New Glass Bridge Closes Due To Popular Demand

If you’re planning to visit China’s newly opened Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and the Grand Canyon that surrounds it, here’s a quick travel tip: “Don’t.”

The company that operates the bridge shut the attraction down earlier today because it is “too popular.” The Zhangjiajie Bridge, which just opened on August 20, has proven to be too hard for visitors to resist. The bridge is designed to accommodate about 8,000 guests per day, but record crowds, estimated at 10 times the bridge’s daily maximum, have traveled to the Zhangjiajie National Park to see, and presumably cross, the bridge.

No word on when glass bridge will reopen

Company officials closed the bridge effective immediately, but rest assured that the closure isn’t permanent. Officials want to strategize and more properly prepare for the enormous number of visitors. Aside from the obvious long lines and the disappointment, visitors have been greeted with mounds of trash, no place to park and few amenities, including bottled water. Interest in the bridge has also spawned renewed interest in the rest of the park.

Officials made clear that there is nothing wrong with the bridge, and the attraction was closed to better allow them to manage the large number of visitors. They stress that there are no structural safety concerns with the bridge, but rather, they want to take a second shot at the logistics of moving such a large number of visitors through the park.

The bridge is the longest, highest glass bridge in the world, stretching about 1,400 feet across and rising about 1,000 feet in the air. Visitors might recognize the spectacular Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon and National Park because it served as the inspiration for some of the visuals in the movie “Avatar.”

Park officials had initially suggested that the glass bridge be closed on September 5, but the company that manages the attraction opted for an immediate shutdown to begin making improvements. Planned improvements include parking lot expansion, changes to the ticket-booking system and improvements to the company’s customer service approach.

The company has not yet said when it plans to reopen the glass bridge, but is working diligently to make the experience more enjoyable for everyone.

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