Visit Onyx Cave Park – Arkansas’ Oldest Show Cave
The Eureka Springs area is home to a wide number of rare, unique, and historical attractions, including Onyx Cave, Arkansas’ oldest show cave. In fact, Onyx Cave Park is only a half-hour’s scenic drive from the Beaver Lake cabins of Sugar Ridge Resort!
There’s no end to the fun you can get up to here at Beaver Lake, Arkansas. Sugar Ridge Resort is perched high above Beaver Lake for breathtaking, 180 degree views. Visitors come to enjoy fishing, scenic drives, boating, hikes, and many other outdoor activities.
We’re also just next door to Eureka Springs and its cornucopia of activities, events, and attractions. Must-see destinations and happenings like Blue Spring Heritage Center, Christ of the Ozarks, Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, the Original Ozark Folk Festival, War Eagle Craft Fair, Eureka Gras, and so much more.
One type of attraction that you can find all over the area is caves. Arkansas is riddled with fascinating caves that you can visit and tour. As I mentioned above, the area is home to Arkansas’ oldest show cave: Onyx Cave.
Onyx Cave first opened to the public in 1893, making the attraction over 130 years old in 2024.
Show caves were not always as well understood, respected, or protected as they are now. In the early days, visitors didn’t think twice about taking a souvenir home with them. Consequently, Onyx shows a lot of past wear and tear. Why, the cave even had scenes from a movie shot in it: “It’s Alive,” a 1969 B-Movie thriller. Despite this fact, Onyx Cave still has plenty to reveal to those willing to explore it.
The cave gets its name from the many weird and fascinating flowstone formations found within. Flowstone, once commonly referred to as “cave onyx,” is a smooth, sheet-like deposit of calcite found in limestone caves. It forms over thousands of years, deposited by flowing water and often resembling the flow that deposited it.
Onyx Cave Park
Visitors to the park can enjoy a self-guided, 30 minute audio tour of the cave. Paths in the cave are smooth and level, with steps and handrails where necessary. You’ll see stalactites, stalagmites, and lots of flowstone in chambers with names like the Witches Fireplace and the Friendly Dragon.
The audio guide will direct your attention to notable cave features and provide other interesting facts about the cave’s history, geology, and wildlife. You may even be luck enough to see a bat, salamander, or other natural cave denizen. Fascinating – but don’t forget an extra layer! Onyx Cave’s temperature stays around 57° F (13.8° C) all year ’round, no matter the season or weather.
Beyond the cave tour, park visitors may also enjoy semi-precious gem-panning, axe-throwing, and a host of unique items for sale in the gift shop. They even have snow cones, the perfect treat on a hot day. Yum!
Onyx Cave is located in Onyx Cave Park at 338 Onyx Cave Lane, Eureka Springs, AR 72632
Visit the cave website for seasonal hours and other information. You can also visit the cave on Facebook.
Spend your day out exploring the natural wonders of the Eureka Springs area, then head back to the supreme comfort of your Beaver Lake cabins and suites at Sugar Ridge Resort. Who could ask for more?
