Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park is in Bo Trach district and Minh Hoa, Quang Binh province. About 50km to the northwest of Dong Hoi city and about 500km to the south of Hanoi capital, the park borders the nature reserve of Hin Namno in Khammouan province of Laos to the west, and it is about 42km away from the South China Sea counting from the border of the two countries.
Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park is situated in a limestone area covering about 200,000 ha of the territory of Vietnam, Laos area where is contiguous to this part is also an area of about 200,000 ha limestone. The core area of national parks is 85,754 ha and 195,499 ha is a wide buffer xone. The park is established to protect one of the world’s largest carxter with about 300 caves and ecosystem conservation of the North Truong Son Central region of Vietnam. Characteristic of this national park is the creation of limestone, 300 caves, underneath ricers and rare flora and fauna in Vietnam Red Book and World Red Book.
The caves here have a total length of more than 80km but the British and Vietnamese cave explorers and adventures have just discovered only 20km, of which 17km in area of Phong Nha and 3 km in area of Ke Bang.
Before the discovery of Son Doong cave in April 2009, Phong Nha holded many records: the longest water cave, largest and highest entrance of cave, the most beautiful and widest sand banks, most beautiful reef, magnificent and virtual stalactites, the large and most beautiful dry cave of the world, longest underground river in Vietnam.
In April 2009, an expedition of the British Royal Association of Caving discovered and released Son Doong to be the largest cave in the world (more than five km long, 200m high and 150m wide), much larger than Deer Cave in Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak, Malaysia, four and five times larger than Phong Nha. In this survey, the expedition also found several other caves.
Tectonics of carxter of the National Park is formed 400 million years ago, from the great acient time, so it is the oldest in Aisa. Over many major changes in stratigraphy and geomorphology, topography of this area is very complex. Phong Nha – Ke Bang shows dramatic evidence of Earth’s history, helped historians understand the geological history and topography of the area. Phong Nha – Ke Bang is probably one of the distinct patterns of the most beautiful and complex tectonic carxter in Southest Asia. To be recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage according to the geological and geomorphologic 2003 criteria, Phong Nha – Ke Bang is targeting the 2nd UNESCO acknowledgement as the world natural heritage with diverse criteria biology.
