THE MARBLE Arch Caves is set to celebrate four decades of welcoming visitors from near and far.
Formed hundreds of thousands of years ago, the cave system we know today was first explored by French speleologist Edouard Martel 130 years ago. However, it’s only been opened to visitors for the past 40 years. This year marks the anniversary of both.
The now world-famous tourist attraction was opened to the public on May 29, 1985 by the former Fermanagh District Council. Since then over 2.5 million visitors from right across the world have explored the Marble Arch Caves.
The caves were first discovered by locals who lived off the land and created myths and folklore about the mysterious underground entrance. They named the cave after a striking archway near the entrance, once thought to be made of marble but, in fact, formed from limestone polished smooth by rivers over millennia.
In 1895, Edouard Martel, pictured right, equipped with nothing more than candlelight, rope, and a canvas canoe, ventured deep into the cave system, revealing a hidden world that would later become one of Ireland’s most popular natural tourist attractions.
Since opening to the public, the Marble Arch Caves has reached many milestones, including achieving European Geopark status in 2001, UNESCO Global Geopark status in 2017, expanding to year-round operations in 2019, joining Tourism NI’s Embrace a Giant Spirit portfolio in 2020, and becoming a member of the Geopark Sustainable Business Network in 2022.
To mark these milestone anniversaries, the Marble Arch Caves will host a series of special events throughout late spring and summer of 2025. This includes two tours especially themed to give visitors a taste of what it was like when Edouard Martel first explored the cave 130 years ago – ‘Martel’s Candlelight Tour’ and ‘Wild Caving’.
Chairman of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Councillor John McClaughry, commended the March Arch Caves team.
“The Marble Arch Caves is unique attraction in Fermanagh and Omagh’s special tourism offering, it attracts visitors from around the globe, and I am proud that we have such an exceptional underground experience in our district,” he said.
“I congratulate the Marble Arch Caves team on all their many achievements and for providing such a memorable experience for many visitors to the district.”
The Marble Arch Caves welcomes visitors from Australia, the USA, Norway, China, Germany, France, and the England, Scotland and Wales, who make the journey to delve deep beneath Fermanagh’s surface.