Chengdu Hiking Tour

Welcome to Chengdu! After you arrive at the airport and walk to the arrival hall, you will see your guide waiting for you with your name sign. Then, the guide will transfer you to the hotel and help you check in. You can have a good rest and get ready for the next day. Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan Province. It is famous for spicy foods and is the home of cute giant pandas. It is acclaimed as the Tian Fu Zhi Guo (the land of abundance). There are abundant mineral resources. Furthermore, the land is extremely fertile and productive. During your Chengdu visa free tour, you can taste delicious foods, see cute pandas, and appreciate beautiful landscapes.  

This morning, you will have a visit to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. It is located in the north Chengdu suburb and is 10 kilometers away from the Chengdu center. It needs about 20 minutes to get there. This base is one of the biggest conservation bases for giant pandas. So far, there are nearly 100 giant pandas in the base. In addition, the morning is the best time in a day to see the giant pandas because they are usually fed from 9 am to 11 am. However, it is worth mentioning that you should not shout here, which will disturb the giant pandas, and you should not use the flashlight when you take photos because their eyes are sensitive to the light. Here, you can explore the daily life of these cute creatures and have a closer look at them.

After enjoying lunch at a local restaurant, you will go to the Wuhou Shrine Museum, a museum for commemorating a ruler and his ministers. However, at the very beginning, it was built to commemorate Zhuge Liang. He was the military advisor general of the Kingdom of Shu in the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280). We cannot tell the exact time of its establishment, but we know that the current Wuhou Shrine Museum was rebuilt in 1672. There are lots of statues in the museum, and the Statue of Pang Tong is the only statue that is made according to a real Sichuan opera actor. It is said that Pang Tong was very ugly, but the craftsman who made the statue had no idea how ugly he was. At that time, a Sichuan opera actor who played the role of Pang Tong acted very well, and he was also ugly. Therefore, the craftsman finally decided to mold the statue of Pang Tong based on the look of this actor.    

The next attraction of today is Jinli Street, located in the east of the Wuhou Shrine Museum. The overall street covers a total area of 30,000 square meters, with a total length of about 550 meters. Every year, there will be various shows played in the street, such as folk music show, folk drama show, and costume show. And here you may come across some couples taking traditional wedding photos. In addition, you can taste many types of local foods. Let’s take Bo Bo Chicken as an example. Bo Bo Chicken is one of the famous Sichuan snacks. The bone-free chicken is sliced and put in a pottery bowl. Then a variety of seasonings, especially spicy ones, will be added to the bowl and mixed with the chicken evenly. The meat has crispy skin and tender meat, and they taste spicy and fresh.

Then, we will head to the People’s Park, located in the downtown area. First built in 1911, the park is the oldest in Chengdu. It is a comprehensive park where you can enjoy the natural landscape and cultural relics. The main attractions in the People’s Park are the Gold Water Stream, the Goldfish Island, Rockery Square, and the Bonsai Landscape Garden, etc. Local people like drinking tea in the teahouse, boating on the artificial lake and watching various performances on the Rockery Square. Besides, you may see some people doing exercise with long swords and some people practising Taiji in a white suit. If you are interested, you can join them to experience the local lifestyle.

Wuhou Shrine Museum

Jinli Street

In the morning, we will drive southwest for about 1 hour to the Huanglongxi Ancient Town, 35 kilometers away from downtown Chengdu. The town consists of 7 streets and 9 allies on which 76 ancient-Chinese-style houses are scattered. And all the streets and allies are paved by cobblestone. Besides, there are 3 temples, 6 over-three-hundred-year banyans and 1 over-one-thousand-year banyan. These old banyans have twisted roots and gnarled branches. And there is a famous legend about these trees. When Zhuge Liang visited Huanglongxi Ancient Town, he found the soil on the river bank was soft. He thought the town was easy to collapse, and one big tree would be helpful to prevent it. That night, he dreamed of an old man who told him that he could find a big tree on the mountain nearby. The next day, Zhuge Liang, together with his subordinates, found one big tree on the mountain and took it back to the town. Then Zhuge Liang ordered his subordinates to plant it on the river bank. Such a behavior saved the town from collapsing. Therefore, the local people named this tree Zhuge Tree to memorize his contribution.

After lunch, you will be driven southward for about 2 hours to the Leshan City to see the Leshan Giant Buddha, about 120 kilometers away from the Huanglongxi Ancient Town. This Buddha statue is the largest Maitreya Buddha statue carved out of a mountain in the world. The carving project of this Buddha statue starts from 713 and takes the efforts of three generations. The whole project takes about 90 years and is completed in 803. The head of the giant Buddha reaches the top of the mountain and its feet stand next to the river, with a total height of 71 meters. The Buddha is not only famous for its size but famous for its architectural artistry. The hair of this statue is designed with 1,051 buns, all of which are carved one by one and embedded in the Buddha’s head. However, from a distance, the buns and the head appear to be integrated.

Huanglongxi Ancient Town

Leshan Giant Buddha

In the morning, we will drive westward for about 1 hour to Mount Emei, 40 kilometers away from the center of Leshan city. In 1996, the Mount Emei was listed as a World Cultural and Natural Heritage Site by UNESCO. And it is one of the Four Great Buddhist Mountains in China. The mountain is famous for its profound Buddhism culture, and there are about 30 temples in the mountain where many Buddhist ceremonies are held each year. Besides the Buddhism culture, it is also famous for its stunning natural scenery. Visitors can see green trees all year round. There are over 5,000 species of plants and more than 2,300 kinds of wild animals. You may come across monkeys flocking together and asking for food from visitors.

After entering the scenic area, you will first reach the Qingyin Pavilion(also called Woyun Temple). It is one of the top eight temples in Mount Emei. Besides, it is home to the statues of Shakyamuni, Manjushri, and Samantabhadra. It is built in 877 on the mountain beam between the Black Dragon River and the White Dragon River, being high up in the air. Standing in the pavilion, you can see magnificent peaks and beautiful rivers; you can smell fragrant flowers and fresh grass; and you can hear gurgling spring. The visual beauty, olfactory beauty, and auditory beauty together provide you a comprehensive aesthetic feeling of Mount Emei scenery. For such a fabulous scenery, it is also praised “the first scenery of Emei Mountain” by many ancient and modern tourists.

Then, you will walk to the Wannian Temple. It is also one of the top eight temples and the biggest temple on Mount Emei. The temple was first built in Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420), with an altitude of 1,020 meters. There are many Buddhist halls in the temple, and among them, the Brick Hall is one of the highlights of the temple. It is called “Brick Hall” because it is built with bricks and no beam is used for its construction. The hall is one of the construction miracles in China. The hall has a yurt shape, with a semi-circular top and square base. In the Brick Hall, there is a bronze statue of Samantabhadra, with a height of 7.35 meters and a weight of 62.1 tons. You can see Samantabhadra sitting on a lotus throne, which is on the back of a white elephant with six tusks. The statue is made more than 1,000 years ago, and it is amazing with its large size, beautiful shape, realistic form, and exquisite craftsmanship. Then, you will take an electric vehicle from the Wannian Temple to the Leidongping station where you will have lunch.

After enjoying lunch, you will first walk to the Jieyin Hall. The hall is located at an area with the altitude of 2,540 meters. It is first built in the Song Dynasty (960-1276) and is rebuilt several times. The gate of current Jieyin Hall faces west, with a quadrangle layout and three main halls (namely the Maitreya Hall, the Main Shrine Hall, and the Hall of Amitabha. Outside the hall, the scenery is fabulous. Standing there, you can see the mysterious sea of clouds, magnificent peaks, and verdant plants.

Then, you will continue to walk to the Golden Summit. The Golden Summit and the Golden Buddha are the symbols of Mount Emei. It is said that if you have never been to the Golden Summit, you have never been to Mount Emei. And it will be a lifelong regret if you don’t worship the Golden Buddha when you arrive at the Golden Summit. The Golden Summit is the second highest peak of Mount Emei, with an altitude of 3,079 meters. And it is the highest site that you can get to. When the sun shines on the bronze hall, the hall will reflect golden light and dazzle your eyes. For such a reason, it is called the Golden Summit. On the Golden Summit, there is a unique golden Samantabhadra statue, who has two bodies and 10 heads. The Samantabhadra statue sits on a lotus throne, which is on the joint back of four golden elephants. The total statue has a height of 48 meters and a weight of 660 tons. When the sun shines on the top of the statue, numerous rays are reflected from the golden Buddha, giving the sea of clouds golden edges. You can come here to worship the Buddha for blessings. After that, you will take a cable car from the Golden Summit to the Leidongping station, where you can take an electric vehicle back to the Visitor Center.

Mount Emei

Golden Summit

This morning, we will drive northeast for about three hours to Chengdu, about 200 kilometers away from Mount Emei. Upon arrival in Chengdu, you will enjoy lunch at a local restaurant. Then, you will go to the Du Fu Thatched Cottage Museum. As the name implies, it was originally the home of Du Fu, a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). He wrote over 240 poems here. Now, it has been developed into a popular museum. The museum covers a total area of 20 hectares. The buildings here are of the style of Qing Dynasty (1636-1912). Besides, there are winding streams, exquisite bridges, pavilions, plum trees, and bamboos. Each year, cottage celebrations, exhibitions, and lectures will be held here. This place plays an important role in promoting poetry culture. You can come here to know more about the poet Du Fu, Chinese poems, and Chinese culture.

The last attraction of this tour is Kuanzhai Alley, located at the center of Chengdu. It is composed of Kuan Alley (Wide Alley), Zhai Alley (Narrow Alley), and Jing Alley (Well Alley). The three alleys have a history of over hundreds of years and the buildings here still retain some original appearance. Kuan Alley was built with a width of 7 to 8 meters because military officers of high status lived here in the past, and they went out by carriage. Zhai Alley is 5 meters in width. Buildings on this street have some western features since many foreign people came here, bought houses, and rebuilt them. Stepping into the Jing Alley, you can see a 500-meter-long wall on which the photos about folklife and historical cultures are exhibited.

Du Fu Thatched Cottage Museum

Kuanzhai Alley

This morning, the guide will help you check out and escort you to the airport according to your flight schedule. Hope you choose China Tour Star again, and we will do our best to provide perfect China tours for you.

Author: Yibo Zhang

Proofreader:Yan Liu