Phong Nha - Ke Bang

Category: Destination

Phong Nha - Ke Bang is a national park in the center of Quang Binh province in north-central Vietnam. It protects one of the world's two largest karst regions with several hundred caves and grottoes. Its name derives from Phong Nha cave, the most beautiful one, with numerous fascinating rock formations, and Ke Bang forest. The plateau is probably one of the finest and most distinctive examples of a complex karst landform in Southeast Asia.
Location:
Geographically, the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park (PNKBNP) is located in central Vietnam, about 500km south of the capital, Hanoi, within the Quang Binh Province.
The western boundary of the Park partially forms Laos-Vietnamese border, which is only 42km from the sea. The Park is found within the geographical co-ordinates of 170 20'-170 48' N and 1050 46-1060 24' E in Bo Trach and Minh Hoa Districts.
A nature-gifted magnificent landscape: 7 best in one
Phong Nha-Ke Bang park takes pride in the assessment of containing “7 best things” as a result of a National Science Conference held in Quang Binh in April, 1997. They are:
1. The longest water cave 
2. The highest and widest cave mouth
3. The widest and most beautiful sand & rock bank 
4. The most beautiful underground lake 
5. The most magnificient and miraculous stalactite 
6. The nation’s longest underground river (around 13,969 m)
7. The nicest and widest dry cave
It is certain that when one goes on a bout around this beautifully miraculous zone, he may be surprised and feel that he were lost in somewhere in the Heaven where he does not want to leave at all! So now let’s take a round trip to try this fabulous feeling!
Activities
The number of tourists has increased dramatically since the park was listed in UNESCO's World Heritage Sites. Tourism activities in the area are the responsibility of the Trading and Tourism Department of Quang Binh province, with 280 international standard rooms in the province and 8 vehicles with capacities of 4 to 15 seats for tourist transportation. The forest guards of Son Trach commune in Bo Trach district are placed on tourist security duty.
Quang Binh Province has invested into upgrading the Phong Nha-Ke Bang visitor site to turn it into one of Vietnam's major tourist destinations.
Multiple eco-tourist projects have been licensed for development and the area is being heavily developed by the province to turn it into a major tourist site in Vietnam. Tourist activities in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park are organized by local travel agencies and vary in form:

Phong Nha displays an impressive amount of evidence of earth’s history. It is a site of very great importance for increasing our understanding of the geologic, geomorphic and geo-chronological history of the region.