A day worth taking
The feeling
Before you leave
Keep exploring
A day worth taking
The feeling
Before you leave
Keep exploring
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cave · Apuseni
Scărișoara Cave or the Scărișoara Glacier houses the largest underground glacier in Romania. This is where it gets its name 'glacier' from, and 'Scărișoara' comes from the Scărișoara commune located 16 km below, to which it administratively belonged when it was named. The road to the cave starts from the Gârda de Sus commune, located on the Arieșul Mare valley, 32 km upstream from Câmpeni (DN75).
The entrance to the Scărișoara Glacier is through an impressive sinkhole, whose mouth, with a diameter of 60 m, opens in the forest at the edge of the plateau. A narrow path carved into the rock and several metal stairs anchored in the walls facilitate the descent of the 48 m depth of the sinkhole. At its bottom, a thick layer of snow is preserved all year round.
The exact date when the cave was discovered is not known. The oldest mention of the cave is made by A. Szirtfi in 1847. K. F. Peters and A. Schmidl provide the first scientific information in 1861 and 1863, respectively.
The cave is equipped and has authorized guides.
Best for
A cooler half-day with a sense of wonder
Bring with
Warm layers and shoes with good grip
Pair with
Ionele Cave or a slow Arieș Valley drive
A cool, otherworldly stop beneath the mountain.
Scărișoara Glacier Cave is one of the most famous caves in Romania, located in the Apuseni Mountains. The cave is home to the second-largest underground glacier in Romania, which is over 10,000 years old. Visitors can explore the cave and learn about its unique geology and history.
