National Park · New Mexico

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

A vast underground cave & bat flights

Carlsbad Caverns drops you into an enormous, decorated underground world beneath the New Mexico desert — and on summer evenings, hundreds of thousands of bats pour out at dusk. Cool underground year-round; bats are a warm-season show.

What to see

The top things to see in Carlsbad Caverns are The Big Room walk, Natural Entrance Trail, Bat Flight Program (evenings), King’s Palace tour. Start with the big room if you only have one anchor, then use the rest of the list to shape a half-day or full-day route.

  • The Big Room walk
  • Natural Entrance Trail
  • Bat Flight Program (evenings)
  • King’s Palace tour
  • Walnut Canyon Desert Drive

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