Tongling Grand Canyon

Guangxi


Located in Baise prefecture (百色市), Jingxi County (靖西县), the name of this gorge means 'Connected to the Spirit World'. You will certainly feel spiritual as you descend narrow flights of stairs down to a large cavern, with flickering bulbs and the roar of an underground river. Emerging past the cave, you venture through a thick tropical forest into a series of wild gorges, and past vaulted cliffs with hanging stalactites and dramatic waterfalls that end in crystal pools framed by boulders.

You can walk around some of the waterfalls into the cool, otherworldly caves beyond. But you can't go near the tallest one, which has a drop of 170m and a splash of hundreds of metres in the summer.

From the canyon's exit, walk 30 minutes uphill to the entrance car park, where you can ask your driver to meet you. Alternatively, vans can take you there for ¥5.

There are buses from Jingxi south bus station that make the hour-long trip (¥14) to the canyon every 20 to 30 minutes until 7pm. Look for those headed for Hurun town (湖润镇; Húrùnzhèn).

The best way to get to Jingxi from Nanning is to take the train (¥44, 3½ hours, 8.24am and 1.17pm). Otherwise there are regular buses from Nanning's Xixiangtang bus station for Jingxi (¥90 to ¥130, four hours)


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Guangxi attractions

1. Detian Waterfall

20.22 MILES

Detian Waterfall belongs to the Chungui River (春归河, Chūnguīhé), which flows between China and Vietnam. The river is only 30m across in this upstream…

2. Nguom Ngao Cave

21.97 MILES

About 4km from Ban Gioc Waterfall, 2km up a side valley, Nguom Ngao Cave is one of the most spectacular cave systems in Vietnam. Created by an underground…

3. Ban Gioc Waterfall

22.32 MILES

Ban Gioc is one of Vietnam’s best-known waterfalls, and its image adorns the lobby of many a cheap guesthouse. The falls, fed by the Quay Son River that…

5. Hang Coc Bo

26.84 MILES

After 30 years of exile, Ho Chi Minh re-entered Vietnam in January 1941 and took shelter in this small cave in one of the most remote regions of Vietnam,…

6. Uncle Ho Museum

27.08 MILES

This modest museum sits at the entrance to the Coc Bo Cave area. It covers the period in 1941 during which Ho Chin Minh lived here, planning his…