Novoafon (Anakopia) Cave: Geological Marvel and Karst Wonder in Novy Afon, Abkhazia
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The Novoafon (Anakopia) Cave is one of the largest and most visited show caves in Abkhazia, located near the town of Novy Afon and formed inside thick, layered Lower Cretaceous limestone up to 300 m deep. It draws hundreds of thousands of visitors a year to its vast underground halls, lakes and mineral formations, reached by a dedicated underground railway. This page covers how the cave formed, its structure and grottoes, its decorations and microclimate, and everything you need to plan a visit.
Novoafon (Anakopia) Cave: overview
The Novoafon Cave is a karst cavity beneath the Iverian (Apsar) Mountain in Novy Afon, opened to tourists in 1975 after Soviet speleologists explored and equipped it. It is known by several names — Novoafon Cave, New Athos Cave and Anakopia Cave — all referring to the same system of giant grottoes linked by high passages. As a tourist cave attraction in Abkhazia, it is distinguished by its sheer scale: some halls exceed 50 m in height, and a purpose-built mini-railway carries visitors from the entrance pavilion into the heart of the mountain.
The cave's appeal combines geology, scale and atmosphere: deep underground lakes, towering stalactites and stalagmites, delicate calcite flowers, and halls with acoustics good enough for live musical performances.
Geological formation and setting
The Novoafon Cave formed in thick, thickly layered limestones of the Lower Cretaceous, with the limestone mass reaching up to 300 m in thickness. Water working through this soluble rock over a very long period dissolved the passages and halls that make up the cave today, a process still active in its wetter sections.
Lower Cretaceous limestone composition
The host rock of the Novoafon Cave is Lower Cretaceous limestone, a carbonate stone readily dissolved by slightly acidic groundwater. The layered structure of these limestones controlled how the cavities opened up, with dissolution following bedding planes and fractures through the massif.
Tectonic fractures and cave orientation
The cave is confined to two mutually perpendicular systems of tectonic fractures — meridional (dip 80–90°) and latitudinal (dip 30–60°) — with the largest passages extending in a northerly direction. These fracture systems acted as the initial pathways for water, so the overall plan of the cave follows the underlying structural grain of the rock.
Dimensions and the Anakopia cave system
The total length of the Novoafon Cave proper is 1,515 m, with a volume of 1,006,600 m³. The wider Anakopia system — which besides the Anakopia Cave includes the New Athos, Maanikvar and other cavities — reaches a total length of 3,285 m. These figures place it among the largest cave systems open to visitors in the Caucasus region.
Structure of the cave
The Anakopia (Novoafon) Cave consists of two morphologically sharply different parts — a vertical part and a horizontal part.
The vertical part
The vertical part of the Novoafon Cave is spiral-shaped and begins at the surface with a sinkhole 30 m deep and 55 m across. This sinkhole gradually narrows and passes into a system of vertical and inclined wells that lead down to the Abkhazian grotto. The total length of this vertical part is 139 m.
The horizontal part
The horizontal part of the Novoafon Cave is formed by a series of grottoes connected to each other by wide, high passages: Abkhazia, Georgian Speleologists, Clay, Temple, Sukhumi, Iveria, Tbilisi and Heliktit (Geliktit).
Plan and layout of the grottoes
The plan of the New Athos (Anakopia) Cave numbers its main features in sequence along the tour route:
- Abkhazia grotto
- Georgian Speleologists' grotto
- Clay grotto
- Canyon passage
- Sukhumi grotto
- Temple grotto
- Iberia grotto
- Tbilisi grotto
- Heliktit grotto
The grottoes in detail
The grottoes of the Novoafon Cave divide broadly into heavily watered halls near the entrance and dry, richly decorated halls deeper inside. This contrast — wet karst still actively forming versus dry chambers dense with mineral ornament — is what gives the cave its variety.
Grotto of Georgian Speleologists
The Grotto of Georgian Speleologists is the largest grotto in the Novoafon Cave, measuring 260 m long, 75 m wide and 50 m high.
Watered grottoes and underground lakes
The grottoes of Abkhazia, Georgian Speleologists and Clay are considerably watered, constantly receiving water that then seeps into the depth of the massif through numerous ponors. This continuous drainage indicates intensive development of modern karst processes in this part of the cave. Deep underground lakes — more than 8 m deep — are also found in these halls.
Dry grottoes and chemogenic formations
The other grottoes of the Novoafon Cave are dry, and the water that reaches them is mainly involved in the formation of chemogenic formations. The slightly watered grottoes in the far part of the cave are characterized by rich interior decoration, the product of slow, steady mineral deposition rather than flowing water.
Cave decorations and mineral formations
The Novoafon Cave is decorated with an exceptional range of calcite and gypsum formations, concentrated in its far, drier grottoes. These natellar (dripstone) features are most abundant in the Tbilisi and Heliktit grottoes.
Stalactites, stalagmites and draperies
In the Tbilisi and Heliktit grottoes, calcite draperies, waterfalls, stalactites, stalagmites and bizarre helictites are widely developed. Stalactites hang from the vault where mineral-rich water drips and evaporates, while stalagmites build upward from the floor beneath them; helictites twist in unexpected directions, defying gravity.
Cave pearls and calcite flowers
Cave pearls are found in the cave's miniature rimstone tubs, formed as calcite layers build around a grain agitated by dripping water. Exotic calcite and gypsum flowers also decorate the grottoes of the far part of the Novoafon Cave, adding to the variety of crystalline ornament.
Microclimate: temperature and humidity
The air temperature in the horizontal part of the Novoafon Cave varies from 11.8 to 12.8 °C, and the relative humidity is 93–98%. This cool, very humid and remarkably stable microclimate persists year-round, so visitors are advised to bring warm clothing regardless of the season outside.
Acoustic properties and musical performances
The large halls of the Novoafon Cave have notable natural acoustics, and one grotto — the Apkhyartsa (Anakopia) hall — is used for live musical performances. The combination of high arched vaults, hard limestone walls and great enclosed volume produces a long, resonant reverberation that suits choral and instrumental music. Concerts staged inside the cave have become part of its draw, turning a geological site into an occasional underground concert venue.
Visiting the Novoafon Cave
The Novoafon Cave is a fully equipped show cave with a fixed tour route, an entrance pavilion and an underground railway, so visits are organized rather than free-roaming. Planning ahead for transport, tickets, group timings and clothing makes the visit smoother, especially in the busy summer season.
Directions and transportation options
The Novoafon Cave is reached via the town of Novy Afon in Abkhazia, with the entrance pavilion at the foot of the Iverian Mountain. Visitors typically arrive by car, organized tour bus or marshrutka from the coastal resort towns; parking is available near the pavilion, though spaces fill quickly at midday in summer. Excursion bookings and current logistics for the cave are listed by tour operators such as Sputnik8.com and Tripster.ru, and an official cave site at afon-cave.ru.
Entrance fees and ticket pricing
Entrance to the Novoafon Cave is by paid ticket, purchased at the pavilion box office, with admission covering the underground railway ride and the guided walking route through the grottoes. Photography inside the cave may carry a separate fee in addition to the standard ticket. Because prices change seasonally and are set by the cave administration, confirm the current entrance fee and any photography cost before arrival rather than relying on older figures.
The underground cave railway
The Novoafon Cave is entered by a dedicated underground mini-railway — one of very few cave railways in the world — that carries visitors from the entrance pavilion deep into the mountain to the start of the walking route. The line runs along a tunnel bored for the purpose, with stops at the entry and exit halls, and the short ride is itself part of the experience. The railway makes the otherwise difficult vertical descent unnecessary for ordinary visitors.
Excursion group requirements
Visits to the Novoafon Cave are conducted as guided group excursions departing at set times rather than as individual self-guided walks. Groups gather at the pavilion and board the railway together, then follow a guide along the fixed route through the grottoes; tour duration is roughly an hour and a half. During peak season it is sensible to arrive early, as group places on each departure are limited.
Accessibility and visitor restrictions
Accessibility inside the Novoafon Cave is limited by its many steps, ramps and uneven, sometimes slippery walkways through the grottoes, which can be challenging for visitors with reduced mobility. The cold, very humid air also makes the cave unsuitable for those who are unwell or sensitive to damp conditions. A dress code of warm clothing and sturdy, non-slip footwear is strongly recommended given the 11.8–12.8 °C temperature and near-saturated humidity year-round.
