# Cloșani Cave

[Romania](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/attractions) › [Oltenia](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/region/oltenia) › [Gorj County](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/county/gorj) › [Cloșani](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/locality/closani)

> A cave with white and reddish calcite formations above the village of Cloșani, an underground laboratory of the Emil Racoviță Institute of Speleology since 1959; closed to the public, entry only with the institute's approval.

**At a glance:** Caves in Cloșani, Gorj County. Information verified on 31 October 2026.

## Key facts

- **Opening hours:** The cave has no opening hours and no tourist route; entry is only with the approval of the Emil Racoviță Institute of Speleology, for research.
- **With kids:** No — closed to the public
- **Address:** above the village of Cloșani, Padeș commune, in the Motru valley; the research station is on the right bank of the Motru, Cloșani, Gorj County
- **Coordinates:** 45.07315, 22.80083
- **Website:** https://www.iser.ro/
- **Categories:** [Caves](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/caves), [National parks and reserves](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/national-parks-and-reserves)

## About Cloșani Cave

Cloșani Cave opens in the north of the Mehedinți Mountains, above the village of Cloșani in Padeș commune, upstream of the point where the Motru meets the Motru Sec. The entrance is at about 440 m, and the passages, just over 1,000 m long, run on two horizontal levels: the Laboratory Gallery and the Matei Ghica Gallery. Deep inside it is about 11 °C, the air is very humid and there are no draughts.

The cave is known above all as a place of research. From 1959 the Emil Racoviță Institute of Speleology of the Romanian Academy built a research station and an underground laboratory here: spaces and breeding set-ups for studying karst processes and underground fauna have been fitted out in the galleries, and some 70 species of microscopic animals have been discovered in the cave. Its stalagmites have also been used to reconstruct the climate of south-western Romania over the last 20,000 years or so. The cave is part of the Piatra Cloșanilor reserve, 1,730 ha, within Domogled–Valea Cernei National Park.

Local legends say that Tudor Vladimirescu hid the archive of the 1821 revolution here, and that beneath the vault of Piatra Mare a sorcerer shut away a corner of paradise full of flowers.

### What you can see

The passages are decorated with white or reddish calcite formations: columns, stalactites, stalagmites and calcite flowers. The greater horseshoe bat (*Rhinolophus ferrumequinum*) also lives in the cave. Visitors, however, only see what is outside: the research station building on the right bank of the Motru, at about 400 m, home to a weather station and, since 2002, a Bat Information, Study and Protection Centre, and the limestone massif of Piatra Cloșanilor, climbed from the village by a trail marked with a red dot towards the ridge and the Valea Mare dam (~10.5 km).

### Good to know

The cave is not open to the public: it is run by the Emil Racoviță Institute of Speleology, and entry is only with the institute's approval, for research. In 2024 Padeș town hall began steps to take over the cave and fit it out for visitors; for now there is no tourist route. Nearby you can visit [God's Bridge](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/podul-lui-dumnezeu), the natural bridge at Ponoarele (~21 km), and [Tismana Monastery](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/manastirea-tismana) (~25 km). Caves set up for tourists lie further east, about two hours' drive away: the [Women's Cave](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/pestera-muierilor) and [Polovragi Cave](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/pestera-polovragi).

## Don't miss

- The white and reddish calcite formations: columns, stalactites, stalagmites and calcite flowers.
- The Laboratory Gallery, with spaces fitted out for studying karst processes and underground fauna.
- The speleological research station on the right bank of the Motru, built from 1959 onwards.
- The limestone massif of Piatra Cloșanilor, with the red-dot trail climbing from the village along the ridge towards the Valea Mare dam.
- The greater horseshoe bat, which lives in the cave, and the bat protection centre at the station, opened in 2002.

## Good to know before you go

### Getting there

**By car:** Cloșani is in the Motru valley, in western Gorj County, ~15 km (~20 minutes) north of Baia de Aramă. From Târgu Jiu it is ~49 km (~1 h), from Drobeta-Turnu Severin ~75 km (~1 h 40 min), from Craiova ~129 km (~2 h 35 min). God's Bridge, at Ponoarele, is ~21 km away (~30 minutes), and Tismana Monastery ~25 km (~35 minutes).

**Public transport:** trains run to Târgu Jiu or Drobeta-Turnu Severin; from there you need a car to reach Cloșani.

### Rules

The cave is a scientific reserve, within the Piatra Cloșanilor reserve in Domogled–Valea Cernei National Park. Entry without the approval of the Emil Racoviță Institute of Speleology is not allowed: do not try to go in on your own and do not disturb the bats. In the park, keep to the marked trails; leave no litter and light no fires.

### Facilities

No tourist facilities in the cave

## Details

- **Protected area type:** nature reserve
- **Part of:** Domogled–Valea Cernei National Park
- **Total length:** 1,000 m
- **Inside temperature:** 11.3 °C
- **Altitude:** 440 m
- **Developed and lit:** No

## Frequently asked questions about Cloșani Cave

**Can you visit Cloșani Cave with kids?**

No, Cloșani Cave is not recommended for visits with children (closed to the public).

**How do I get to Cloșani Cave?**

Cloșani Cave is located at above the village of Cloșani, Padeș commune, in the Motru valley; the research station is on the right bank of the Motru, Cloșani, Gorj County. More under “Getting there”.

## Nearby attractions

- [Tismana Monastery](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/tismana-monastery) — Monasteries · Tismana, GJ · 1 – 1½ hours · 13 km
  The oldest monastery in Wallachia, founded by St Nicodemus in the 14th century on a rocky spur next to a waterfall; Romania's National Bank gold was hidden here from 1944 to 1947.
- [God's Bridge](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/god-s-bridge) — National parks and reserves · Ponoarele, MH · Free · ½ – 1 hours · Top 100 · 15 km
  Romania's largest natural bridge and the only one in the world carrying a public road: a 30 m limestone arch left standing after a cave roof collapsed, in the village of Ponoarele on the Mehedinți Plateau.
- [Holy Archangels Wooden Church in Seliștea](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/holy-archangels-wooden-church-in-selistea) — Churches · Seliștea, MH · 20 min · 20 km
  A small wooden church of 1820–1822, plastered and painted in 1835, standing in the cemetery of a scattered village on the Mehedinți Plateau and currently under restoration.
- [Glogoveanu Kula](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/glogoveanu-kula) — Fortresses and fortifications · Glogova, GJ · 45 min · 22 km
  A fortified manor house in Glogova (Gorj), with a massive 17th-century cellar and an upper floor with a wooden veranda built after 1764, in the middle of a park beside St Nicholas church.
- [Holy Voivodes Wooden Church in Isverna](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/holy-voivodes-wooden-church-in-isverna) — Churches · Isverna, MH · 30 min · 23 km
  A small 19th-century wooden church with a shingle roof and whitewashed walls, tucked among trees in Isverna, with a painted iconostasis and folk murals inside.
- [Constantin Brâncuși Memorial House in Hobița](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/constantin-brancusi-memorial-house-in-hobita) — Museums and memorial houses · Peștișani, GJ · 45 min · 26 km
  The wooden homestead in the village where Brâncuși was born in 1876: a house with a porch of twist-carved posts, a carved gate, outbuildings and peasant furniture, a museum since 1971.

## Featured in the guides

- [Famous caves in Romania you cannot visit: Movile, Topolnița, Vântului, Coliboaia, Peștera cu Oase (and what to see instead)](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/guides/caves-you-cannot-visit-in-romania) — Movile, Coliboaia, Cu Oase, Cloșani and Piatra Altarului are closed; Topolnița and Tăușoare need a permit; Wind Cave is open with a caving guide.

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Full page: https://peplaiuri.ro/en/closani-cave
Other languages: Română: https://peplaiuri.ro/pestera-closani.md · Deutsch: https://peplaiuri.ro/de/hoehle-closani.md · Italiano: https://peplaiuri.ro/it/grotta-di-closani.md · Français: https://peplaiuri.ro/fr/grotte-de-closani.md · Español: https://peplaiuri.ro/es/cueva-de-closani.md · Magyar: https://peplaiuri.ro/hu/closani-barlang.md
Last updated: 31 October 2026
Source: Pe Plaiuri (https://peplaiuri.ro/en) — Guide to tourist attractions in Romania