What an amazing place. I learned a lot and our tour guide was wonderful. It was our anniversary, so the private tour was just what we needed!! read more

By far best experience ever. Never been to a cave before this and it was so informative. Beautiful doesn't cover it. They been doing tours since 1904 I believe they said. Only 18$ for over a hr tour on site. So close to ozark outdoors and the park and my Airbnb. A bit wet, damp n slippery in some parts so wear good shoes and maybe a light jacket. Yr allowed pics and stuff. read more

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We stopped here over the Meramec Caverns on the recommendation of a friend. They said the Meramec Caverns were super commercialized and not as good. I can't comment on those since we didn't end up going there, but the Onondaga Cave was great! I won't quite put it at the level of the Carlsbad Caverns, but it was nonetheless very enjoyable and informative. The tour guide did a great job of explaining the history of the park, how caverns are formed, what happens when you touch them, etc. The online reservation system was super confusing to me. Because of this we opted to NOT buy tickets in advance, and when we got there it was easy to get tickets for a tour 20 minutes or so from our arrival time (whereas the online system said all tours were booked). We enjoyed a picnic lunch on the picnic tables outside the park store. We drove on the 8 from the Maramec Spring and it was a GORGEOUS drive. I recommend doing that! read more

Onondaga Cave is very pretty. Our tour guide was very nice and knowledgeable. Tour lasted about 1 1/2 hours, so definitely worth it. Had a picnic out by a lake after the tour on a very nice newly constructed pavilion. read more

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A beautiful State park with a fascinating cave! A 90 minute tour of the cave was very refreshing! Our guide was great and answered all our queries. It was a great experience and we will definitely visit again! read more

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Cave was very dark and wet. No good snacks. Long walk. Tour guide was friendly though.

We had a wonderful time at this beautiful cave. Our guide did a fantastic job and was interesting and funny! read more

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We loved Onondaga caves! My mom wanted to go and is getting knee replacements soon. The staff - Cathy & Alisa went above and beyond for my mom. They paused for longer periods, waited for us to join the group, and helped to wheel her wheelchair. Alisa was extremely knowledgeable about the cave and I'm positive she'll go on to do great things whether it's becoming a geologist or something else. She was humorous and taught us a lot about the rock formations and history of the cave, bats, and discovery. I highly recommend, probably the best part of our Missouri experience this year and super fascinating and beautiful! A+. read more

Onondaga Cave State Park - Parks Near Me - Leasburg, Missouri

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Not as famous as Meremac cave........PLEASE NOTE THIS IS A MUCH BETTER CAVE TO VISIT. Also, excellent camping, RV, rafting, activities on site. Cathedral cave is also in this state park. BEST KEPT SECRET that needs better advertising. read more

Totally a hidden treasure and an amazing Cave! Must do the tour ($15 for adults). Really cool formations that rival Mammoth and Carlsbad Cavern, which I've visited and would say Onanadaga was very much on par with them. Our guide Nick was informative. The Park itself also has a nice, clean campground $13/night with showers and firepits.Several hikes around the state park were great also. Lots of spiders and ticks, so make sure to bring appropriate long pants, DEET and a hearty constitution, but otherwise reminescense of hikes around New England with lots of bedrock/limestone/dolomite cliffs and mossy trees. We did the Vilander, Deer Run, and Oak Ridge and highly recommend them all. Deer Run and Oak Ridge depart from the campground. Only 80 miles from St. Louis and ~4hrs from KC, this State Park is definitely doable for a weekend. Fun float trips on the Meramac are very close also. read more

Onondaga you are pretty cool. 57 Degrees Fahrenheit in fact. This is a Missouri state park that shares history with the privately held Meramec Caverns just up the street 20 mins. I chose Onondaga because I wanted my first cave experience to be factual and informative rather than touristy. The guide that took us on our 90min, 1 mile(ish) walking tour of the cave was informative, friendly and had lots of experience despite his be relatively new to being a tour guide. There's lots to know too, from legal land battle issues, former owners, scientific facts about features in the cave, creatures in the cave, etc. Talking to people on the tour I actually found that one of the patrons at Onondaga was a former tour guide at Meramec. He said the two caves are completely different experiences and that both have their own unique features. Admission for myself, my partner and our 2yo son was $31.79 But that might have included a bag of gummy bears. We drove over an hour from Saint Louis to visit and I would consider it well worth the time and money. For those worried about being claustrophobic... Don't worry, the spaces a very large. read more

We took a tour here last week. You wouldn't know it based on advertising or word of mouth, but I say this is a major attraction for the St. Louis area - everyone who lives here should see make it a point to see this cave. They are now closed until springtime (mid April - TBA). Tours of this cave began shortly after it's "discovery" in the late 1800's. It was a big attraction at the time of the 1904 World's Fair. Before people began to fully understand conservation of caves, they poured a concrete path, added electric lights and banisters. Although environmentalists might consider this a shame, it works out pretty well for us tourists, as there is excellent lighting of all the features. The tour leaves the two major highlights - the queen's veil and the lily pad room - to the end, but along the way there are pretty impressive cave formations all around. If you've never been to a cave, this is an excellent place to start. A couple years back, we toured Fisher Cave in Meramec State Park. It's also very cool, but not nearly as impressive (and no electricity or paths). We brought our 5 year-old and she walked the entire tour with not one complaint. We saw maybe a dozen bats, mostly flying by when we spooked them. The tour guide was very fond of the bats, so I think her attitude kept anyone from freaking out. You might want to read up on Wikipedia before taking the tour - it's an interesting history. Cost for this season was $12 for adults, under 6 free. I think $6 for children over 6. Bottom line: This cave is so under the radar, but should not be. Make plans to take this tour - you won't regret it. read more

One of my favorite day-trip destinations. While I have yet to take a cave tour, the hiking is enough to keep me coming back. It's a beautiful area with long trails, challenging inclines, and some scenic streams and ponds. The trails could be marked a bit more clearly, but I made it out alive so it can't be too bad. When you're on the blue trail, be sure to look for turtles perched on branches over the water. I love those little guys. If you've got a weekend day free, pack up the car, take the drive and spend half a day here. It'll cure what ails you. read more

As far as caves go, it's far better than Meramec Cavern. However, Meramec Cavern is more commercial than this one (if you're in to that sort of thing). The cave tour is two whole hours. DO NOT forget to wear something warm in the cave. It is seriously cold. The formations are awesome and the history of the cave ownership is pretty interesting too. read more

The park may be fine The campground host, mike, was so rude I will never go back. We had permission to set up our tents from the person next to us who hadn't moved their car yet. We were two hours early. Camp host, mike , who didn't introduce himself, made us pick up all of our stuff, put in our car and park 20 yards in the general parking lot. He told us check in time was at three pm. He drove by two times after three pm while we were setting up camp. Never collected our money We had to move our stuff three hours later because someone came with their family and was loud and verbally abusive to wife We looked for host twice to pay. No answer at his rv or in the office. Right when we sat down for our dinner, he drives up to collect our money and have us write down car info, etc. His wife( I assume) seemed to be trying to be nice. Our food got cold. He was terrible. In addition, I will be letting the state park about the bad experience. read more

Last weekend we completed the off-trail tour at Onandaga Cave State Park with Michael as our guide. I never knew such a tour existed until Michael mentioned it to me earlier this year while we were taking the regular tour. If you are looking for a unique caving experience, call the park and speak with Michael Miller about it. He was extremely helpful during our preparations and on the day of the tour. The off-trail tour visits Cathedral Cave, which is also in the park. It is a strenuous, 5-7 hour tour, with many tight passages, deep mud, and water-crossings. You will get muddy, wet, and sore. The last 100 feet require an army-style crawl for adults, and a few tight squeezes. But... the trip is worth all the effort! The formations and passages are beautiful. And how many times in your life will you have the opportunity to step off the paved path and explore the depths of a cave? (Unless you are a trained spelunker, which I am not). The cost was $35 per person. With gear purchases (clothing and headlamps), we spent about $100 per person. That's less than a day at Disneyland or Universal Studios... and that's before you buy any food :-) For my money, I'd rather go caving with Michael than spend the day at Disneyland! read more

this place was so much fun! my friends and i came here for a cave tour. the tour guide was friendly and informative. she didn't know EVERYTHING but that was ok. i like going into caves and onondaga caves did not disappoint! there were concrete steps and low ceilings all over the cave. my bf is pretty tall and the tour guide kept on teasing him about potentially hitting his head. he crabbed walked under the low points and was safe! anyway, i agree with Tom J in the way this place was very nicely designed for the tourists. we would walk somewhere, the tour guide would press a button, the formations would light up, and she'd talk at us for a bit. then the lights would go off, we'd keep walking, and rinse and repeat. the cave tour is cash only (if i remember correctly) so bring cash just in case! and bring some pennies and quarters for those crushed penny souvenirs! read more

One thing I found out.... never underestimate the size of a cave. This place was immense! Make absolutely sure to wear sturdy shoes as the walking paths inside the cave can get wet. Also bring a light sweater because it is a cool 60 inside the cave. The different rooms were amazing. It boggles my mind how something so beautiful can be found below ground. There were several rooms you could fit a couple hot air balloons inside without touching a wall. There were also a lot of "soda straws" all over the cave. Thanks to our tour guide who handled my daughter so well. We were the first two in the line with hubby and son somewhat in the middle of the group. read more

Gorgeous from start to finish. My tour guide was very knowledgeable and pointed out a lot of beautiful formations along the way. It's hard to believe how shallow the water is since it looks like it goes on forever. There are also some hiking trails right outside and a cute little gift shop. Definitely worth the drive and the small fee for the tour. read more

Best cave in Missouri by far. They have awesome informative guides who really know what they are talking about. Well worth the trip and admission. Please support this cave since it is state owned. read more

Onondaga Cave State Park - Lily pad room. - Parks Near Me - Leasburg, Missouri

We camped here but did not see the caves. The campground was well organized and marked. The price was great for a tent site. There were free showers and they had coin laundry facilities. Located on a peaceful stretch of river with lots of trees. read more

We visited Onondaga Cave during the weekday and had a private tour since it was slow. Our tour guide (Travis) was so knowledgeable, friendly and pleasant to be with! That was one of the most amazing tour that I have ever been on! We spent 1.5 hours being guided through this underground wonder. The State has spent a great deal of time and money making this natural wonder accessible for all. This Cave was different from others as the rooms and ceilings were so big and high. The cave was amazing/beautiful compared to the more "commercialize" Meramec Caverns. My only suggestion is that they should add additional billboards on I-44 to attract more tourist. read more

Tour was awesome. Emerald is a very good tour guide. Great for kids and adults. 1.5 hours long. Uphill and down hill walking. Bring a jacket and wear good walking shoes. read more

Very helpful staff even when the cave tour wasn't open for the season! Loved this state park for rv camping, hiking and fun for the kids. Boat access to the river too! read more

I was on a road trip with that bitch Sharon (she called it charity work we all know I'm the only person who tolerates her) to go to the wine outlet in St. James. I decided to go on the trip despite her being insufferable because St. James has lovely discount wine and Sharon decided to come along because despite her incessant denials, she's an alcoholic with a weird unicycling kid and a door to door shamwow salesman for a husband. Anyway, we were driving down highway I-44 when we passed a billboard for Onondoga Park's night cave tours. I'm not particularly passionate about caves, but frankly I was rather drunk and hoped to abandon Sharon in the cave. When the cave tour began it became apparent very quickly that the cave, despite being advertised as such, was not a cave at all!!! Clearly, the cave was made of styrofoam. Terrible for the environment. Onondoga Park should be ashamed of themselves for singlehandedly causing global warming. 3.67 stars. read more