Underground Cave Boat Tour in Sion: Switzerland With Kids
There is an endless list of fun ideas when looking for the best things to do in Switzerland with kids. You really can’t go wrong with most of them. But sometimes, you plan an activity that turns into an adventure you remember forever! We had SO MUCH FUN on this cave boat tour during our Switzerland family vacation that I knew I needed to write a separate post just to do it justice. It’s one of those unique places to visit in Switzerland that you’ve just got to experience. Check out why we loved it so much, and see if it’s a good fit for the next time you travel to Switzerland!
Finding The Best Things To Do In Switzerland With Kids (Quick Note)
Before I start gushing about how awesome this experience was, let me first give you a disclaimer. This is NOT an affiliate post, nor is it sponsored in any way. In fact, the only way to get tickets to this activity is directly through their website. (This is true for many of the family activities in Switzerland I’ve found.)
I wanted to write this post because when I was planning our travel to Switzerland, looking for all of the best things to do in Switzerland with kids, it took quite a bit of digging through the interwebs to find fun stuff!
When other people are looking for unique places to visit in Switzerland, I want to make it a little easier! *wink wink*
And on that note, don’t forget to check out our Travel To Switzerland Tips post to see how I suggest finding other great things to see in Switzerland!
Okay, with that out of the way, let’s see what all the fuss is about!
Best Things To Do in Switzerland: Caves, Boats & Fun
The cave boat tour we took on our Switzerland family vacation to Crans-Montana was at an underground lake called the Lac Souterrain St. Leonard (aka the Underground Lake of St. Leonard). It is located in a small town called Sion, in a small valley between the mountains.
Sion was around a 30-minute drive down the mountain from Crans-Montana, the small ski-resort town where we stayed.
You can see our full Switzerland Itinerary post to see our airbnb and everything we did on our Switzerland family vacation.
The cave boat tour experience lasts for around an hour to an hour and a half in total.
You will arrive at the parking area for the Lac Souterrain St. Leonard. Then head into the ticket area, which is also connected to their gift shop and cafe. Inside, you’ll scan your tickets and head down to the cave entrance area.
The entrance area is well put together. There are fun infographic signs to explain the history of the cave and how it came to be.
This was great, because it made the experience more immersive. But it also showcases why this cave is one of the more unique places to visit in Switzerland!
There are also several interactive activities to entertain children, which was really fun for our kids to play with. It definitely made the wait until our ticket time pass more quickly. You could also browse the gift shop or grab a soda or snack at the cafe.
I’m a sucker for making things fun while waiting! So this probably helped this activity to feel like one of the best things to do in Switzerland with kids. (Much better than standing in a plain line with bored, whining kids!)
At a certain time, you’re called to head down to the cave’s actual entrance. To reach it, you will go down a flight of metal stairs. I do want to point this out for accessibility reasons.
Note: There was no way to get down to the cave aside from the actual staircase. (There may have been an elevator hiding somewhere. But I didn’t personally see anything like that at the top or the bottom.)
The Boat Tour (What Makes It One Of The More Unique Places To Visit In Switzerland)
The actual boat tour itself lasts approximately 30 minutes. It’s a guided boat ride through the cave. This was where it REALLY started to be fun! (This activity probably doesn’t qualify for the Switzerland adventure tours category of family activities. Even still, it’s pretty close! We were all very excited for the boat ride!)
The tour guide does a great job of explaining things! She showed us where to look, gave cool details about various things, and really maked the tour interesting and fun. Even cooler was that the guide was speaking in multiple languages! Tourists from all over were able to understand and ask questions, which was great.
Switzerland Family Travel Tip:
When you get on the boat, make sure to sit closer to the tour guide if possible. While we were able to hear our guide speaking just fine from the center of our boat, we did see some reviews on TripAdvisor that said it was difficult to hear their guide. (The reviewers also made a cranky comment about kids being on the boat. So I don’t think their review was particularly un-biased. LOL!)
Another reason I think this topped the list of best things to do in Switzerland with kids is because the lake inside the cave in itself was really interesting to see and to learn about. The history and geology were quite fascinating, especially since it gives you a glimpse into what makes the Swiss Alps so unique.
Some of the spots in the cave are more brightly lit than others, and sometimes with cool colored lights that make the experience feel more magical. But there wasn’t really a point where it was especially dark or scary for any of our four kids. (Our youngest was 5 when we visited, and our oldest was 16.)
There were also a few points during the boat ride where you could see fish, a small sunken rowboat, and other unique things in the water or on the walls.
When Planning This Activity For Your Switzerland Family Vacation
I know I mentioned this briefly at the beginning of the post, but you can ONLY book tickets for this activity in advance on their website’s booking page here. They do allow for last minute online bookings, and you can simply show your phone to the ticket guide.
I’m fairly certain that they only accept online bookings in order to keep their scheduled wait times reasonable. Since this is one of the more popular things to see in Switzerland (at least in this central area), allowing walk-in tickets would probably result in overcrowding and long wait times. So while it may seem unorthodox to require advanced bookings, I think it’s quite clever.
If you are going to be within an hour or so driving distance from the town of Sion, I definitely recommend adding this activity to your Switzerland itinerary. It’s seriously one of the best things to do in Switzerland with kids!
If you’re planning to travel to Switzerland in the summer season, this is also a GREAT way to escape the summer sunshine and cool down, since the cave is underground. The temperatures in the cave stay quite cool, even in the hottest part of the year.
If you’re planning this as one of your family activities in Switzerland in the winter, a coat will be necessary. And if you’re going to travel to Switzerland any OTHER time of the year, you might want to bring a sweater or a light jacket to wear for the boat ride.
There are also a few other family activities in Switzerland around this area as well. Make sure to check out the Sion area in Google Maps to see what’s going to be nearby that might interest you.
If you have any great Switzerland vacation ideas or tips for what to do in Switzerland with kids that YOU found to be super fun, please comment those below for the rest of us as well! I love hearing your ideas for traveling with kids and unique things that we didn’t get to experience during our own family vacations!
Don’t forget to read our tips for keeping your trip to Switzerland cost on a BUDGET as well! I talk about how to find the best things to do in Switzerland with kids (or without) and lots of other great budget tips for your Switzerland family vacation.
And if you’re planning a family trip to other places, I do also have a GREAT post talking about how I plan our family travel on a budget you can read next.
I hope you find our family travel blog to be SUPER helpful and that it makes your experiences when traveling with kids even more fun! Thanks for being here!
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This cave boat tour in Switzerland sounds great! I’m thinking of planning a similar trip, so any tips on dealing with different age groups would be awesome!
Thanks! When planning our vacations, we try to find a balance by incorporating things all our kids will enjoy- and they do a pretty good job of embracing the experience. For example, our oldest is a foodie, so we try and eat somewhere unique or exciting if we can’t do an actual food tour. Our little ones like more kid-friendly stuff, but our older kids actually seem to appreciate the playground stops as much as we do- it gives our legs a rest and our teens can check their phones for a few minutes. Since everyone knows we’ll do something they’re looking forward to on the trip, I think it makes it easier to relax and enjoy the other stuff, too. 🙂
This cave boat tour sounds like a blast! I love how it turned into an unforgettable adventure. It’s great that you’re sharing this non-affiliate info. I’m curious, what was the most unexpected part of the tour? And how did your kids react? I’m planning a trip to Switzerland soon and this might be a must-try!
Thanks so much for reading! 🙂 I’d have to say that the most unexpected part of the tour was seeing the fish in the water- I’m not sure why I was surprised but I didn’t think anything would actually be in the water… lol! Our kids loved it- and I’ve actually looked for several similar activities on trips we’ve taken since! 🙂
Sounds like the cave boat tour was a blast! I’m curious, what made it so unique? Did the kids freak out when they saw the caves? 😜
Hi Mary! I think this cave boat tour was particularly unique because our tour guide gave us such fun info about the formation of the cave and the Swiss Alps, and the whole experience just helped us to enjoy and appreciate the natural beauty- even our younger kids really enjoyed it. Surprisingly, nobody got nervous about the caves- not even our littlest who is a bit of a scaredy-cat! LOL!
This sounds like such a memorable family experience in Switzerland. The way the tour is described really captures the sense of adventure while still showing how suitable it is for children and relaxed family travel.
Thanks Diana! I appreciate the kind comment! 🙂