Atlas of China
Chengdu 成都Chéngdū
Pandas, teahouses and the home kitchen of Sichuan's fiery cooking
- Type
- City
- Region
- Sichuan
- Featured places
- 9
- Listed sites
- 642 rated 5A · 42 rated 4A · 24 national heritage
About Chengdu
Sichuan's capital spreads across a plain watered for more than 2,200 years by the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, still at work on the plain's western edge beneath the Taoist temples of Mount Qingcheng. In the city, giant pandas feed at the Chengdu Giant Panda Base, Wuhou Shrine and Du Fu Thatched Cottage recall the Three Kingdoms and Tang poetry, and locals linger over tea in People's Park. Chengdu has been a UNESCO City of Gastronomy since 2010.
What to eat in Chengdu
- Mapo tofu (麻婆豆腐)
- Fuqi feipian (夫妻肺片)
- Long chaoshou wontons (龙抄手)
Featured places in Chengdu
-
Chengdu Giant Panda Base 成都大熊猫繁育研究基地
Watch giant pandas munch bamboo and tumble about among the trees
-
Dujiangyan Irrigation System 都江堰
A 2,200-year-old waterworks that tamed the Min River without a dam and still runs today
-
Mount Qingcheng 青城山
A cradle of Taoism, where forest stairways climb past temples and cave shrines
-
Wuhou Shrine & Jinli Street 武侯祠与锦里
Cypress-shaded halls honouring Three Kingdoms heroes, with a bustling snack lane next door
-
Du Fu Thatched Cottage 杜甫草堂
Bamboo groves and plum blossom where Du Fu, China's 'Poet-Sage', once lived
-
Kuanzhai Alley 宽窄巷子
Three restored Qing-era lanes of courtyard gateways, teahouses and Sichuan snacks
-
Luodai Ancient Town 洛带古镇
A Hakka market town on Chengdu's edge, with grand guild halls built by Qing-era settlers
-
People's Park & Heming Teahouse 人民公园与鹤鸣茶社
Bamboo chairs, jasmine tea and roving ear cleaners in Chengdu's favourite park
-
Wenshu Monastery 文殊院
An active Buddhist monastery of incense-filled courtyards, a teahouse and vegetarian food
Listed sites in Chengdu
64 listed sites are in Chengdu. These are the 44 rated 5A or 4A; see all 64 in the Sichuan list.
- Anren Ancient Town 安仁古镇 5A scenic area · National heritage site
Anren is a market town on the western edge of the Chengdu Plain, listed among China's historic towns in 2005, with well-preserved streets of traditional western Sichuan architecture. - Tiantai Mountain (Qionglai) 天台山 5A scenic area
A forested mountain area in western Qionglai, protected as a national scenic area and forest park and included in the Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries World Heritage Site. - Baihetan National Wetland Park, Xinjin 白鹤滩国家湿地公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A wetland park on the Min River at Xinjin, where river deposits have built up sandbars, gravel shoals and grassy meadows. - Bailu Music Town & Annunciation Seminary 白鹿音乐小镇与领报修院 4A scenic area · National heritage site · on the map
Bailu is a small mountain town in Pengzhou, marketed as a 'music town'. - Baoguang Temple & Gui Lake 宝光寺与桂湖 4A scenic area · National heritage site
Two neighbouring sights in Xindu, north of Chengdu. - Baoshan Scenic Area, Pengzhou 彭州宝山 4A scenic area · on the map
A tourist area around Baoshan village in the Longmen Mountains of Pengzhou, combining two forested valleys, Taiyangwan and Huilonggou, with a hot-spring resort and village tourism. - Chengdu International Intangible Cultural Heritage Park 成都国际非遗博览园 4A scenic area · on the map
A large event park of about 1,780 mu (119 hectares) in western Chengdu, built as the permanent home of the Chengdu International Intangible Cultural Heritage Festival, whose ninth edition opened here in May 2025. - Chengdu Polar Ocean Park 成都极地海洋公园 4A scenic area · on the map
A marine park of about 7 hectares in Huayang, Tianfu New Area, on the southern side of Chengdu, opened in 2010 as Haichang Polar Ocean World and since renamed. - Chengjia Tea Country, Pujiang 成佳茶乡 4A scenic area · on the map
Rolling tea country around Chengjia town in Pujiang county, south-west of Chengdu, with some 22,000 mu (about 1,500 hectares) of tea gardens, more than half of them organic. - Danjing Mountain 丹景山 4A scenic area · on the map
A wooded mountain in Pengzhou known for tree peonies since at least the Song dynasty, when the poet Lu You wrote that Tianpeng (Pengzhou) peonies were the finest in Sichuan. - Danjingtai, Longquan Mountain Urban Forest Park 丹景台 4A scenic area · on the map
A hilltop viewing park on the ridge of the Longquan Mountains, opened on New Year's Day 2020 as the first showcase project of the Longquan Mountain Urban Forest Park. - Daoming Bamboo Village 道明竹艺村 4A scenic area · on the map
A rural hamlet in Daoming, Chongzhou, known for Daoming bamboo weaving, a local craft added to China's national intangible cultural heritage list in 2014. - Dongjiao Memory 东郊记忆 4A scenic area
A cultural and creative district in Chenghua, east Chengdu, converted from the Hongguang Electron Tube Factory, a state electronics plant founded in 1958. - Fenghuang Lake, Qingbaijiang 凤凰湖 4A scenic area · on the map
A wetland park around a lake in Qingbaijiang district, north-east of Chengdu, rated a 4A scenic area in 2022. - Guanxian Old Town, Dujiangyan 灌县古城 4A scenic area
The historic core of Dujiangyan, a city known as Guan County until 1988, lying beside the ancient irrigation scheme. - Guose Tianxiang Amusement Park 国色天乡乐园 4A scenic area · on the map
A large theme-park and resort development in Wanchun, Wenjiang, on Chengdu's western edge, built in a foreign-themed style beside a big housing estate. - Haibin City, Shuangliu 海滨城 4A scenic area · on the map
A large indoor shopping and entertainment complex in the Jiaolonggang area of Shuangliu, south-west Chengdu, listed as a scenic area for its leisure attractions. - Happy Valley Chengdu 成都欢乐谷 4A scenic area · on the map
An amusement park in Jinniu district, north-west Chengdu, opened in January 2009 as the third park in the Happy Valley chain. - Hongkou Scenic Area 虹口 4A scenic area · on the map
A forested valley along the Baisha River in the mountains north of Dujiangyan, bordering the Longxi–Hongkou National Nature Reserve, a habitat of giant pandas and golden monkeys. - Huanglongxi 黄龙溪古镇 4A scenic area
A historic river town where the Luxi River joins the Jin River south of Chengdu, a stop on the river trade since the Han dynasty and one of China's listed historic towns. - Huashuiwan Hot Spring Town 花水湾温泉 4A scenic area · on the map
A hot-spring resort town in the mountains of Dayi county, on the road up to Xiling Snow Mountain, with a river running through it between the hills. - Huawu Renjian Flower Park, Xinjin 花舞人间 4A scenic area · on the map
A flower park of more than 3,000 mu (about 200 hectares) in Xinjin district, on the southern fringe of Chengdu. - Jiezi Ancient Town 街子古镇 4A scenic area · on the map
An old market town on the Weijiang River at the foot of Fengqi Mountain, on the back side of Mount Qingcheng. - Jinmen Silk Quarter, Xindu 锦门 4A scenic area · on the map
A recently developed cultural and commercial quarter in Sanhe, Xindu district, north of Chengdu, themed on Shu brocade and promoted as the starting point of the Southern Silk Road. - Jinsha Site Museum 金沙遗址博物馆 4A scenic area · National heritage site
The museum stands on the Jinsha site in western Chengdu, a centre of the ancient Shu culture discovered in 2001 and dated to roughly 1250–650 BC. - Luxelake Water City 麓湖水城 4A scenic area · on the map
A planned lakeside district in Tianfu New Area, south of central Chengdu, built from 2010 around an artificial lake of about 2,100 mu (140 hectares) fed with water from the Dujiangyan irrigation system. - Nongke Village, Pidu 农科村 4A scenic area · on the map
A flower- and bonsai-growing village in Youai town, Pidu, north-west of Chengdu, promoted as the birthplace of nongjiale, the farmhouse restaurants and guesthouses now found across rural China. - Peach Blossom Homeland, Longquanyi 桃花故里 4A scenic area · on the map
A hillside orchard area at Shanquan in the Longquan Mountains, on Chengdu's eastern edge, centred on the peach groves for which Longquanyi is known. - Pingle Ancient Town 平乐古镇 4A scenic area
A market town on the Baimo River at the foot of the Qionglai Mountains, a settlement since the Western Han and traditionally counted as a stop on the Southern Silk Road. - Qinggangshu Village, Pidu 青杠树村 4A scenic area · on the map
A model village in Sandaoyan town, Pidu, on the north-western edge of Chengdu, where streams and irrigation channels run among western-Sichuan farmhouses and tree-shaded linpan homesteads. - Sandaoyan Water Town, Pidu 三道堰 4A scenic area
A riverside town in northern Pidu, named after a legend that an early Shu ruler built three weirs of bamboo baskets here to divert water for the fields, and once a busy river port and trading post. - Sansheng Flower Villages 三圣花乡 4A scenic area · on the map
A belt of flower-growing villages in Sansheng subdistrict on Chengdu's south-eastern edge, developed as five themed areas known as the 'Five Golden Flowers': Flower Village Farmhouses, Happy Plum Grove, Jiang Family Vegetable Plots, East Hedge Chrysanthemum Garden and Lotus Pond Moonlight. - Shixiang Lake, Pujiang 石象湖 4A scenic area
A lake park in Pujiang county, south-west of Chengdu, combining about 800 mu (53 hectares) of water with a large area of secondary forest, planted lawns and extensive flower fields. - Tianfu Hibiscus Garden 天府芙蓉园 4A scenic area · on the map
A themed park in the Jiang'an River green belt of Wuhou district, south-west Chengdu, opened in 2018 and developed with Joy City Holdings around the hibiscus, Chengdu's city flower. - Tianfu International Slow City, Chongzhou 天府国际慢城 4A scenic area · on the map
A rural leisure area around Baitou town, west of Chongzhou on the Chengdu Plain, made up of the Qimu River wetland park, the Wuxing village folk-culture area and open rice and rapeseed fields. - Tianyi Nongyuan Art Park 天艺浓园 4A scenic area · on the map
An art park in Wuhou district, south-west Chengdu, founded in 2005 and now grouped into three sections that combine artists' studios, galleries and teaching spaces. - Wangcong Temple 望丛祠 4A scenic area
A memorial temple in Pidu to Wangdi (Du Yu) and Congdi (Bieling), two legendary kings of ancient Shu, traditionally credited with teaching farming and taming floods. - Weiran Flower Sea, Longquanyi 蔚然花海 4A scenic area · on the map
A large commercial flower park in Tong'an, Longquanyi, on the eastern edge of Chengdu, planted mainly with seasonal flowers such as tulips, poppies, zinnias and coneflowers, including some grown from space-bred seed. - Wufengxi Ancient Town 五凤溪古镇 4A scenic area · on the map
A riverside town on the Tuo River in the Longquan Mountains of Jintang County, which prospered as a busy river port in the Qing dynasty. - Xiling Snow Mountain 西岭雪山 4A scenic area · on the map
A mountain scenic area in the Qionglai range in Dayi County, crowned by Daxuetang, at 5,364 m the highest peak in Chengdu municipality. - Xinchang Ancient Town 新场古镇 4A scenic area · on the map
A long-established foothill market town in western Dayi County, laid out on a grid of old streets and lanes. - Xingfu Tianyuan Rural Park, Wenjiang 幸福田园 4A scenic area · on the map
A showcase rural area of about 1,400 mu (93 hectares) at Xingfu village in Wanchun, Wenjiang, on the western edge of Chengdu, presenting farm life on the Chengdu Plain. - Yuantong Ancient Town 元通古镇 4A scenic area · on the map
An old river-port town on the Wenjing River in Chongzhou, once one of the busier wharves of the western Chengdu Plain. - Zhanqi Village, Pidu 战旗村 4A scenic area · on the map
A model village in Tangchang, Pidu, noted for its collective land reforms and visited by Xi Jinping in February 2018; an exhibition hall presents the village's development and that visit.
Getting to Chengdu
Train, flight and driving times from the cities most visitors come from, with stations, fares and how many run a day; each opens the full comparison.
- Leshan 乐山 high-speed train 41 min, 59 a day, from ¥51
- Emeishan 峨眉山 high-speed train 1 h 5 min, 28 a day, from ¥63
- Songpan 松潘 to Dujiangyan · train 3 h 34 min with a change at Chengdu
- Kangding 康定 to Dujiangyan · no nonstop flight
- Kangding 康定 a nonstop route is listed
- Songpan 松潘 high-speed train 1 h 33 min, 26 a day, from ¥135; a nonstop route is listed
- Chongqing 重庆 high-speed train 1 h 2 min, 131 a day, from ¥148
- Xi'an 西安 high-speed train 3 h 5 min, 67 a day, from ¥300; one nonstop flight a day, 1 h 35 min in the air
- Kunming 昆明 high-speed train 5 h 51 min, 24 a day, from ¥527; 21 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 25 min in the air
- Zhangjiajie 张家界 high-speed train 3 h 58 min, 7 a day, from ¥398; one nonstop flight a day, 1 h 20 min in the air
- Guilin 桂林 high-speed train 4 h 58 min, 17 a day, from ¥482; 3 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 50 min in the air
- Zhengzhou 郑州 high-speed train 5 h 8 min, 33 a day, from ¥528; 13 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 55 min in the air
- Lhasa 拉萨 train 34 h 38 min, 1 a day, from ¥303; 27 nonstop flights a day, 2 h 35 min in the air
- Hong Kong 香港 high-speed train 8 h 18 min, 1 a day, from ¥881; 6 nonstop flights a day, 2 h 45 min in the air
- Beijing 北京 high-speed train 7 h 28 min, 12 a day, from ¥872; 53 nonstop flights a day, 3 h in the air
- Shanghai 上海 high-speed train 10 h 6 min, 16 a day, from ¥1074; 43 nonstop flights a day, 2 h 35 min in the air
Trips with Chengdu
- Two weeks in China: Beijing, Xi’an, Chengdu, Guilin and Shanghai 14 days · Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu, Leshan, Guilin and Shanghai
- Sichuan in a week: Chengdu, Leshan, Mount Emei and Dujiangyan 7 days · Chengdu, Leshan, Emeishan and Dujiangyan
- Chengdu to Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong: a week in the Aba mountains 6 days · Chengdu, Songpan and Jiuzhaigou
On the map
Open Chengdu on the illustrated map to see its outline, its places and listed sites together, and to add them to a trip.
Open Chengdu on the map