Son Doong Cave In Vietnam With The Charm Of Another World, Dare To Explore?

Son Doong Cave with charm similar to other worlds (Photo: Instagram/@vietnamwonders)

JAKARTA - Son Doong's cave in Vietnam has again stolen the world's attention after being included in the list of 'other world' destinations according to British travel media version, Wanderlust. In the list released late March, Son Doong is said to be one of the 9 places in the world that feels like he is on another planet.

"Biggest Gua in the world with a length of almost 9 km, you can put a New York city block into it and there's still room left," Wanderlust wrote, quoted from the VN Express page.

Son Doong is not just a matter of size. Inside, there are giant stalagmits that tower up to more than 80 meters, as well as small cave networks and underground rivers that reach hundreds of them. All of this creates a truly extraordinary underground landscape, as if not on earth.

Access to Son Doong cannot be arbitrary. Tourists can only enter through an official guided tour, with a very limited visitor quota to preserve the cave. Tickets must also be ordered in advance, even up to one year earlier.

This cave was first discovered in 1990 by Ho Khanh, a logger from Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province. Only in 2013, Son Doong was officially recognized by Guinness World Records as the largest natural cave in the world. In 2015, his title became stronger with the recognition of being the cave with the largest volume in the world.

Apart from being an attraction for nature tourism, Son Doong is also a set for various international productions. Some of them are Alan Walker's "Alone, Pt II" music video and BBC's Planet Earth series. In fact, Google has performed a special illustration (Google Doodle) to commemorate the achievement of this cave on its main page in 18 countries in 2022.

In the Wanderlust list, Son Doong is side by side with other unique destinations such as Vatnaj\"okull National Park in Iceland, Lencois Maranhenses in Brazil, and the Salar de Uyuni salt plain in Bolivia.

For adventure lovers and natural wonders, Son Doong is a dream destination, because visiting me feels like another world.