Five-day tour around Chengdu

Number of days：5 days
Time: April
Average cost: 4,000 yuan
With whom: and friends
The author went to these places： Chengdu Sanxingdui Museum Mount Qingcheng Nanqiao Chunxi Road Jiuyan Bridge Daci Temple Kuanzhai Alley
Updated: 2021.06.15

D1: Shanghai – Chengdu (late flight, stay at Chengdu East Station)

D2: Chengdu East – Mianyang (Shengshui Temple, Luohan Temple)

Mianyang – Chengdu East

Chengdu East – Meishan East (Meishan Dongpo Impression Water Street)

Meishan East – Chengdu East

D3: Chengdu East – Guanghan North (Sanxingdui Museum)

Guanghan North – Chengdu East – Xipu Station – Qingcheng Mountain (stay opposite the train station)

Qingcheng Mountain – Dujiangyan (take photos of the giant pandas at Yangtianwo Square and the night view of Nanqiao)

D4: Front Mountain of Qingcheng Mountain

Qingcheng Mountain – Xipu Station – Chunxi Road (stay at Chunxi Road) – Yulin Road – Jiuyanqiao Bar Street

D5: Daci Temple – Kuanzhai Alley – Shu Daxia Hotpot (Xia Ke Impression Store)

D6: Sleep in, Chengdu – Shanghai.

Holy Water Temple

Luohan Temple

Meishan Dongpo Impression Water Street

Sanxingdui Museum

Giant pandas at Yangtianwo Square

Southbridge

Qingcheng Mountain Front

Yulin Road

Nine-Eyed Bridge

Daci Temple

Kuanzhai Alley

Shu Daxia Hotpot (Xia Ke Yinxiang Branch)

PS:

1. Since this trip was mainly touring Chengdu's surrounding areas and would require taking a high-speed train from Chengdu to other places, I chose to stay near Chengdu East Railway Station. This time, I stayed at the closest hotel to the train station: the Dragon Dream Yashi Business Hotel. As an overnight stay, it was quite acceptable, with a FamilyMart just downstairs.

2. For those arriving at Chengdu Airport on a late flight and staying at a hotel near Chengdu East Railway Station, it's best to take a taxi directly from the airport. If you take the airport shuttle to Chengdu East Station, the train station is closed at night, and many pedestrian walkways are also closed. Walking from where you get off to the hotel requires a detour, and with luggage, it's at least a 30-minute walk. Taxis and Didi Chuxing are almost impossible to find at East Station at night. I eventually found an illegal taxi that took me to the hotel for 20 yuan without bargaining. The ride took no more than 5 minutes. Money is a minor concern; safety is paramount at night.

3. A taxi from Mianyang Station to Shengshui Temple costs under 20 yuan, saving time and avoiding the crowds. Shengshui Temple and Luohan Temple are located together and are currently free. Luohan Temple is still under construction. Both temples are worth a visit.

4. High-speed trains from Chengdu East Station to Mianyang, Meishan, and Qingcheng Mountain all take about half an hour. The subway from Chengdu East Station to Xipu Station takes an hour. 5. The evening performance at Dongpo Impression Water Street in Meishan seems to start at 7 PM. There are dining tables on both sides with views, starting at 800 yuan per table for dinner and 288 yuan for tea. However, the performance quality seems low, so the view isn't necessary. Dongpo Impression Water Street is still worth a stroll. I recommend arriving around 4 PM to take photos of the daytime scenery, then eat. After dinner, when the lights turn on, you can take photos of the night scene and watch the performance. 6. Since we had luggage, we took a train to Qingcheng Mountain first. After checking in, we took a taxi to Yangtianwo Square in Dujiangyan to take photos of the giant pandas (less than 50 yuan). If you don't have luggage, you can take a direct train from Chengdu to Dujiangyan. From Yangtianwo Square, it's about a 15-20 minute walk to Nanqiao. 7. The front of Qingcheng Mountain opens at 8 AM, but we took a taxi at 7:30 AM. Be sure to ask the driver to drive to the ticket gate. The driver said 7:45, but I didn't know it was 7:50. The taxi won't go directly to the ticket gate. You'll need to walk a bit or take the scenic area bus, which isn't cost-effective.

8. It's recommended to take the cable car up to the front of Qingcheng Mountain and walk down; otherwise, you'll vomit blood and be exhausted. As for the 5-yuan ferry, we took it; it takes 3 minutes and saves time up the mountain.

9. Yulin Road is currently under renovation. The graffiti Minions can be found at "No. 2, Annex to No. 9, Yulin East Road," which is a fruit stall. This is Yulin Alley 4, a short graffiti alley. From here, you can walk to the "Little Tavern," where you'll find graffiti paintings along the way.

10. From Chunxi Road subway station, you can see the giant panda's buttocks on the roof of the IFC building. You can take the elevator to the top floor to take photos of the pandas from the front. I went up before 11 PM, and there were still many people lining up to take photos with the pandas.

11. For the night view of Jiuyan Bridge, please pay attention to the lights turning off time. On the evening of April 30th, the lights will be turned off at 22:50.

12. Go to Daci Temple as soon as it opens on May 1st. It will be basically empty, so you can take pictures of the cute little monks from all angles.

13. The earlier you go to Kuanzhai Alley, the fewer people there are.

14. You can go to Shu Daxia Hotpot (Xia Ke Yinxiang Branch) around 4pm. Get a number and queue up first. While waiting, you can take pictures of the daytime scenery. When the lights come on, you can eat hotpot while taking pictures of the night scenery. The environment is unbeatable. We were super lucky and got a view seat. The whole restaurant probably has 200-300 tables, but no more than 20 of them have the best view.