The Bilstein Cave was discovered in 1887 by Warstein forestry worker Franz Kersting during road construction work. It has been open to visitors as a show cave since 1888.
The cave system is 1,850 meters long in total, a good 400 meters of which can be comfortably walked through and are open to the public. The remaining meters are reserved for well-equipped cave explorers, not least because the deeper areas of the cave are under water for months at a time. An active cave stream flows through the lower level of the cave system.
In 2015, the Bilstein Cave was equipped with a new LED lighting system. In the bright light, the colors of the rocks and stalactites can be seen even better, and many stalactite formations that were previously hardly noticed have now become real crowd pleasers. The guided tour lasts approx. 30 minutes; during opening hours, guided tours are offered at least every 45 minutes. Tickets for the cave tours, information about the next tour and the wide range of products in the Bilstein store can be found in the Old Youth Hostel, just 200 meters on foot from the parking lot.
Note: The temperature in the cave is approx. 8°C. On warm summer days in particular, you should remember to bring a jacket or pullover.
Paleontological and prehistoric finds have been made in the Bilstein Cave: bones of a cave bear, cave lion, cave hyena and reindeer. There is also a copper dagger from the Bell Beaker Culture (around 2300 BC), a cylinder-necked vessel from the Urnfield Culture (around 800 BC) and numerous finds from the Iron Age, such as pottery, jewelry and human bones.
The immediate surroundings of the Bilstein Cave are also fascinating to observe: due to the porous limestone, the Bilsteinbach stream disappears several times in so-called stream gullies at the foot of the Bilstein rock. It emerges again in a karst spring directly at the cave parking lot - although this is heavily dependent on the water flow of the Bilsteinbach.
The Bilstein Cave regularly offers activity days such as the Adventure Day, the Illuminating Bilsteintal or the Winter Magic. There are also regular events in the forest restaurant, such as an Orient Dinner Show or "All-In Celebrations". There are also intensive cave tours with lots of time and information, approx. 1 hour, max. 10 people, dates by appointment: adults 8.00 euros, children 6.00 euros. Please inform yourself about current offers on the website.
The Bilsteintal can be reached by public transport, bus line R76.
