21 show caves with public tours within 150 miles of Louisville. The closest is Indiana Caverns, about 22 miles away, and 5 are within 60 miles.
Distances are straight-line miles from downtown Louisville; driving takes longer. Tour details checked 2026-10-22 against each cave's own site.
A cave near Corydon with year-round guided tours that go about 110 feet down and include an underground boat ride, at around 56°F.
Corydon, IN, 56°F inside
A cave in Mauckport, Indiana with one-hour guided tours, running seven days a week for most of the year.
Mauckport, IN, 54°F inside, from $27.00
A cave in Marengo, Indiana with two easy walking tours, the 40-minute Crystal Palace and the 60-minute Dripstone Trail, at 52°F.
Marengo, IN, 52°F inside, from $22.95
Caves in an Indiana state park: a $3 summer boat tour into Twin Caves, and the dry side of Donaldson Cave that you can explore on your own from Trail 4.
Mitchell, IN, from $3
A one-hour tour by electric boat along an underground river 5 miles southwest of Bedford, covering 1.25 miles on the water.
Bedford, IN, 53°F inside, from $26
A separate cave inside Mammoth Cave National Park with stalactites, gypsum crystals and helictites, seen only on the summer weekend Great Onyx Lantern Tour.
Kentucky, from $31
A cave in Horse Cave, Kentucky, off I-65 exit 58, with the free American Cave Museum on site and what it calls the world's longest swinging underground bridge.
Horse Cave, KY, from $26
Mammoth Onyx Cave at the Kentucky Down Under animal park, an easy guided tour with 144 stairs, included with park admission.
Horse Cave, KY, 58°F inside
A national park with more than a dozen ranger-led cave tours, from a $12 Discovery Tour to a $79 Wild Cave crawl, at around 54°F underground.
Mammoth Cave, KY, 54°F inside, from $15
A small cave in Cave City, Kentucky with quick 30-minute tours at around 60°F.
Cave City, KY, 60°F inside, from $12.50
A cave on Prewitts Knob Road in Cave City with one-hour, half-mile guided tours at 58°F.
Cave City, KY, 58°F inside, from $18.99
A small cave tour on Mammoth Cave Road in Cave City, run alongside horseback trail rides and mini golf.
Cave City, KY, from $9
A cave inside Mammoth Cave National Park, off exit 48, with one-hour guided tours of a half-mile loop at 58°F, open year-round.
Park City, KY, 58°F inside, from $24
Now the Crumps Cave Research and Education Preserve, a 2.1-acre Western Kentucky University site near Smiths Grove used for karst and groundwater research. It isn't run as a show cave.
Smiths Grove, KY
Kentucky's only underground boat tour: a 20-minute guided walk followed by a 25-minute boat ride, an hour north of Nashville.
Bowling Green, KY, 57°F inside
The cave tied to the Bell Witch legend, about 40 minutes from Nashville, with 40-minute guided tours plus a John Bell cabin tour, open seasonally.
Adams, TN
A Kentucky state resort park with several cave tours (X Cave and Cascade Cave year-round, Saltpetre and Bat Cave in summer) plus caves you can explore with a permit.
Kentucky, from $10
A summer-only Carter Caves tour of half a mile with about 30 stairs, plus lantern and crawling tours.
Kentucky, from $10
A short Carter Caves tour of a quarter mile with 75 steps, open year-round.
Kentucky, from $10
The longest regular tour at Carter Caves State Resort Park: three-quarters of a mile with 225 stairs, year-round.
Kentucky, from $12
A Tennessee state park cave with summer tours by handheld flashlight past historic cave art; tours often sell out.
Tennessee, 56°F inside
