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The first day of our Virginia trip we explored the Luray Caverns.  As someone who is well traveled, this was the first time I was able to experience accessible caverns. The caverns recently completed renovations to be accessible in 2019. It was a welcoming site to see the stairs blocked off in favor of the step free entrance.

 

However, there are a few accessibility warnings you should know about before entering. At the time we went, the Luray Caverns website had limited accessibility information. Upon entering the caverns, I was asked if my power chair was fully charged. Unfortunately it was not, as we had arrived in Luray late the night before. Fortunately, I was able to make it through the 1.25 mile caverns. We spoke with the guide after our tour and he spoke of many visitors with mobility difficulties who could not make it through the complete tour and needed the guides to bring them the manual wheelchair they keep on hand to complete the tour. One last forewarning, there are not any bathrooms in the caverns so be sure to use the one at the visitors center before your tour.

The tour is full of breath-taking beauty at every turn. The natural formation of stalactites and the stalagmites into cathedral sized caverns just has a WOW factor.  My favorite highlights were the dream lake, which is a beautiful reflection that presents like an optical illusion, and the wishing pond in which all the lucky pennies tossed are donated to research at the end of the year.  The beautiful photos we took made it on our Christmas card the year we went and are still some of my all-time favorite photos. This is a place you can truly make and capture memories.

There are other attractions on the Luray Cavern grounds included with your ticket including the Shenandoah Heritage Village, the Car and caravan Museum, and Toy Town Junction. We also had a healthy lunch at the café at the Heritage Village. There are several gift shops with souvenirs. My nieces and nephews loved the spelunking hard hats complete with lights they opened on Christmas. 

I was glad I took my power wheelchair instead of my manual chair with power assist wheeIs due to the steep grade of some of the pathways. As a wheelchair user, I strongly recommend the Luray Caverns be put on your bucket list. I would welcome an opportunity to return with my nieces and nephews.