Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
Caucasus - Geghard Monastery, Armenia
Armenia • 15 days, 14 nights
Caucasus Road Trip: Azerbaijan, Georgia & Armenia
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Nageshwar (Maharashtra)
Replicas of Jyotirlinga Temples
At Nai Mong Hoi Thod, the oyster omelet is worth waiting for.
Nai Mong Hoi Thod
Silver Queen
Glenfiddich House
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Iran Qeshm Namakdan Salt Cave

Namakdan Salt Cave

One of the world's largest salt caves is filled with fragile salt sculptures, salt rivers, and huge salt megadomes.

Qeshm, Iran

Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Namakdan Salt Cave   Petr Adam Dohnálek / CC BY-SA 3.0
Namakdan Salt Cave   Petr Adam Dohnálek / CC BY-SA 3.0
  Petr Adam Dohnálek / CC BY-SA 3.0
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Salt caves are, at least in a geological sense, very much alive. While, like other caves of chalk, marble, or gypsum the rock is dissolved by water that seeps in through cracks, unlike the other caves, changes in the shape of the salt cave can be over days rather than over millennia. Salt caves are fragile things, created and destroyed in a few hundred years.

"In limestone caves you can see signs saying don't touch the dripstones, they have been growing for thousands of years, whereas in the salt caves they grow for days or weeks after rain, when rainwater penetrates the rock, saturates it and in a month there are half-a-metre dripstones. We can practically watch them grow."

So said Michal Filippi one member of the Czech project Namak (which means salt in Persian) team which has been exploring this cave for over a decade. Filippi and Jiri Bruthans, who both started as students following their professor into the extremely hot cave in 1997.

"We were there in 1997 in the summer which was not a very clever idea because it is very hot there. The idea came from our professor Pavel Bosak who had worked there in 1990 and he found that in the area there were many large salt karsts and many caves and he could hardly find any information in the literature. He was giving a lecture at Charles University and we realized that this could be a very interesting place, so we tried to visit it."

Though the caves change rapidly, they are generally safe for the explorers. The caves tend to stay relatively dry and stable for long periods of time, often years, before sudden rains cause flash floods and subsequent corrosion of the salt and enlargement of the caves. During these times the salt caves are quite dangerous and cannot be entered.

The Czech team, having been the first to discover the caves, alongside their Iranian counterparts, got the chance to name many of the structures and areas of the caves.

"One of the caves is Ghar-e Daneshjoo which means The Students' Cave because the students were the main people who were carrying out the research in it."

One can only wonder how the Jeskyne Tri nahacu or "Cave of Three Naked Men" came to have its name.

Related Tags

Salt Caves Wonders Of Salt Natural Wonders Geological Oddities Ecosystems Geology Nature

Know Before You Go

Namakdan Mountain, Qeshm Island. The salt cave is found in the western part of the island. Just follow the signs with 'Salt caves' and you'll find your way. Only one of the entrances is open for people, entrance is free.

Community Contributors

Edited By

nickfranssen, Vaquero, mbison, Michelle Cassidy

  • nickfranssen
  • Vaquero
  • mbison
  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

December 10, 2009

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.saltcaves.info/
  • http://www.radio.cz/en/article/74898
  • http://www.speleogenesis.info/spotlights/3n_cave_gallery.php
  • http://www.saltcaves.info/Gallery/tabid/356/mid/2040/GalleryID/5/Default.aspx
  • https://caves.org/salt-caves/
  • https://iugs-geoheritage.org/geoheritage_sites/namakdan-salt-dome/
  • https://caves.org/salt-caves/
Namakdan Salt Cave
Qeshm Island
Qeshm
Iran
26.75, 55.816667

Nearby Places

Hormuz Island

Hormuz, Iran

miles away

The Desert Fjords of Oman

Khasab, Oman

miles away

Jazirat al Maqlab (Telegraph Island)

Oman

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Iran

Iran

Middle East

Places 52
Stories 16

Nearby Places

Hormuz Island

Hormuz, Iran

miles away

The Desert Fjords of Oman

Khasab, Oman

miles away

Jazirat al Maqlab (Telegraph Island)

Oman

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Iran

Iran

Middle East

Places 52
Stories 16

Related Stories and Lists

Wonders of Salt

List

By Meg Neal

Can I Lick It? Yes You Can! -- Atlas Obscura's Guide to the World's Salty Wonders

essential guide

By Sarah Brumble

Related Places

  • Salar de Uyuni

    Daniel Campos, Bolivia

    Uyuni Salt Flat

    A seemingly endless landscape of pure salt stretches far across Bolivia.

  • The salt lake becomes colorful in warm temperatures because of algae growth

    Yuncheng, China

    Yuncheng Salt Lake

    Rainbow-hued in the summer and crystalline in the winter, this salty lake has inspired battles, temples, and plenty of awe.

  • Cueva Clara.

    Quebrada, Puerto Rico

    Cueva Clara

    An enchanting natural wonder in Puerto Rico's Camuy River Park.

  • The 100,000 Soldiers.

    Mialet, France

    100,000 Soldiers of Trabuc Caves

    This army of concretions is an unexplained geological phenomenon unlike anything else in the world.

  • Wogan Cavern showing the entrance stairs and massive Norman-built wall.

    Pembroke, Wales

    Wogan Cavern

    A spiral staircase connects the limestone cave with Pembroke Castle, birthplace of King Henry VII.

  • Kong Lor Cave.

    Laos

    Kong Lor Cave

    A boat ride through utter darkness, lit only by headlamps, reveals an emerald green pool locals believe is sacred.

  • Marble Cathedral

    Puerto Río Tranquilo, Chile

    Marble Caves of Chile Chico

    Mother Nature outdoes herself with this stunningly beautiful set of caves carved into marble.

  • Oudtshoorn, South Africa

    Cango Caves

    Largest cave system in Africa.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.