Camuy Cave Park REOPENED!
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If there was a list of the greatest natural wonders of Puerto Rico, the Camuy caves would without a doubt be on that list. This large system of underground caves has been formed after many thousand of years by the passing of the third largest underground river in the WORLD, the Camuy River. Because of its immense ecological and historic significance, the Camuy caves have been a cornerstone of Puerto Rico's internal and external tourism. In fact, there is an extremely high chance that you have visited the caves if you grew up in Puerto Rico or came to the island as a tourist during the past 30 years.
There are many entrances to Camuy cave system, but by far, the most popular and developed to receive visitors is the Parque de las Cavernas del Rio Camuy. Unfortunately, due to heavy damage caused by the powerful hurricanes Irma & MarÃa that battered the island in 2017, the park was not able to re-open for more than 3 years. However, thanks to the hard work of local NGOs, the local municipality and the government, the park was able to re-open in March of 2021 and is now ready to receive visitors again!
Entrance to the Camuy Cave Park
The entrance to the park is $18 dollars per person and the parking will cost you $4 per vehicle. The park is located a relatively quick one hour and 20 minutes drive form San Juan to the municipality of Camuy. The park offers guided tours several times a day, but the staff asks that visitors arrive at the park 15 minutes before the start of the tour, so make sure you plan your trip accordingly.
Once you arrive to the park you'll be taken to a screening of a short video introducing the caves, the history of the park, and the important efforts of re-opening it. When you exit the small theater, you'll step out and receive a safety helmet which you will need to keep on throughout the entirety of the two hour tour, an audio tour device and some headphones for listening to the audio tour. After your guide gives you some basic safety rules, you will start walking down a paved road to the entrance of the caves. Though the park classifies this as a difficult hike, we found it to be a pleasant and scenic hike full of beautiful and unique vegetation.
Walking down to the Cavernas del Rio Camuy
You'll know you're arriving to the entrance of the cave once you see a cement structure that leads you to what is called El Salon de Esculturas or the sculpture room, a mysterious pathway in which you'll walk right next to icicle-shaped mineral formations called stalactites and stalagmites. As you'll learn in your tour, these formations take hundreds if not thousands of years to form and touching them can delay and even completely damage this process, so it's important to stand clear of them while you admire their presence in such close proximity.
El Salon de Esculturas in the Cavernas de Camuy
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Before you even notice, you'll be transported to the inside of the park's main attraction, Cueva Clara, a 215 feet high chamber that forms part of the Camuy cave system. Here, you'll have some time to look back at the light coming in form the entrance of Cueva Clara and feel the temperature drop a pleasing ten to twenty degrees from the outside temperature.
Entrance to the Cueva Clara in the Cavernas de Camuy
You'll then begin moving into the vast darkness of the cave where you'll see cavernous wildlife such as the Guabá and the incredible rock formations with the help of your headlamp, including the largest and definitely the most impressive stalagmite in Puerto Rico. The light at the end of the tunnel will guide you to el Sumidero de Empalme, an impressive 419 feet deep sinkhole through which the Camuy River passes. Scientist say that this area used to be part of the cave but at some point the roof collapsed, creating the sinkhole we see today. Here' you'll also be able to see evidence of the power of Hurricane MarÃa which caused the river to almost completely flood the cave, causing the heavy damage that prevented the park from re-opening sooner. After this, you'll head back into the cave and back to where you started.
The Sumidero de Empalme at the Cavernas de Camuy
And that's it! But before I go I just want to mention that if you visit the caverns, please consider consuming locally to help the businesses in the area which have been greatly affected by the absence of touristic traffic during the more than three year period that the caverns have been closed.
And that’s it! I hope you found this travel guide helpful. Make sure to check out my YouTube channel, Brik’s Travel Guides, to see the full video of this and other Puerto Rico travel guides.
Reserve Your Tour at El Parque de las Cavernas del Rio Camuy
787-999-2200 ext. 3473
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