29th December, 2022
We’ve ended the year shortlisted for 3 Devon Tourism Awards:
We’re so proud of the work our team has put in this year, and excited that it’s being recognised. We'll find out if we’ve won in February!
You can now stay at Kents Cavern! Our luxury, onsite holiday let opened in July.
We welcomed some wonderful guests over the summer, who were blown away by the location and comfort of the property.
Cavern House was built by the original cave proprietor in 1920s.
We featured on Korean TV! The company were filming a documentary on what it means to be UNESCO Global Geopark as several areas in Korea aspire to achieve this designation too.
Fun fact: the English Riviera has held this since 2007.
Experts in historic graffiti conducted a recce of Kents Cavern in December 2022 and are coming back in January to study ancient engravings made on the cave walls. The oldest known engraving is by William Petre in 1571 but many exist throughout the 1km cave system.
HM’s Deputy Lieutenant attended in June to present Platinum Jubilee Service medals to members of the Devon Cave Rescue Organisation.
We've had a busy year for events, putting on 14 throughout 2022!
First, we started by giving back to the locals with Locals Month throughout January, then we stepped back in time with Stone Age Fun in February Half-Term. We refreshed with some Yoga in the Caves.
Spring lit up the cavern with Easter Egglow, and we celebrated the Queen in June with Cavog's Jubilee Fun and Jubilee High Tea.
Summer arrived, and alongside our usual Stone Age Summer, we introduced our biggest event ever: Cave Cinema! We showed 40 films over 5 weeks, and as a result, got shortlisted for a Tourism Event of the Year Award!
In fact, it was so popular, we brought it back for a Halloween Special with six spooky films! In October, we also ran A Very Batty Half-Term, educating and entertaining visitors on these marvellous mammals.
In September, we hosted two specialist events.
Firstly, a lecture for the Agatha Christie Festival. Guests from all over the world attended a talk on “The Man in the Brown Suit”, Christie's murder mystery novel which refers to Kents Cavern.
And secondly, we led a Guided Walk for the English Riviera Walking Festival. We walked from the caves to Meadfoot beach, and along the South West Coast Path. We spoke about the geological and historical importance of the area and received fantastic feedback.
And then it was Christmas! This year, we put on two Christmas events: Santa in the Caves (an interactive family-friendly pantomime) and Carols in the Caves (an atmospheric sing-along).
We had a record-breaking 113 Santa shows, and worked with two fantastic choirs: the Torbay Police & Community Choir and Yours in Harmony, to put on six Carols evenings. Both events sold out before December had even begun! We'd like to take this opportunity to thank the fantastic performers of both Santa and Carols shows - they created a truly magical event.