Jiuxiang Scenic Area

Jiuxiang is one of the most beautiful scenic spots near Kunming and is home to striking natural landscapes, magnificent underground scenery, and enchanting ethnic folk customs. It is inhabited mainly by the Yi and Hui nationalities, and is situated in northeastern part of Yiliang County, 90 kilometers (55 miles) from downtown Kunming and 22 kilometers (14 miles) north of the Stone Forest.

Jiuxiang is praised as the "Home of Karst caves". Altogether, there are "only" 100 caves in the area, the local saying goes, "If one spent his entire life counting the caves in Jiuxiang he may not finish the job". Among the caves are numerous natural bridges, valleys, rivers and waterfalls, making up an almost fantasy like subterranean world.

The karst caves in Juxiang were formed over a long period of time by the intermittent movement of the earth 's crust. This movement created the 'pre-history wonders' found in the area. These wonders include a variety of hydrological and geological phenomena such as ancient micro-biological fossils, curved stones, caves with whirlpools inside, stereoscopic caves, and multi-layered caves. Among these natural marvels are some of the rarest and unique features of their kind in China or the world.

With a total area of about 200 square kilometers (77 square miles), it consists of five major scenic spots: the Triangular Caves, the Overlapping Rainbow Bridge, the Upper Big Cave, the Long Sandy Bank and the Bright Moon Lake. The most outstanding of these sights is Overlapping Rainbow Bridge whose construction has already been finished and is open to the public.

The caves are not only ideal tourist attractions, but are also valuable for scientific studies and in-cave adventure activities. It is not surprising that Jiuxiang is praised by experts as the "Mysterious Heritage of the Earth".

Jiuxiang is confirmed to be the biggest cave clusters in China.	Magnificent underground scenery inside