I just completed a road trip from Kunming to Xiamen. I drove 2620km which included the 300km extra side trip to Detian waterfall. With only a few exceptions, the highways were all new and modern. The total cost in road tolls was 1760 RMB. Don’t get me started about road tolls in China!
It took 10 hours from Kunming to arrive at Detian in the central Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region . After leaving the G80 you go on the S316 out of Natongzhen to Shuolongzhen. It is approx 150km from here to the falls. At this point you dive into the karst mountains, much like the Guillin area. The drive is beautiful at every turn winding through all the karst hills. We stayed at the hotel overlooking the falls. The next morning we spent a half a day exploring the area.
Detian falls is the second largest trans continental water fall in the world. 2nd only to Niagara Falls in the USA. In fact the falls are divided between Viet Nam and China. The Detian Waterfall is over 200 meters wide and has a drop of more than 70 meters. Its water rushes down a three-tiered cliff with tremendous force. It is the largest waterfall in Asia, and you can hear it’s roar even before you see it. This is really a must see in China.