they book up fast. If you can, make your cave tour reservations online. But if you are like us, chance it with a walk up opening. For more information and to make reservations visit Florida Caverns State Park. Check out another cave we explored, Mark Twain Cave in Hannibal, Missouri. Happy Camping!

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