Had a great time!' Gary was the best tour ever and had so much helpful information. Best part of our visit to Virginia city!! Thank you from Tommy!!! read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

If you call for more information, as the website suggests "Please feel free to call for updates or questions anytime!" You are going to get a super rude person on the other end. When I called and stated my reason was for additional information, his response was "start talking". And it got worse from there. It was enough to convince me to not take my group there as planned. read more

Chollar Mine Tour - A Glimpse into the Golden Age of Virginia City Recommended by locals, I made my way to the Chollar Mine, once the 5th largest mine during the 19th-century Gold Rush era. In its prime, it yielded an overwhelming amount of gold--worth millions of dollars then and easily billions in today's value. Scattered across the grounds are authentic mining tools, giving visitors a sense of the equipment used back in the day. One highlight was the rock smasher, which the staff explained in detail. From the start, John and Gary gave me a warm welcome and patiently answered all my questions. Before we entered the mine, Gary provided a fascinating introduction to its history and operations--explaining how miners worked in 8-hour shifts, the intense conditions they faced underground, and how they coped with the heat from the geothermal groundwater. Equipped with a helmet, I followed the narrow tunnels where the ceiling is low enough to give you a bump if you're not careful. Along the old rail tracks used for transporting minerals, Gary demonstrated the rope-and-pulley system, drilling tools, and even how miners once relied on rats and candles to test air quality inside the mine. He also pointed out the split line in the rock that marked different mining outputs, giving a vivid sense of how geologists identified the veins. To make the experience more tactile, he even handed me some clay samples from the mine, so I could literally feel the earth that once hid so much gold. Unfortunately, visitors cannot go as deep into the mine as I had hoped--I wanted to experience the underground heat myself--but for safety reasons, the tour is limited. The cave can be slippery, and you'll often need to bend down to avoid injury. After the tour, Gary enthusiastically offered to take photos for guests, adding a personal touch to the visit. Beyond the tour itself, I learned that John now owns the mine, while Gary has written a novel that brings Virginia City's Golden Age to life. --- Final Thoughts The Chollar Mine Tour is more than just a history lesson--it's an immersive journey into the life of 19th-century miners. Thanks to the passion and effort of John and Gary, visitors can better appreciate the challenges, ingenuity, and culture of Virginia City's mining heritage. --- read more

See all

Teaching them young. Introducing hard work and giving JP the idea what his papa, our "gold digger," does for a living. Although Andreas' background is engineering and managing a pit mine, we want to show our son how it feels like to be in a 400 foot tunnel and what life was like in the most famous mining camp in the American West. Back then, miners endured grueling work conditions, being crammed in tight space, and manually digging, collecting, and exploding rocks. Chollar Mine in Virginia City is the only preserved and maintained underground mine in the U.S. This mining site was built in 1861(it was staked in the 1850s), during the Gold Rush era, and the only one that withstood time and harsh weather. The tunnel was brilliantly engineered out of sturdy square set timber by William "Billy" Chollar. John our tour guide also showed us the mysterious "blue clay", which turned out to be silver deposits -- yes there are still some silver ore in the area, but they are not worth the mine. I had fun knowing a bit of science when they used candles and mice, giving them warning of danger, and also I experienced the importance of wearing a hard hat since I solidly banged my head two times!!! Virginia City is worth the visit! ‍ -- thank you, John, for the tour! It was educational and scientific!!! Please visit! The fee from the tour helps maintain the site. This is not government funded, so we should support them by visiting the area! P.S. One of my good friends in media and bridesmaids from the Philippines came to visit us in Reno, so we toured her around the city and its nearby places. read more

See all

Completely awesome! If you want to learn about the Virginia City mines this is the place to go. This is the only real remaining mine that you can actually tour. The owner is very knowledgeable and the tour guide knows his stuff too. You won't be disappointed. Wear comfortable shoes as this is a real mine that you go down into. If I could give 6 stars I would! read more

See all

Ok gonna state some facts first. I'm Claustrophobic I'm 6'1 Did my research (expectations vs reality) I just got back from VC and was so excited to check out this amazing little town. Ok let's get into it. Jay the Owner and Tour guide was such a joy to have met. Like I said I just came back so it had currently just rained and snowed in Virginia City. I knew this yet I wore white shoes ( I'll come back to this) The tour started off with me walking up to a dirt road (muddy one) to a small shake staged for the time period with the tools of the trade. The group was 3 people myself and a couple. Jay spent about 10 / 15 mins explaining the history of how the mine came to be and all the boom that came along with it. It was so much Information that I definitely will need to go back and do the tour again or read up on it alone. Still the amount of knowledge Jay could give was so impressive. The group didn't ask many questions but I'm sure if you had one he would be able to answer with no hesitation. After we had our history class we made our way outside to the side of the shake to grab a hard hat. ** I saw a comment about how they were not cleaned** The hats sat in an old wheelbarrow and are made of plastic so I don't know what was expected from others. Lice don't live on smooth or slippery surfaces so besides that I couldn't really see any problem. They had ZERO dirt in them and did their job. I WAS SO HAPPY to have been provided one. As my tall self busted my head like 5 or more times trying to duck walk through the sapce lol The space is very tight and the shaft definitely had updates to the infrastructure which I was very happy to have seen. Never did I feel unsafe or stuck, now if the group would have been bigger like 8 ppl I might have had an issue. ( I don't know what the max size is for a group) Now we pass the shaft and get to the end to see where the miners would have worked. Jay again broke down how the bell system worked that they used, he showed us tools and other setups the men of the time had. The whole experience was so amazing. Being able to walk a path that many had worked so hard to build and make a life off of. I felt very privileged. All in all this tour is something to be experienced I highly recommend if you love history and want to get a since of just how hard folks worked and wanted better for them selves. *Forgot to mention that since I did wear white shoes. Jay kindly provided me with a rag to clean off my shoes. Which I thought was super nice as it was my fault for not planning accordingly. read more

See all

Andre gave us a wonderful tour of the mine. First he has a shop with lots of artifacts and mineral specimens. It was fun to browse through his collection. Then we went into the actual mine and he told us all about the history of the area and mines. He is a true wealth of information!! We are going to recommend this tour to our family and friends because they are also interested in mines and minerals. read more

See all

Where do I even start? The Chollar Mine is owned by such a passionate gentleman who really embraces his love for the history of the Gold Rush / Silver mining all over the states. If you want to see real antiques from history, he will share you everything he has and the origins/purpose behind it! Afterwards, our tour guide, Gary, gives us a glimpse on the history of Virginia City, how the mines were built with revolutionary methods that originated in this town and the progression of tools used to extract silver and gold at the time. His cheery attitude and great humor got me and my friends talking about the tour the rest of the trip back home! Truly a one of a kind experience compared to the many other mine tours I've been to. I'd highly suggest making time to visit this rich piece of history. Also left with a signed copy of Gary's book about what it was like to live in Virginia City in the 19th century! Been hooked on it during the drive back home to LA! read more

See all

Excellent experience! We enjoyed the tour very much, worth the money for sure. Very safe and clean. Best tour guide as well!! read more

Very nice experience, I have lived in reno for 48 years and this was the 1st time here and I will recommend this to friends and family. Thank you for a great tour. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Mine shaft - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

Super interesting tour. A plethora of knowledge about mining in the old days that was fascinating. But if you can't walk the length of a football field hunched over so your head (with helmet) doesn't hit the low beams, or are highly claustrophobic, this tour is not for you. CASH ONLY. read more

I went yesterday with my two children (6 and 10 yo). Really cool tour of a mine. Really good tour guide who provided excellent historical information. Educational and interesting BUT not boring. Make sure you go when you're in Virginia City. It's a must! read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Entering Chollar Mine! - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

See all

Highly recommend taking this tour when coming to Virginia City. It's the furthest walk into a mine I have ever been on. The guide, an 80 year gentleman who was very pleasant, knowledgeable with some great jokes intertwined in the presentation. Learned a lot of what the hills of Nevada provided. read more

See all

This was amazing ! I highly recommend it. The owner Andre was very nice and very knowledgeable. So much history in Virginia city. Thank you again Mr Andre we had a great experience. read more

Did the mine tour with my husband and 11 year old daughter. It was very informative. John Tyson was our tour guide and he's fantastic! He's a wealth of knowledge, extremely personable, and just a pleasure to be around. We're planning on returning with the rest of our brood at some point, not something you want to miss while visiting Virginia City! read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

The tour was disappointing for the price point. Expected to get a little more than a brief walk in the dark and poor attempts at humor.

Fantastic and informative tour. John the tour guide and John the owner, made this a wonderful tour. They covered a lot of history and information and answered all of our questions. read more

Such a fun, unique and highly educating experience. Well worth the price paid for an ever rarer mine tour!

To avoid spoiling it, I'll keep this review light. We showed up unexpectedly on a Saturday looking around Virginia city for something to do when Chollar mine tour was suggested. We arrived, waited about 10 mins for the previous group to finish and got settled in for the tour. Our guide (I believe Dave) was great, friendly, and very knowledgeable. I love learning about history, not so much my girlfriend, but so be it. The tour is about an hour long, goes into the mine a few hundred feet, with the guide talking at the end of the tunnel and going through interesting facts, info, and stories. Beware: it is low going into the mine, so you will need to walk hunched for a few hundred feet and there is some muddy parts. Overall enjoyed the tour and would suggest to anyone looking for a little adventure and view into an old mine! read more

Awesome tour, great history. Tour guide very cool and answers any question. Great way to kill an hour or two if your in Virginia City or Reno NV read more

Such a fun experience! So nice to have a piece of history preserved! Thank you for the memories! Definitely worth and recommend the tour. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

See all

Great tour and history on the mine, the miners and how their days/nights were spent. Knowledgeable guide. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Entrance to Chollar Mine in Virginia City, NV - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

Worth the price of admission . Embarrassed to say I live local and never took the tour. Our guide Bill was terrific and as a retired miner his tour was authentic. Be prepared however, to stoop low in the tunnels and wear a hat as some beams are low. I learned so much on this tour we'll bring guests back here. Thanks all for an informative and fun tour! Thanks Bill! read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Bill in tunnel explaining the drilling system - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

Really loved this tour. My 7 year old daughter really liked it. She has been asking a lot of questions about mining and mines because of visiting some ghost towns in the area so we brought her to this mine specifically for the real experience. read more

Great tour! A lot of time spent down in the mine. Very knowledgeable guide. A lot of fun!

My family and I arrived for the mine tour in Virginia city on a Saturday afternoon. We got there 20 min before 11am so waited for more customers. Our guide Allen was very knowledgeable about the Chollar mine and explained the history. Then explained various mines nearby and told us not to enter any dangerous mines. So the mine has air filter in the mine and narrow inside. We had to duck the same level as the air filter to the end. Next Allen explained further what the miners had to go through and shown us demonstration of the metal stake. We stayed inside for 20 or 30min Inside and it was cool of 70 degrees inside. Overall, Allen was very good and talked about his experiences and it was insightful. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Waiting in the shade - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

This guys amazing, 10/10 recommend ! Buy your tickets @ the mine for a cheaper price. Tells great stories and showcases positive energy throughout the whole tour. read more

Amazing time coming on the tour my wife love it been wanted to come here for over 15 years last time we came it was fully booked read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

I want to highly recommend the Chollar Mine Tour. Three of us decided to take a trip up to Virginia City and do this particular mine tour and we all enjoyed it very much. John Tyson was an excellent tour guide with a great sense of humor and wonderful historical knowledge about this mine, and about the mining era and Virginia City collectively. We had a great time, learned a lot, and would definitely want to recommend this for an afternoon activity if you live in the area. read more

See all

Second time to Virginia City, glad we got to do a tour mine this time. I believe there are at least 3 mines? open to tourists. Would be cool to compare the different ones. Pros: -Appreciated they were open, most of the other ones were not. The tour guide, Bill, mentioned they are not usually open this late but because of COVID they are trying to stay open as long as possible (more reason to support them! Said VC has been hit pretty hard with the pandemic :/ ) -Priced decently at $15. Would have hoped we got to see other tunnels to make the price really justifiable, but was fine with the price. I believe it is $10 for kids CASH ONLY BTW. -Bill our tour guide was really knowledgeable and you could tell passionate about the history. Did a great job of not only explaining but also showing things and a variety of interesting facts and tid bits. He was friendly and very accommodating for anyone who was claustrophobic, had questions, etc. -Kind of a silly one but they had port a potty bathrooms and thank you for keeping them clean! -Mine was pretty neat inside, definitely a cool tour overall. Cons: -Wish we got to see other mines/mine routes but I understand they may not be safe. Was hoping to see more of the inside. -Cash only, but just be prepared. -That is all I can think of! What to know: -Walkway is pretty narrow and ceilings are low pretty much the whole time until you reach the main room. Just be aware of that. If you have claustrophobia, helps to tell the guide so he can have you up front with him. -At one point he does turn the lights out to show how dark it gets so if you have bad anxiety with that, may want to avoid. -Wear good shoes! Really neat experience, great insight into what it was like to live and work back then. Definitely recommend it. read more

See all

Definitely a worthwhile adventure to start my Virginia City adventure. The story of mining operations in this region as told by our tour guide really brought home the grit and determination of those early settlers. Highly recommend this experience, good value and very informative. Head over to the Nevada State Museum as well for another terrific experience, site of the Carson City Mint read more

Excellent tour. Our guide, Andre, was so informative, and answered all of our questions. The tour was comprehensive, with lots of information about VC and the Comstock Lode, as well as explanations about the workings of the mine. Definitely worth it! My favorite VC tour. read more

The mind itself seems as though it has slumped down and collapsed a bit. Also, it seems like there used to be a second tunnel that's now gone. The staff fails to ask about claustrophobia, however, that mine walk is tight and long and hunched over for many people. Also the concept of sharing hardhats with other people without any type of cleaning between uses also leaves a lot to be desired. There really isn't a lot to see and I feel that the mine has probably seen better days. Not sure it's worth the money, my wife got in about 40 feet and turned around and left due to the condition of the mind tunnel. read more

Spectacular tour! Such rich history. MUST VISIT if you're in the Virginia City! Learned so much about history and the lost art of mining! read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

Fun, educational, and very worth going to see. Had a great time. Guide was excellent, knowledgeable, and entertaining. Might not be good for claustrophobics. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

Bill was a very knowledgeable and nice tour guide. Able to drive up and didn't have to make an appointment ahead of time, so they're very accommodating. Very interesting tour inside a real at-one-time active mine. read more

See all

My husband and I went on a tour of the mine for his 60th birthday. We showed up at 11:00 and waited a few minutes for other tourists. We were told it was about a 45-minute tour and we'd be going inside about 400 feet. Our guide, John, is very knowledgeable about the mine including its construction, the miners' working conditions, the investors, and how much money the mine made over its lifetime. He also answered all our questions. You do have to hunch down to get through parts of the mine, but overall it was a fascinating tour and we're glad we did it. It cost us $25 each, which goes to the upkeep of the mine. John is a volunteer so tips help to pay for his time. I would definitely recommend this tour. read more

My boyfriend and I took the tour and had a blast learning about the mines from the tour guide John! P.S if anyone knows this group of people , send them my way . I would like to give them this photo. read more

See all

This tour was definitely one of a kind, something unique to try out in Virginia City. Our tour guides were very knowledgeable and ready to answer any questions we had. I probably recommend don't taking kids younger than 5 years old. Our Littles got a little antsy but they still had fun going through the mine. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

See all

Was a fun tour and a really cool mine you can see the minerals sparkling in the cave walls and floors! I hope they stay in business for a long time the men who run the show were great to talk to and hear all about the interesting history of the mine. Would definitely recommend anyone to go check it out. read more

Chollar Mine Tours - Historical Tours Near Me - Virginia City, Nevada

See all