Just a 2 hours and 30 minutes flight from Beijing, in the Sichuan Province, lies Chengdu.
Ranking only 7th on the list of China’s most visited cities, Chengdu, known as the hometown of Giant Pandas, is an absolute gem. 72 hours is a great amount of time to spend in the city, although really you could spend a few times more than that.
Here are my top 7 things to do if you do only have a few days.
Leshan Giant Buddha
The Giant Buddha of Leshan is the largest stone Buddha in the world, standing (more sitting really) at 71m tall, it’s stunning and a must see whilst in Chengdu. It’s around a 2-hour drive outside of Chengdu by car or bus, or alternatively you can take a train from Chengdu Downtown station which will take around an hour.
This is a full day trip. There’s loads to see in the Grand Buddha Scenic Area including the Oriental Buddha Park, the Lingyun Temple and of course the Giant Buddha. There are 3 main ways to view the Buddha, from the top, from the bottom and from the river by boat.
Viewing it from the top, you’ll contend with smaller queues and crowds. However, when I say contend, I really mean compete. There isn’t much organisation at the top and it’s a bit of a free for all trying to get a spot to view the Buddha and grab a photo.
Getting a view of the Buddha is like trying to get to the bar in a crowded Wetherspoons on a match day. You’ve got to take any gap you can, and slowly work your way to the front as people jostle (pretty aggressively at times) for position.
Viewing from the bottom or by boat, you’ll most likely end up in huge queues that can take as much as 2 hours. These also require additional tickets which sell out early in the day.
Top Tip – Get there early and avoid weekends and major holidays to beat the crowds as much as possible.
Another Top Tip – If viewing it from the top, be sure to hold on tight to your phone when getting photos, it can easily get knocked out of your hand, and it’s a long way down.
Giant Panda Breeding Research Base
Sichuan Province is the home of Giant Panda and Chengdu is one of the best places to see the cuddly fellas up close. The Giant Panda Breeding Research Base has around 200 pandas across it’s many enclosures. Stroll through bamboo groves and watch the pandas as they go about their business. Make your way up the hill to the impressive Bamboo tower as well, for great views over the surrounding area.
This is another full day trip with big crowds normally. Just after we arrived, the police actually issued a text message to tell people to stay away from the area as it was too busy. So, get there early to try and beat the crowds and make sure you book tickets beforehand so you don’t arrive to find it’s sold out for the day.
Get there by taking the metro to Panda Avenue station on Metro Line 3. From there you can get a bus that’ll take you up the road to the Research Base.
Wenshu Monastery
The Wenshu Monastery is over 1400 years old and is the largest and best-preserved monastery in Chengdu. The intricate buildings and the peace tower are beautiful and well worth a look. You’ll see quite a few Buddhist monks knocking about as well, as it is a functional and practicing monastery rather than just a place for tourists.
The Monastery is free to enter. Within it you will find a famous tea house, whilst in the old neighbourhood streets surrounding it you will find lots of shops, cafes and street food stalls.
People’s Park
The People’s Park is a great place to get a break from the big city. The relaxing park has artful landscaping, a bonsai garden, tea houses and a large pond where you rent a boat. You can also get yourself a traditional ear cleaning, something I’ve always felt was missing from parks in the UK.
Sichuan Hot Pot
No trip to Chengdu would be complete without getting stuck into some Sichuan hot pot.
The spicy and numbing hotpot soup is made from chillies, Sichuan pepper, doubanjiang and several other aromatics and spices. These are cooked down with oil into a spice base that then gets mixed with a broth, usually a pork and/or beef broth, to give you your hot pot.
From there, dunk whatever meat and vegetables in it you want and pick them out when they’re cooked and ready to eat. My mouth is actually watering just writing this.
Personally, my favourite variation of hot pot was Chuan Chuan Xiang, also known as stick-stick. Meat and vegetables come on skewers that can be placed into the hotpot and taken out when cooked. The used skewers go into a bucket and, when you’ve finished your meal, the bucket is weighed to give you your final bill.
Top Tip – In my opinion, the hot pot is at its best at around 30-60 minutes. The longer it cooks the stronger it gets and after this point it gets increasingly spicy. Something to keep in mind, maybe put a toilet roll in the fridge just in case.
Anshun Bridge
Anshun Bridge lights up at night and perfectly blends together the old and the new in Chengdu. The bridge was actually written about by Marco Polo in the 13th century, although it’s been rebuilt several times since then, most recently in 2003.
Take a stroll along the Jinjiang river for some great views of the bridge and maybe even a little bit of live music too from some local buskers to compliment.
The Twin Towers
Speaking of lighting up at night, rounding off things to do in 72 hours in Chengdu are the Twin Towers.
At over 200m tall, these towers but on spectacular light displays up until 10pm every night. The area around the towers is full of night life and a great place to spend a final evening in Chengdu.