Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park

Loved my tour here last June with my family can’t remember the name of our guide but she was amazing funny and knowledgeable about everything and could tell she genuinely loved her job. The cave part was great very beautiful inside and surroundings.

Loved our tour guide, sadly didn't get her name. We did the classic tour guide and prepare for a hike going up along with stairs. However, once to within the cave, you get to go down a SLIDE! A slide in the cave is really cool and one in a kind. Our tour guide even pointed out cool rock formations such as a big foot or a married couple aging. Very informative and fun trip altogether. If in Montana, a highly recommended place indeed.

We did the classic tour, and it was such an awesome experience! We also had arguably the best tour guide around! She was the perfect combination of knowledgeable and funny! We are so happy we made the trip from Yellowstone to see this! The hike up the mountain is hard if you’re out of shape but it is so worth it! Once you get to the cave entrance it’s pretty easy from there on, as long as you can bend frequently. Overall great experience, we will be back the next time we’re in Montana!

$8 state fee to enter. I skipped the visitor center but where you get the tour permit you can pay there. Tours are available to buy online ahead of time and they had my name on the list when I got there. Show up early for water, restrooms, etc. I did the classic tour. Once you depart it's a tough hike to the cave entrance at the top of a mountain. Once inside the cave is great. Well lit. Difficult. Stooping, bending, twists, turns, one little slide you have to sit down for. Tour guide I had was awesome and funny. Mike. You'll know. Saw colonies of bats and a good history of the cave and how old it really is. When you get out you have to walk down to the parking area. Cafe and gift shop there btw.

Amazing caves! Absolutely stunning! The tour guides are super funny and know their stuff. Some of our group did the Classic (harder) tour and some did the Paradise (easier) tour. We all loved it. The cave is lit, so you don't need a flashlight. A light sweater or hoodie is perfect for the temperature in the cave. For those wondering if they are physically able to do the Paradise tour, there are only about six steps in the cave you'll need to be able to climb, but you'll need to be able to walk about a half mile on a flat, gravel path. In the Classic tour, you'll need to be able to do a fairly steep, short hike, and do some duck-walking in a short area of the cave.
The cave is way up in the hills and the drive up has some gorgeous views. There is a nice picnic area on the way up. The gift shop at the top has a cafe, if you want to buy a hot lunch.
At the entrance of the park, the Visitor Center is small. The ranger there was very helpful with info about the area. She told us about the Junior Ranger badge that is available for Montana State Parks and got our kids set up to earn it. The campground is right by the Visitor Center and although not huge, is very nice.

The most physical cave tour we have done. The assent up the mountain trail to the cave entrance is an endurance test. 300ft rise in elevation at a steep angle. You must complete the trip up in a half hour or they will not let take the cave tour. The guide was very knowledgeable and made the group interact. You also will need to be able to stoop low, crab walk, twist, and turn. There is even a small opening you must slide through. It was well worth the price.
The campground is also nice. HOWEVER, there is no advance notice about bear activity for people using pop-up campers. The tent area has a bear box and trash box, but all other sites have regular trash cans. Also, the showers had pilot light issues, so we had to insure ice cold showers for $3 ea. The park knew about the issue but did not keep tabs on it. Only ⭐⭐⭐⭐for the camp ground.

Buy tickets ahead and online. if u've visited another cavern (cave), DO NOT use the same shoes for the safety of the bats. They do sell daily, but first come, first serve and sell out fast. The classic tour is 2 hours, and the only hard part is going up to the cave, which is an uphill climb. We had so much fun inside the cave and expected more crawling, but it wasn't much. Our tour guide was penelope (i think), and she did great. She said she was new and apologized for being awkward. But she did great and appreciated that she had notes. It was like she was just talking to us as if like we've known for a few days. I would like to thank the tour guides for showing up! W/o them we wouldn't be able to see the caverns!!

I recommend the classic tour 1000%! It is two hours, the most taxing part of the tour is the path up to the elevation of the entrance, they do give you 30 minutes to get there though. The 600+ stairs are mostly taken down into the caverns. This can be taxing on the knees for some. Just to give you an idea though, I am a plus size gal recovering from a dislocated patella and had a broken hand at the time and I had absolutely no problems.

We took the easier "paradise" tour. It was guided by Jim, a lifelong Montanan. He was a wealth of knowledge of local history and geology. The walk-up to the cavern had great views and was easy, but was about half a mile.

AWESOME EXPERIENCE. Our tour guide Lilly was a rockstar! Prep yourself for quite the hike... Sunscreen and H2O a must. The kids (8 years) said it was sooo hot but worth "the coolness" in the cave. Lots of twists, turns, stairs and ducking in the caves... Worth the commentary and amazing views.

Seattleite here, being a tourist. Caverns came recommended by a Billings' friend. Definitely worth the drive from Bozeman. Check their schedule online.
Though I read the web description/warnings, I was woefully ill-prepated for this Classic tour jaunt. I'm fat, forty and female and I went alone since here on business. I was last in line all day but Lily never made me feel badly or a burden. Kind, courteous...I felt safe all day. The jokes/puns/facts were perfect. Would recommend for anyone not already on the verge of a heart attack or claustrophobic.

Highly recommend the cavern tour. If you are physically able take the classic tour. It is a little more physically challenging but well worth it. We didn't stay at the campground. However from its appearance it looked very nice.

It's fascinating and spectacular. Highly recommend the classic tour. Dog is not allowed but provides a free dog kennel with a lock in the shaded area. Very thoughtful and nice.

We took the longer of the two tours, Classic, was 2 hrs long. We had Micheal as our tour guide, he has a funny sense of humor. The Classic is much more physically challenging of the two tours. The walk to the cave entrance is a bit of a hike and has a pretty good incline most of the way. Inside the cavern there are many places where the steps are very steep, there is one place where you had to scoop on your butt for about 5 feet and many spots where you have to stoop over due to low hanging ceiling.

If you are physically fit enough for the Classsic Tour I highly recommend it. It was amazing inside the cavern.

The parking was a bit of a pain because we went here with our 31 ft travel trailer attached to our truck. There is oversized parking at the top, but it's set up kind of oddly. The staff was very helpful and knowledgeable. The cavern caves were awesome. Keep in mind that if you do the classic tour, there are a lot of parts where you need to crouch down to avoid bumping your head and contort your body to get through it. There was a slide part way through, which was pretty cool. It is very slick and precarious in some places, so don't bring your Littles unless they listen well. The hike up to the entrance is pretty strenuous, so try to go on a cooler day to avoid the hike during the heat. They also have dog kennels near the oversized parking, so if it's hotter out, you can lock your dog in a kennel to stay cooler instead of staying in the vehicle, which was something I haven't seen before. After the hike, we had some ice cream at the gift shop as a treat for the kids after the 2 mile hike. I would highly recommend this for families with kids 8+. Our kids had a blast and will remember it for a long time to come.

My family and I did the Paradise Tour. Was beautiful a great tour if you have little ones, not a ton of hiking and an hour and a half total. Would suggest you get your tickets on the website or get there early in the morning. They sell out quickly.

A smaller cavern than many, but a wonderful place. You walk a quarter mile from the upper visitor's center, then enter a tunnel that's about 500 feet to enter the Paradise Room. Time in the actual cavern is about 30 minutes +-. Groups of about 20 ppl. Service dogs only. Cafe and gift shop at the top. Very steep windy 3 mile uphill from lower visitors center, where if you choose you can leave your tow there and drive your vehicle up only (easier). Nice campground below, very spread out. Great kayak ride nearby if you kayak. You put in 7 miles upstream (Cardwell fishing access), and take out 7 miles downstream from LandC at the bridge on rtè 287. Class 1 only. Took me 4 1/4 hours.

This is affordable entertainment.
If a Montana resident or if camping in their campground you won't have to pay the park entrance fee of $8 per car. The cave tour we were going to take (paradise) was $30 for two people. I'm not sure about the Classic tour.

There are day use areas as well as and campgrounds

Lewis & Clark Caverns State park is really pretty, rugged and well maintained. The park staff is helpful and friendly.

The day we went there were bears spotted in the area. Signs were posted everywhere. Also there were warning about prairie rattlesnakes. 🥴

There are restrooms located conveniently around the park.
Unfortunately the majority of the park is not wheelchair accessible. There is plenty of parking for visitors. There is also a cafe on the premises. There is seating scattered around as well.

Only service animals are allowed in the cave but the park does provide kennels with lock and key in the shade for all other dogs. It is an absolutely free and necessary service for their visitors. It was 93 degrees on the day we visited. If we had gone on the tour we would have utilized the service.

There is a pathway/trail that follows the mountain down. Ummm it is why we didn't go on the cavern tour. That path sucked. It is freaking hard and definitely not for beginners. We thought we were going to die getting back up it lol. With our butts royally kicked and served back to us we crept back to our hotel and agreed to come back to visit the caves another day.

Definitely an interesting visit.

We did the classic tour. Jim was our guide. You can definitely see that he has 17 seasons under his belt. The trek up to the entrance has amazing views along the way (if you aren't scared of heights.) We stopped a few times along the way and Jim gave us fun facts to give everyone a break from the hike. It is almost exactly 2 hours from the start to the finish of the tour. It is a physically demanding tour. I would say 4.5 out of 10 maybe a little less depending on your age and fitness level. But.... it is 100% worth the small effort to see. Only downside. You don't get to see much of the paradise room from where the classic tour stops before the exit.

Beautiful views and wonderful people working in visitor center! We did the paradise cavern tour also. Enjoyed some moderate hiking as well!!!