World’s largest cave to open for public tours

Written by Soo Kim

Vietnam’s Son Doong Cave, the largest cave in the world, will be open for public viewing from next year.

World’s largest cave opens for public tours.

Son Doong Cave

Son Doong's largest caverns are said to be big enough to enclose entire city streets 

Visitors can now book a six-day trekking tour through the remote jungle of the Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park, including three nights in the magnificent Son Doong Cave.

Son Doong Cave

Led by a team of safety experts and guides, tour groups of no more than eight people will trek across river valleys and visit the Doong Village to meet the local Bru VanKieu people.

Tourists will witness jaw-dropping cave formations, including 250 metre-high cliffs where flying foxes, monkeys and hornbills may be sighted, and descend an 80-metre vertical drop before reaching the first passage into the grand Son Doong Cave which spans over 200 metres wide, 150 metres high and nearly nine kilometres long. Its largest caverns are said to be big enough to enclose entire city streets.

Son Doong Cave

The entrance to the Song Doong Cave was first found by a local called Ho Khanh in 1991 but the cave was fully uncovered by a British expedition team in 2009 led by Howard Limbert.

Son Doong has since been classified as the world’s largest cave by the British Cave Research Association. It is deemed to be nearly twice as big as Malaysia’s Deer Cave which is 90-metres wide, 100-metres high and two kilometres long.

Son Doong Cave

Tucked away deep within Phong Nha Ke Bang in the Quang Binh province near its border with Laos, Son Doong forms part of a network of nearly 150 caves yet to be explored in the Annamite Mountains.

Last month, six people from the US, Russia, Australia and Norway became the first foreign tourist group to have fully explored the Song Doong Cave.

Son Doong Cave

ACTIVETRAVEL ASIA would like to recommend Son Doong Surroundings: En Cave & Phong Nha National Park Discovery tour.Son Doong Cave, En Cave (Swallow Cave or Hang En) are the most spectacular sights in Quang Binh province (Central of Vietnam). Fortunately, when Son Doong is currently restricted to scientists and cavers only, we can have a great two-day trek to En Cave. The Cave is 1.645 m long and has three mouths. One is halfway up a mountain and two others are located on another mountain which has its foot on the south-east and north-west alongside Rao Thuong Stream. All of these make the cave different from other well-known caves in the country.

For reference :“Unforgettable Moments inside Son Doong Cave”