As the largest cave in China, and one of the biggest in the entire world at 10km long and up to 150m high, Zhījīn Cave gets tourist accolades. Lord of the Rings has been used to describe the abstract landscape of spectacular shapes and spirals, often cathedral-like, reaching from the floor to the ceiling.
Tickets to the cave, which is 15km outside Zhījīn and 125km north of Ānshùn, include a compulsory 2½-hour Chinese-only tour (minimum 10 people). The tour covers some 6km of the cave, up steep, slippery steps at times, and there are English captions at the main points along the way. Solo travellers visiting outside peak summer months or Chinese holidays should be prepared for what can be a tedious wait for enough people to roll up to form a group.
A long day trip from Ānshùn is possible, but you need to be on an early bus to Zhījīn (¥34, 3 hours, from 7am), from Ānshùn's north bus station. Once there, hop a taxi (¥4) to the local bus station on Yuping Jie and catch one of the minibuses that leave regularly for the cave entrance (¥8, 50 minutes). Returning from the caves, buses leave regularly. The last bus back to Ānshùn heads out of Zhījīn at 5.30pm.
From Guìyáng, regular buses (return ¥110, four hours) depart every 30 minutes to Zhījīn from the long-distance bus station from 6.30am in the morning until 5.20pm.
