龙宫洞

Longgongzhen - Longgong Dong - Longgong Caves - Dragon Palace Cave

Useful Information

photography — Longgongzhen, Guizhou, China. Public Domain.

Location:	Dragon's Palace Scenic Spot. 35 km southwest of Anshun. (26.098976, 105.879868)
Open:	All year daily 8-17. [2021]
Fee:	Adults CNY 120. [2021]
Classification:	Karst cave
Light:	Incandescent Electric Light System
Dimension:	L=5,000 m.
Guided tours:	L=850 m. V=400,000/a [2000]
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	Longgong Caves.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1988	approved as a national scenic spot.

Description

龙宫洞 (Longong Dong, Dragon Palace Cave) is said to be the longest water cave in China. It is visited by boat. In local legends Long Wang, the king of dragons, lives in an underground crystal palace. This cave was named Long Gong (Dragon's Palace), as the speleothems reminded the people of this crystal palace. The cave has various strange superlatives, it has the widest underground waterfall, the largest Buddhist cave, and lowest natural radiation in China.

Beneath the cave there are othe interesting sights at the scenic spot. 龙门瀑布 (Longmen Waterfall, Dragon Gate Waterfall) is located at the portal of Dragon Palace Cave. It is said to be 50 m long, but we have no idea what this means for a waterfall. In our opinion waterfalls have only height and width. It is actually 34 m high and 25 m wide. The 天池 (Heavenly Pool) is reached after climbing up a long staircase. It has a size of 7,000 m² and is 17 m deep, with crystal clear water. But the most spectacular sight is the 漩塘 (Whirlpool). This circular pool has an inflow but no visible outflow, the water sinks into Dragon Palace Cave and the 43 m deep bottom of the lake. The water flows into the pool in tangential direction which creates a clockwise water movement, hence the name Whirlpool.

The is a second cave at the scenic spot, which was transformed into a buddhist temple. 观音洞 (Avalokitesvara Cave, Guan Yin Cave) has a series of huge chambers, up to 60 m high, which contain a total of 32 Buddha statues. The chambers are called Skanda Hall, Maitreya Hall, Mahavira Hall, and Avalokitesvara Hall. Avalokitesvara Hall and Avalokitesvara Cave are named after a 12.6 m high statue of Avalokitesvara, the bodhisattva "lord who gazes down at the world". Avalokiteśvara has 108 avatars, so we guess you check Wikipedia for more details.