Visit Zonneberg caves, Sint Pietersberg – Learn about Maastricht’s history

Do you also visit the Zonneberg caves when you are in Maastricht? I found it very worthwhile! Did you know that the Zonneberg caves once consisted of more than 20,000 corridors. That’s almost unimaginable. So you really should take a look there! Book a guided tour and a professional guide will take you into the Zonneberg Caves.

Discover this underground corridor system where names and drawings of people who worked here day in day out several hundred years ago appear in the corridors. Both ‘block breakers’ and artists have left their mark there with interesting, sometimes very old inscriptions on the walls.

Great History you find Hidden in this Cave

Visit the Zonneberg caves in Mount Sint Pieter, Maastricht

Book a tour in the Zonneberg caves

If you book a guided tour like me, you will learn a lot about this underground life of yesteryear. The guide will also make sure you don’t get lost in this huge labyrinth. This labyrinth once consisted of some 20,000 corridors, which is incredible! Now there are still a good 80 kilometres of man-made underground passages. For centuries, the Maastricht people and their valuable possessions managed to find a safe refuge in the underground caverns of their ‘mountain’ in times of war.

What is the temperature in the Zonneberg caves?

There is a constant temperature of around 12 degrees, so it is chilly. If you go into the Maastricht caves, make sure you bring a jacket. The transition in summer is considerable, of course, but it’s just as chilly in spring/autumn and winter.

Visit the huge corridor system in St Pietersberg

Entrance of the Zonneberg caves

Lights in the Zonneberg caves

At the entrance, some of us were given an old-fashioned oil lamp so that the corridor was lit from within the group. Of course, it is very dark in the Zonneberg caves and it is nice to have some light at the front of the group, but also at the back. If you fall behind or walk behind in the group, at least you can still see where you are walking.

I found it a very special experience, walking around in the corridor system where so many years ago people worked hard. Where people took shelter during the war. But also where many encounters took place, this can also be seen from the inscriptions on the wall.

I loved seeing all those great paintings!

We got some good information from the guide about the wallpaintings

He explained that the murals served several purposes. Partly it was art as you can see but there was also a lot of advertising for local products or shops as you can see in the photos. Good use of the opportunities you have!

Visit Zonneberg caves in Maastricht

Since there is a constant temperature here, people came here in summer to cool off. Church services and meetings were also held then. The guide even said that the youngsters of yesteryear came here to meet each other, romantic meetings 🙂

When you then walk around the many corridors like this, you certainly have something to look at.

And there is even art in colour. The Zonnegrot cave is in limestone, which is easy to carve as you can see below. The man seems to come out of the wall and stand in front of the blue sky. What nice depth you get from this!

Beautiful art in Zonneberg caves in Maastricht

Weather and wind do not affect the colours here

Because no sun shines, the colours remain as beautiful as they were on the first day they were painted. How happy we are with that now, a unique glimpse into the days of yore.

Tip for your visit to the Zonneberg Caves

The temperature in the caves is a constant of around 12 degrees Celsius so bring a cardigan, jumper or jacket. It can be quite chilly even though it is summer outside. You hike inside in your shorts and shirt but after 10 minutes or 15 minutes you will get really cold.

Signs of the block breakers

On the ceiling, you can see all black burn marks. These were created when the block breakers were at work removing pieces close to the ceiling. Every time they moved their lamp, another black spot had appeared. These can be seen to this day.

Yes, I carried a lamp too of course

Background information Zonneberg Caves, Sint Pietersberg

Sint Pietersberg has been a protected nature reserve since 1974 and totals 133 ha. Natuurmonumenten has managed the Sint Pietersberg caves since 1995 and the Sint Pieter fortress on top of it since 2009. Most of this special landscape near the city of Maastricht has been designated as a protected natural monument.

How do you get to Zonnegrot Caves

From the centre of Maastricht, I cycled to the mountain by bike. This was a very nice trip and I saw quite a lot of the area and also ended up at the mountain with Fort Sint Pieter. There, of course, I took a short walk. There is a beautiful nature reserve/park behind it which gives very nice views of the landscape around Maastricht. The Fort Sint Pieter was being restored when I was there.

You can also take a boat from the centre of Maastricht to the Zonneberg Caves, which goes several times a day. The trip with guided tour of the cave takes a total of 3 hours. You will also pass some nice historical points such as the St. Servaas bridge by boat.

Visit the Caves of Maastricht?

Good to know: Grotten Sint Pietersberg is the collective name for North Caves and Zonneberg Caves. These systems can be booked and visited as separate locations. In this blog, I only describe the visit to the Grottos Zonneberg. See how to plan your visit to the Zonneberg Caves here.

Stay in Maastricht?

Will you stay for some nights in Maastricht while exploring this beautiful city? How about this wonderful hotel Les Charmes in the old city-centre of Maastricht?

Or look at this hotel Sint Jacob. An affordable and good hotel in the citycentre of Maastricht.

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And visit in Maastricht also Fort Sint Pieter

The Great Surrounding area Zonneberg caves in Maastricht

View on Maastricht from Fort St. Pieter

Read also : The Casemates and Citywall of Maastricht

Stay in Maastricht?

Will you stay for some nights in Maastricht while exploring this beautiful city? How about this wonderful hotel Les Charmes in the old city-centre of Maastricht?

Or look at this hotel Sint Jacob. An affordable and good hotel in the citycentre of Maastricht.

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