Grutas de Garcia Review

Grutas de Garcia is a beautiful cavern system located less than a half hour from downtown Monterrey in the rural town of Garcia, Nuevo Leon.

The caves are one of the most popular tourist attractions in th greater Monterrey metropolitan area and on the weekends, you may need to wait a little while to get in on a tour because the cable cars going 700 feet up to the top of the mountain can only handle a limited capacity. (You can walk back down if you like --- it's not a tough hike and it's very scenic with excellent canyon vistas.) Up until a few years ago, the trip up the mountain was done with a funicular incline tram, but the modern new cable cars are faster, quieter and more comfortable even if they lack the fun funky charm of the old funicular system.

The caves were discovered more than 150 years ago. The tour goes through a series of rooms with fanciful names like the Nativity Room, the Frozen Fountain, the China Tower and so on. It's hard to believe that a cave system that's 700 feet above the canyon floor would have once been under water, but that's the tale that's told, and the fossils back it up.

Cave tours are always a winning family activity, and kids love Grutas de Garcia...one of the most beautiful and fun cave tours you'll ever do!

Grutas de Garcia is open 9am to 5pm, 7 days a week. Admission is 50 pesos (US$5), which includes the trip up the mountain in the cable car and the 45-minute guided tour of the caverns.