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Best Bungy Jumps in Asia

The granddaddy of bucket list aspirations. Leave your vertigo-struck friends at home, and head to the best bungy sites in the region.

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Photo: AJ Hackett New Zealand

To get some first-hand insight, Kate Springer talks to Tony O’Rourke, a veteran bungy master at AJ Hackett Macau. O’Rourke has been in the business for 23 years, and he’s logged 984 jumps and counting.

History Lesson

Bungy jumping has actually been around for centuries—the people of Pentecost Island in New Zealand would use vines to throw themselves off towers as a way to ward off spirits. But it didn’t go mainstream until speed-skiers AJ Hackett and Henry van Asch made it accessible with their first bungy spot at Queenstown’s 43-meter-tall Kawarau Bridge in 1988.


Skypark Sochi is lookin’ fly. Photo: AJ Hackett International

Jump Here

“That first jump is always the best jump, because you’re going into the unknown. If you were to include Russia as part of Asia, then I’d say the Skypark in Sochi ($1,686 from www.ajhackett.com/sochi), which just opened a few months ago. The location is amazing, overlooking Sochi City and the Black Sea. Over in New Zealand, there’s Nevis Canyon ($1,869 from ajhackett.ibisnz.com), which is the highest bungy in the country at 134 meters tall. But I still prefer the original Queenstown site: Kawarau Bridge ($1,318 from ajhackett.ibisnz.com). It’s only 43 meters high, but that’s where it all started, so it’s a really special place.”
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Kawarau Bridge: where it all began. Photo: AJ Hackett New Zealand

Safety First

“When it comes to bungy jumping, safety is the most important thing. There are a lot of cowboys out there, so do your homework. We have jumped more than 3.5 million people in 27 years, and we have never had a fatality.”

The Fine Print

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