Caverne du Dragon in winter: opening hours, prices, and bring a real coat

Dress code first, timetable second

I can already picture it, and it annoys me in advance: a light jacket, city shoes, and that brave little sentence, "it must be warm underground". Underground, it is 12 °C. Fourteen metres down, in July as in December, for a 1 hour 15 minute tour.

So the agenda is simple: one extra layer, shoes that grip, and only then the opening hours. Blankets are lent for the descent, subject to availability. "Subject to availability" means someone else thought of it before you did. I only mention it for your comfort, of course.

Opening hours, now that you are dressed

Until Sunday 15 November inclusive, the Visitor Centre opens from 10:00 to 18:00. From 16 November to 30 December 2026, it is 10:00 to 17:00. One hour less, and darkness falling earlier on the plateau.

16 November is a Monday. The site is closed on Mondays, except in July, in August and on public holidays. Going by that rule, the first winter day with the door open is Tuesday 17 November. Anyone who turns up on Monday 16th "just to see" will see the car park. If in doubt, call +33 3 23 25 14 18; it is quicker than the round trip.

Tour times are listed on the online ticket office all year round, and booking is recommended. A group is limited to 49 people. My opinion, which commits nobody but which I give anyway: aim for early afternoon. The last departure is for people who enjoy coming back up at dusk and hunting for their car with narrowed eyes.

Prices, without mental arithmetic at the till

The guided tour costs €10 full price, audio guide included. The reduced rate is €6 (teachers, jobseekers, people with disabilities and veterans, among others) or €2 (children aged 7 to 18, students up to 25, RSA benefit recipients). It is free for under-7s and for several other groups, with proof. The proof is the piece of paper everyone leaves on the kitchen table. The annual pass costs €25. Cash, French cheques, cards and the pass Culture are accepted.

The tour is free on the first Sunday of the month from October to March: this winter, that is Sunday 6 December. It is also free on the remembrance days of 16 April and 11 November.

For children aged 6 to 11, the tour "Le trésor de la Caverne" (in French) runs every Wednesday at 11:00: €9 for ages 7 to 18, €6 per adult, free under 7, and an accompanying adult is compulsory. Pushchairs can go through the tunnels. The excuses for leaving the little ones at home are running thin.

December: three closed doors

The site is closed on Thursday 24 and Friday 25 December 2026, then on Thursday 31 December for the annual closure. The last opening day of the year is Wednesday 30 December. Families who planned to "keep the guests busy" between the Christmas log and New Year's Eve will need another plan.

The reopening date for 2027 has not been published. Last winter, the site stayed closed from 31 December 2025 to 23 January 2026 inclusive. That is not a promise for next January, and I will not let you treat it as one.

Until 30 December, the exhibition "Victoires, regards des Peintres de l'armée" is open during museum hours, free of charge: paintings, sculptures, photographs and drawings by artists who sign their work with two crossed swords. 30 December is the last chance to see it.

What you visit

Here, I put my remarks away.

The Caverne du Dragon can only be visited with a guide, for safety reasons. It is a former stone quarry, probably worked from the 16th century. German soldiers took it from the French in January 1915 and turned it into an underground barracks. They were the ones who named it "Drachenhöhle", the Dragon's Cave. French troops retook it on 25 June 1917, and the two sides then shared the galleries until October of that year.

I will not describe the tour: I have not taken it for this page. The guide will, on site.

Before you set off

Animals are not allowed, except assistance dogs. The dog stays at home, then. It will sulk; that is its right. A wheelchair can be lent. Parking is free.

When you come back up, it may already be dark on the plateau. You will have kept your coat on for 1 hour 15 minutes. You will not thank me; nobody ever thanks their aunt. But you will have kept it on.

The short version

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• Winter hours

  16 November to 30 December 2026, 10:00 to 17:00. Until 15 November inclusive, 10:00 to 18:00.

• Closed

  Mondays (except July, August and public holidays); 24 and 25 December 2026; 31 December 2026 (annual closure). Reopening in 2027: not published.

• Tour

  Guided only, 1 hour 15 minutes, 12 °C, 49 people maximum. Times and booking on the official ticket office; booking recommended.

• Prices

  €10; reduced €6 or €2; free under 7; annual pass €25. Free on the first Sunday of the month from October to March (6 December 2026).

• Address

  Chemin des Dames Visitor Centre (Centre d'accueil du visiteur), Caverne du Dragon, RD 18 CD, 02160 Oulches-la-Vallée-Foulon, France. Tel. +33 3 23 25 14 18. Free parking. Place page: Caverne du Dragon.

What people ask me

Tata Nadège, the well-known aunt who knows everything, for NLocale. You keep the territory alive; Tata Nadège makes it known.