A viewing platform hangs over a sinkhole in the Dashiwei Sinkholes National Geopark in Leye county in Baise, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A viewing platform hangs over a sinkhole in the Dashiwei Sinkholes National Geopark in Leye county in Baise, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Tourists walk on the viewing platform in the Dashiwei Sinkholes National Geopark in Leye county in Baise, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A viewing platform overhanging a sinkhole in the Dashiwei Sinkholes National Geopark in Leye county in Baise, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, has become a popular tourist attraction and helped boost the incomes of nearby residents.

Known as the Cloud Sea-Skyship, the platform sits on mountain ridge at an altitude of about 1,450 meters and extends over the lip of a sinkhole with a vertical depth of 613 meters.

The transparent viewing platform, made of reinforced glass supported by a U-shaped steel structure, is 80 meters long and 10 meters wide.

The part of the platform that extends over the sinkhole is 34 meters long, which the company that operates the tourist site says is a world record. Visitors standing on it can take in spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and the sinkholes below them.

The project opened to the public in January and the company said that during the Labor Day holiday in May nearly 10 times as many tourists visited the area than during the same holiday last year.

About 200 people from poor families living nearby have found jobs at the scenic spot and the company has also provided 50 free stalls to poor families where they can sell agricultural products.

Huang Xinghua, a nearby resident who works at a cafe at the scenic spot, said, "My salary here is about 2,500 yuan ($369) a month, and I can work near my home."

When she was younger, Huang left her hometown to work in cities to make a living. After the scenic area was upgraded last year and began attracting more tourists, she returned home and got a job at the cafe.