There is a unique world of discovery waiting for you in the Lava Dome and the Lavakeller (Lava Cellars) in Mendig. This is where you can learn all about volcanicity in the East Eifel. Children especially, but adults too, can experience volcanic activity with all their senses in Mendig, a small town in the Eifel. The exhibition 'Im Land der Vulkane' ('In the Land of Volcanoes') includes a powerful multimedia volcanic eruption which demonstrates the immense forces of nature, and causes the ground to shake. You will never come closer to an 'active' volcano without being in danger than in Mendig.

In the Vulkanwerkstatt (Volcano Workshop), you can discover the basics of volcanology by experimenting with exhibited materials on a large table. This will enable you to experience at first hand the practical reality which corresponds with theoretical knowledge. The 'speaking stones' in the 'Zeit der Vulkane' exhibition tell the stories of well-known volcanoes and devastating eruptions in other parts of the world. And, together with you, the Lava Dome takes a look into the future. What would happen if the Laacher See (Lake Laach) Volcano were to erupt again? You can experience this during a realistic TV broadcast in the interactive cinema-in-the-round.

 Then, waiting for you in the Lavakeller, there is a unique scene which exists nowhere else in the world. Thirty metres underground, beneath the town of Mendig, there is a labyrinth of mine galleries and mine shafts covering an area of nearly three square kilometres. It was created when the people of Mendig were mining the valuable black basalt during the late Middle Ages. More than 150 steps - or, less strenuous, a lift/elevator - take you down into this solidified lava flow. A strange world of black basalt columns, old mine galleries and all sorts of stories about mining and the traditional brewing of beer in Mendig ... all this awaits you in this unique Eifel landscape.

 You need to plan about one to one-and-a-half hours for your visit to the Lava Dome. The subsequent tour through the Lavakeller takes about 70 minutes.

Address:

Lava-Dome
Brauerstrasse 1
56743 Mendig
Tel: +49 (0) 2652 93 99 222
http://www.lava-dome.de 

What you need to know when planning your visit:

• The Lava Dome is wheelchair-accessible, but the Lavakeller are only partially wheelchair-accessible.
• Audio guides are available in German, English, Dutch and French.
• There is a car park just outside the museum.
• The Lavakeller may only be visited as part of a guided tour.
• No dogs allowed (except guide dogs).