Chengdu

Understand

thumb|upright=1.5|Chengdu gets less sunshine than anywhere else in China. Chengdu is on the edge of the fertile plains of the Red Basin in China's Sichuan Province. Due to its agricultural wealth, Chengdu is sometimes called the Heavenly Land of Plenty. The Funan River bisects the city, although boat traffic, common until the 1960s, has all but vanished.

The Chengdu administrative area is home to more than 14 million people, with about 10 million of them in the Chengdu urban area. Chengdu has the reputation as a very "laid-back" city that emphasizes culture and relaxation. As a result of this and much green space, it is ranked one of the most livable mega-cities in China. It is credited with a good nightlife scene, and contains many new western style buildings in the large city center.

Summer weather is hot and humid, as the city is surrounded by small mountains to the east and sits in the Red Basin. Furthermore, an hour to the west lie the foothills of the mighty Tibetan Plateau and the fabulously scenic mountains of west Sichuan.

The city is famous for its lack of sun, so don't come expecting to get a sun tan. The city is foggy most of the year and typically warmer than coastal cities.

The city government provides tourist information

Some counties and county-level cities administered by Chengdu are given separate articles on Wikivoyage. These counties and county-level cities include Dujiangyan, Pengzhou and Pujiang.

Get around

See Driving in China for detailed advice if you want to get around by car.

Do

For up-to-date information on activities, places and attractions you should check out the Chengdoo Citylife Magazine's listings. You will find copies in most bars, restaurants, cafes, hostels and hotels.

thumb|Universal Center - Panoramic View

Buy

Supermarkets are located throughout the city, although the selection of imported foods is limited.

Eat

thumb|Banquet dish in Chengdu thumb|Snacks thumb|Chengdu-style double hotpot, with sour suancai pickled cabbage broth (left) and spicy mala broth (right)

You will find no shortage of delicious Sichuan food in Chengdu. Most of the food is spicy, but not necessarily as hot as you expect. If you are obviously foreign and don't specify whenever you order (i.e. non-spicy (不要辣 búyàolà), a little spicy (微辣 wēilà) or 'old' (very) spicy (老辣 lǎolà)), the staff will assume that you can't take the heat. At best they will ask you whether you want chili (你想要辣椒?; Nǐ xiǎng yào làjiāo?), at worst they give you a severely toned down version of the food! If you want it how the locals have it, reassure the staff with "I like chili" (我喜欢辣椒 wǒ xǐhuan làjiāo), followed with "I like all the chili" (我都喜欢辣椒 Wǒ dū xǐhuan làjiāo) to really reassure the staff that it's OK.

If you are not accustomed to it yet, a bottle of sweetened soy, almond, peanut, or cow milk, or something else sweet will work much better than water to quell the fire. If you are used to the hottest of authentic Indian or Thai food, the level of spiciness in Sichuan food should be no problem at all.

Sichuan food also makes heavy use of Sichuan peppercorn (花椒 huājiāo), which looks like but is not a true peppercorn, and causes your mouth to water and to be somewhat numb (málà)––the effects are unique and very dissimilar to capsaicin. Sichuan peppercorn is added in most spicy dishes. If you can eat spicy food but do not like Sichuan p…

Drink

thumb|Green tea in Chengdu thumb|Teahouse in Chengdu

A popular district of bars, also known as the bar street, is located by the southern shore of Jin River next to Anshun Bridge. The well known Lan Kwai Fong from Hong Kong started its business in the mainland of China in 2010 and the first city is Chengdu. The area is located a little north-west from Anshun Bridge. Chengdu is also popularly regarded as the gay capital of China, with a number of bars and nightclubs catering to gays and lesbians.

Also, on the southern bank of Jinjiang there is a row of bars between Renmin South Road and Xin South Road. Beers will cost ¥10-20 per bottle, but buying bulk cans will save you a good bit of money with special deals. There will also be street vendors selling various snacks. This makes for a good night with the clubs Babi II, Ta & Ta, and Soho just around the bend.

Stay safe

thumb|A banner reminding people of Ponzi schemes

Thieves are prevalent around certain areas of Chengdu. Be careful around the Yanshikou markets, crowded buses, on bicycles and especially around the North Train Station.

Traffic can appear hectic, and all motorists and cyclists drive as if they assume they have right of way/priority. Reassuringly, due to the volume of traffic in cities, it never travels fast enough to cause any damage. Walk with confidence and be aware of your surroundings when crossing streets; even when the walk sign is green, traffic will cross your path. See Driving in China for more information.

Pyramid/ponzi schemes are endemic in Chengdu, and criminals operating these schemes can resort to violence if their scam is about to be exposed. Simply avoiding any dubious investment scheme is sufficient for normal visitors. You should also be careful if strangers try to talk to you in order to sell you something or lead you somewhere.

Go next

Families and those short of time might consider hiring a car with driver (¥300-900 per day, depending upon type of car and experience of driver, with cars booked at the luxury hotels the most expensive and highest quality).

The Giant Buddha in Leshan is probably the most popular nearby destination. A day trip to this ancient man-made wonder should be about ¥100-150. Two day tours are available which combine the Buddha with a visit to the nearby Buddhist holy mountain Emei Shan. Mount Qingcheng (青城山) and Dujiangyan (都江堰) are fascinating sites about 40 km from Chengdu. You can do both sites in one long day, or better yet, plan to spend a day at each. Qingcheng is a beautiful mountain with an extensive and well kept network of steps and pathways; it includes many pagodas, a small lake, and a chair-lift for those who don't want to walk. Qingcheng is an important site in the Taoist religion. Dujiangyan has a fascinating history and a marvelous swinging pedestrian bridge. Both trips involve lots of walking. Bi Feng Xia - a large ecological park in the mountains about a 2½ hour drive from Chengdu. It centers around a huge gorge with waterfalls. One can hike down into the gorge on well marked paths and take an elevator back up. The park also has special panda habitats, as well as a more traditional "zoo". The main reason to go here is for the walks and hikes into the gorge. The zoo, although filled with animals such as tigers, lions, bears, monkeys, and even a drive-through sec…