Closed Show Caves


There are sites which are listed on showcaves.com and if they are closed for visits we mark the page and the links to the page. For sites which are already closed when we hear about them we do not create a page. In most cases there is not enough literature available, but actually it does not make sense to list sites which are inaccessible. So we add the site on this list with a comment why they are closed, if available. The idea is, to provide some background for people finding outdated info on closed sites in guidebooks or on the web.


Name Location Coordinates Comment
Knappenlöcher Fieberbrunn OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap A series of old mine tunnels, former copper mines, were renovated and opened to the public, but unfortunately the visits are discontinued. The site is listed on various lists including Wikipedia, but is not accessible any more. The coordinates are also wrong, they are in the middle of the road, close to the train station, but the tunnels are as far as we know on the hill above.
CaveKohlerhöhle Erlaufboden OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap Opened in 1930 as a show cave, closed again during the Second World War. Until 2016, the owner of the Rußwurmalm showed his cave to interested visitors, but the alm is no longer operated and the cave is no longer open to the public.
CaveKolowrathhöhle Untersberg OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap It is actually called the Gamslöcher-Kolowrath System and is located on the Untersberg. Developed as early as 1870 with financial support from Count Kolowrat-Liebsteinsky, the access route was only blasted into the rock 6 years later. A typical Austrian show cave, with a 2-hour climb and alpinistic challenges. Due to neglect, both the access path and the path inside the cave have been largely destroyed and can only be visited by cave explorers.
Wetterloch am Schafberg St. Wolgang am Wolgangsee OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap Discovered in 1865, it was opened as a show cave in 1895 and closed again in 1906 due to lack of profitability.
Tropfsteinhöhle im Mönchsberg Salzburg OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap In 1889, a very small cave was discovered on the west side of the Mönchsberg during work on a timber yard. The landowner Wiesbauer immediately had the entrance to the cave extended and a door installed in front of the entrance. Electric lighting was also installed, opening up the 8 m long crevice to the public. It was quite popular until the 1920s when it was closed and forgotten.