Travel in China
Guilin's show cave - illuminated stalactites.
About 5 km northwest of downtown Guilin, Reed Flute Cave (Ludi Yan) is a vast limestone cavern nicknamed the 'Palace of Natural Art'. It takes its name from the reeds fringing its entrance, once cut into flutes, and it has drawn admirers for well over a millennium.
Inside, some 500 meters of walkways thread through chambers hung with stalactites, stalagmites and stone curtains, all bathed in colored light. The loop takes about an hour and passes a parade of named formations, most famously the mirror-calm expanse of the Crystal Palace, the amber-lit lions of Lion Ridge in Morning Glow, and the tiered Coiled Dragon Pagoda.
The walls hold history too: ink inscriptions written by visitors from the Tang dynasty onward, the earliest dating to 792 AD. The cave is open daily 07:30-18:00, admission is 90 RMB (about 88 RMB online with a guide commentary), and city buses 3 and 58 make it an easy half-day trip.
Highlights
Crystal Palace
The cave's grandest chamber, where floodlit pillars reflect in a still pool - the signature Reed Flute Cave shot.
Lion Ridge in Morning Glow
A slope of stone 'lions' picked out in warm dawn-colored light, one of the cave's classic tableaux.
Coiled Dragon Pagoda
A slender, banded stalagmite tower that seems to twist upward like a dragon climbing toward the ceiling.
Tang-Dynasty Inscriptions
Faded ink notes left on the rock by travelers more than 1,200 years ago - the earliest from 792 AD.
Palace of Natural Art
Rainbow lighting turns the chambers into an underground gallery of stone forests, curtains and columns.
An Easy Half-Day Trip
Just 5 km from downtown and about an hour inside, the cave slots into any Guilin itinerary - rain or shine.
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