The Caves of Nerja, Spain is a large cave system near Malaga

Visit Nerja Caves

The Nerja Caves can be found in Maro, four kilometers from Nerja and near to Malaga in Andalucia. The caves are one of Spain's most popular tourist attractions and are regularly used to host concerts as one of the chambers forms a natural ampitheatre.

Explore the Nerja Caves

The Nerja Caves are a spectacular cave system and make for a great day out from Malaga.

The caves were discovered as recently as 1959 by a group of five locals who were on a late night walk looking for bats! The cave system consists of a number of huge caverns and covers nearly 5 kilometers.

There are three galleries inside the Nerja Caves and each gallery consists of a number of halls. A visit to the caves includes a tour around the Show Gallery and more limited access to the Upper Gallery and the New Gallery.

As you walk around on a guided tour you get to see an incredible number of stalactites and stalagmites and also columns and spirals which have formed in the rock. The main halls are the Hall of the Waterfall, also known as the Hall of Ballet. It is here that concerts and dance festivals are often staged.

Another main hall is the Hall of the Cataclysm and this is home to the largest stalagmite in the world. The column is 32 meters high and measures 13 by 7 meters at its base.

Also in the Hall of the Cataclysm is the organ corner where the fluted columns resemble an organ. They can also be struck to create different notes and apparently some have been deliberately modified by prehistoric man to produce different notes!

In the Upper Gallery and the New Gallery there are prehistoric paintings however these areas are not open to the public for preservation reasons. You can see photographs of the paintings in the Nerja museum in Nerja.

In the entrance area of the caves there is the skeleton on display that was found in the caves along with some other archaeological finds.

The Caves of Nerja are open every day exect for the 1st January and 15th of May from 09.30 to 15.30 in the winter and 09.30 to 18.00 in the summer.

Where to visit nearby?

In the town of Nerja there is the famous 'Balcony of Europe' which is one of the most popular spots in Andalucia. This balcony has beautiful views over the Mediterranean and a backdrop of mountains. The position (though not the current balcony) was named the 'Balcon de Europa' by King Alfonso XII.

The caves are on the edge of the Sierra Almijara, Tejeda and Alhama Natural Park which is popular with walkers. The scenery is quite beautiful!

Nearby Frigiliana is a beautiful town in the Sierra Almijara mountain range. It has steep narrow streets edged with charming whitewashed houses and is very well preserved.

The Alhambra palace and Generalife in Granada are one of the top attractions in the whole of Spain and not to be missed as you explore this part of Andalucia.

You can find more local travel ideas in the Malaga guide and the Andalucia guide.