For over 20 years, the Bailong elevator has watched over the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in Hunan, China, offering visitors a view of the scenery that is believed to have inspired the fantasy world of Pandora in the beloved Avatar film.
Bailong is the tallest outdoor lift in the world with a hight of 326 metres. It was built in 2002 on the side of a quartzite cliff in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and its glass walls offer glimpses of a Pandora like landscape, with massive karst monolith formations and lush vegetation.
It was called a mechanical marvel by Guinness World Records in 2015, when it received its world record certificate. There are 3 double decker cars that can hold up to 4,900 kg, or, to be safe, no more than 46 people.
It is our honour to verify this amazing achievement which not only provides a convenient transportation for tourists’ sightseeing, but also saves time for supplying materials of scenic spots as well as maximising the protection of the local natural environment and ecological balance.
Rowan Simons, President of Guinness World Records Greater China
It is the upper 171,4 metres of the elevator that are above ground to offer the stunning views, with a trip to the top taking just 1 minute and 32 seconds. Besides being the tallest outdoor lift, the construction also holds two other records: the tallest double-decker sightseeing elevator and the fastest passenger elevator with the largest load.
The Park has decided to profit from the association with the movie, opening Avatar themed gift shops and even renaming one of the iconic pillars in the park to Hallelujah Mountain, in honour of the film’s director James Cameron, who based Pandora’s floating mountains on this pillar.
At the top of the mountain, which people can also reach after a two-and-a-half-hour hike, there are other attractions of the national park besides the incredible view, such as the Golden Whip Stream. In the same park, there is also the tallest bungee jump in the world and the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass Bridge, which, at the time of its construction in 2016, was the highest and longest glass bridge in the world.
