Caves

With hundreds of painstakingly chiselled man-made caves snaking below the streets of Nottingham city centre, and Europe’s most Northerly Cave Art faintly sketched onto the limestone walls of Creswell Crags, Nottinghamshire’s cave credentials run incredibly deep.

The soft, sandstone rock that Nottingham stands on is perfect for cave building, meaning the city’s industrious residents began digging into it long ago, finding all kinds of imaginative uses for their manmade excavations – from cave dwellings to underground bowling alleys and jail cells.

Go deeper into Nottingham’s network of manmade caves than ever before, thanks to the brand new Nottingham Caves App, which will take you on a fascinating journey into the past. Or, leave your phone behind and pick up your copy of The Cave Trail, to explore the Top Ten caves in Nottingham by foot.

If you want to learn a little more about the history and heritage of the caves, you can take a guided tour with a local expert, visit Nottingham Castle to immerse yourself in Mortimer’s Hole’s role in British history, and book a visit to the City of Caves, which is one of Nottingham’s leading attractions.

Of course, cave exploration is thirsty work – but don’t worry, you can sup in style in the unique surroundings of an atmospheric cave pub – like Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem or the Malt Cross - which have used the network of caves for everything from beer storage to cock fighting over the years.

So get ready to head underground with us, and dig deep into our caves, unearthing an extraordinary connection with Nottingham’s rich history and heritage as you go.

Read our cave blog - Going Underground: Explore Nottingham's Top Ten Caves