The world's largest cave, Son Doong in Quang Binh province has been selected for the first position in the list of 25 great new places to see in the 21st century by the Smithsonian – a magazine focusing on science, history, art, popular culture and innovation.
The US’ magazine described the cave is big enough to accommodate the Washington Monument. Its widest expanses could fit a pair of Boeing 747s side by side. There shimmering blue river runs through it. Most spectacularly, a jungle flourishes under shafts of sunlight in stretches where the ceiling fell in long ago. The cave is more than five miles long—about five times longer than its nearest competitor for the world’s longest, Deer Cave in Sarawak, Malaysia.
The next positions in the list are Cern, the God particle laboratory in Switzerland; the Spaceport America in New Mexico; Gorillas in Their Midst: Mountain Trekking in the East Africa; Alma Telescope in Chile; and others.
Son Doong cave located in Quang Binh Province’s Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park recognized as a world natural heritage site by UNESCO .
The cave was firstly found by a local, Ho Khanh, who discovered Son Doong Cave and took the explorers to the site of the cave; and then explored by a team of British cavers.
Its largest chamber is more than 5km long, 200 m high and 150m wide.
The American Business Insider Magazine has recognized Son Doong cave system in the province as one of the world’s 12 most impressive.
The National Geographic Magazine, Russian version, said the tour to Son Doong is a top adventurous tour for 2014.
The world's largest cave has been also listed as one of famous places in the world, which will become “hotspots” for visitors over the next two decades by The Huffington Post. The American online news aggregator and blog described Son Doong cave showed that it is an interesting destination for a 7-day tour with discovery of underground rivers, caves and camping activities.
Quang Binh authorities have permitted Oxalis Adventure Tours to operate the tour of exploring Son Doong cave. The five day and four night tour costs US$3,000 a person. Each tour has a maximum of 10 visitors, totaling a maximum of 500 tourists for the entire year.
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