About Women's Cave
The Women's Cave formed in the limestone on the southern edge of the Parâng Mountains, where the Galbenul river cut the Galbenul Gorge, just above the village of Baia de Fier. Its galleries, on four levels, cross the limestone band of the gorge from north to south and add up to more than 8 km; the upper gallery, about 860 m long, is the part laid out for visitors. Local legend says the village's women and children sheltered here in time of war while the men were away fighting, hence the name.
Its fame comes from the excavations of 1951–1955, led by Constantin S. Nicolăescu-Plopșor. On the cave floor they found the remains of 183 cave bears, along with bones of cave lion, hyena and wolf, Middle Palaeolithic stone tools and, in 1952, the skull of a woman who lived around 35,000 years ago, one of the oldest Homo sapiens fossils found in Europe. The cave is a natural monument and speleological reserve, and the levels below the tourist gallery are closed to the public. It is regarded as the first cave in Romania to be lit with electricity.
What you can see
The tourist gallery rises and falls among stalactites, stalagmites and columns, some white, some stained ochre by iron oxides. The formations have been given names: the Small Dome, vaulted like a Gothic cupola, the Altar Hall with the Pulpit and the Altar Veil, the Great Chandelier and the Bloodied Rock, turned red by seeping iron. A colony of bats lives in a dome about 17 m high. The route passes right through the massif, so you come out on the far side, a few hundred metres from the entrance, and walk back through the gorge.
Good to know
Entry is in groups, at fixed times, every hour; be at the ticket desk at least 10 minutes beforehand. It is about 10 °C inside all year, and in places the gallery is only 1 m high.
- The Small Dome, a chamber vaulted like a Gothic cupola, built up from layers of calcite over thousands of years.
- The Bloodied Rock, stained red by the iron oxides that seep down it.
- The Great Chandelier and the Altar Hall, with the Pulpit and the Altar Veil, along the tourist gallery.
- The dome about 17 m high that is home to a colony of bats.
- The Galbenul Gorge, right outside the cave exit: limestone walls with climbing routes and hammocks slung some 200 m above the valley.
Good to know before you go
- Getting there
By car: Baia de Fier is in north-eastern Gorj County, 11 km from Novaci (~20 minutes, on the DJ 665). From Târgu Jiu it is ~51 km (~1h10), on the DN 67 towards Horezu and then north towards Novaci and Baia de Fier; from Horezu ~29 km (~40 minutes), from Râmnicu Vâlcea ~71 km (~1h30), from Craiova ~123 km (~2h30). The cave is at the northern end of the village, on Strada Peșterii, at the mouth of the Galbenul Gorge. Polovragi Cave is a few kilometres to the east and the Transalpina starts at Novaci, so they can be combined in one day.
Public transport: the nearest railway station is Târgu Jiu. Minibuses run from there to Novaci; we found no confirmed scheduled service to the cave itself, so the last few kilometres are by taxi or on foot.
- Where to park
Leave the car in the car park at the mouth of the gorge, by the terraces next to the cave, a few minutes' walk from the ticket desk. We found no official information on charges; on summer weekends the area gets busy.
- Fees & discounts
Official prices (2025–2026): 20 lei for adults, 10 lei for pupils and 10 lei for pensioners. Tickets are sold at the desk by the entrance, at least 10 minutes before the tour's fixed time. The official website lists no other reductions or group tickets.
- Rules
Entry is in groups of at least 4 and at most 100 people, at the fixed times in the schedule. In places the gallery is only 80 cm wide and 1 m high, so you will have to stoop for some stretches. It is about 10 °C and damp inside all year: bring a jacket and shoes with good grip. Do not touch or break the formations and do not disturb the bats; the cave is a natural monument.
- Facilities
Ticket desk at the entrance · toilets by the car park · terraces and restaurants serving local food next to the cave · guesthouses in Baia de Fier and Novaci · 3D virtual tour of the cave on muzeedelasat.ro · the route has steps and low passages and is not pushchair- or wheelchair-accessible
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