Tourism on track in the world's largest cave

Son Doong Cave first discovered by local forager Ho Khanh in 1991

France-based news agency AFP on January 20 published an article on how tourism has been developed in and benefited local community around Viet Nam’s Son Doong, which has been dubbed the world’s largest cave.

According to the article, Son Doong Cave is located in the central province of Quang Binh’s Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park – the World Heritage site. The cave was first discovered by local forager Ho Khanh in 1991. It was recognized as the world’s largest cave in 2010.

When Son Doong was opened to tourists four years later, the lives of hundreds of locals changed forever, it said, adding that they soon became porters and guides and opened their homes to guests wanting a bed for the night.

With only one company given permission to operate in each of the key caves, there is an incentive to protect them, with numbers of visitors limited and prices kept high.

The high-end tourism model of the caves – which provides around 500 jobs for the local community – has begun to attract interest in other areas./.

By Kim Anh