Private Chengdu Highlights Day Trip: Panda Base and City from Chongqing by Train
Description
Maximize your time in Chengdu, this all-inclusive private tour takes you to all the highlights: Chengdu Panda Breeding Base, Buddhist Temple, People’s Park and Old Town. Comfortable air-conditioned vehicle take you to the famous Wenshu monastery for lunch first, learn Buddhist culture from your guide before spend several hours watching adorable pandas. Followed by stroll down Kuanzhai Alley and then relax at a teahouse in the park. Chongqing hotel pickup included.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Pick up from your city hotel in Chongqing and head to train station, you'll get the train tickets from your driver. After 1.5-2 hours you will meet a friendly English-speaking guide at Chengdu Station. First head to Wenshu Yuan Monastety, a preserved Buddhist temple housing many precious works of art that are considered cultural relics. It is one of the most important Buddhist Temple in Chengdu City. You will enjoy a special vegetarian buffet lunch here with locals and monks. After lunch, visit this beautiful and peaceful Buddhist temple. Take a stroll at the temple complex with impressive buddha statues. See the monks and local prayers.
Visit Chengdu Panda Breeding Center when pandas just wake up after lunch break. Spend few hours with the cutest, yet impressive, creatures in China! Tour through the baby and adult panda areas and visit the red panda section to see these small adorable animals.
Chengdu is a melting-pot of cultures and Kuanzhai Alley is a great place to see the rare peek Chinese traditional handicraft and taste the delectable local food. Enjoy the sights of older-style buildings, gardens and rows of souvenir shops and vendors lining the street. Impressive by the combination of old and new here.
Travel to People’s Park to see locals going about their daily business like singing or dancing before witnessing the cultural idiosyncrasy of Match Corner, an enclave in which parents attempt to match their children with other eligible infants. Leisurely enjoy a cup of local tea by the river before head to the train station back to Chongqing.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
Departure Point: Departs from your city hotel or residence in Chongqing city. Return point: Returns to original departure point.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(9)
I was very excited to have an opportunity to visit Chengdu during my short stay in Chongqing. Everything in the tour was smooth, convenient, and pleasant, including the transfer from my hotel to the railway station in Chongqing. The tour guide in Chengdu, Perry, was extremely friendly and knowledgeable. I have learned a lot from him and I have also had a lot of fun throughout the tour. And lastly, I really appreciated how the tour company has accommodated my needs for the tour. Much appreciated ! And highly recommended !
The day went well. We saw a lot and were excellently guided by Perry. In the morning we were picked up and taken to the Chonqging West station. We had received a screenshot of the tickets in advance but in fact you only need a passport to enter the station and to go through the gate (a bit similar to plane) to the train. Comfortable train ride. We had been given a meeting place at the Burger King in Chengdu station. Easy to find, just go to exit as given on email description from the tour operator. We first visited the panda center: we saw at least 50 pandas. Got plenty of time to look around there with the guide. We did spend 4 hours there. Was fine. You can imagine it as a zoo with only pandas (giant and red). Perry then took us to a restaurant where we ate very nice (not spicy on our question). Perry and the driver would take us downtown. A visit and explanation to the monastery was perfect. We went for tea in the Chengdu Renmin/people's Park. We were taken back to the station. Everything went correctly. In Chongqing we then went back to our hotel on our own by subway. The excursion is highly recommended: much seen in a short time span. Recommended for those who do not have that much time to visit Chengdu from Chongqing. In the period prior to the excursion, you will be asked to send a copy of your passport. As a minus, we would like to mention that communication about which driver was going to pick us up in the morning was very difficult. We didn't get an answer to that, at our own request, until around midnight before we left. We finally had the hotel call the driver. Since we don't speak Chinese, a count number is a difficult means of communication, we can't talk to each other.
Great tour but a lot of uphill walking. You must be relatively fit to do this tour Our guide Jason was fantastic and added to the experience
We started the morning at the panda base and rushed through it while unfortunately not seeing much, because due to the hot weather all the pandas were inside. While this is not something the tour guide can influence, it's a risk travelers in the summer should be aware of. When I mentioned I wanted to buy panda souvenirs, the tour guide led me to a shop outside which was owned a by her friend, under the guise of being "cheaper and higher quality". I did not like the selection and in hindsight should have asked to go to the panda base's official shop. After exiting the panda base we had to wait almost 45 minutes for the driver to pick us up again. Apparently it was so crowded he could not find a parking spot, but the waiting time defeats the purpose of a private driver. The guide said we did not have enough time and removed Wenshu Yuan Monastery from the itinerary. We did go to Kuanzhai Alley and People's Park, where we finished at 4 PM after relaxing at a tea house for a full hour. I found this strange as the return train ticket was booked for 7:20 PM, so there was a lot of time to kill. After I inquired and the tour guide called with the organizer, she agreed to show me around the shopping area until 5:30 PM. However, I would have rather spent more time in the panda base or visit the monastery in the morning. I reached the train station at 6 PM and waited another full hour. Looking back, I probably would not have paid for the tour and would plan something myself.
Thank you very much for your feedback, Mr. Ton, very sorry to hear that you were some dissatisfied with tour, your guide Cindy, 58 years old, used to work as English teacher in a high school for over 30 years, she is a very responsible and sensitive person, at this moment, The World Games is being held in Chengdu, the city government consider this is top priority issue for the city, a lot of traffic control and road blocks in the city, she was so worried about you would miss your train back because of traffic control, such as took quite a long time for the driver found one spot to pick you up outside the panda center, that’s why she skip the Wenshu Temple, but when you finished sightseeing and tea at People’s Park, still had time, you suggested go to visit the Chengdu Museum and Chengdu East Station by yourself, she insisted on accompanying you walked till Chunxilu and Taikoo Lee, she also mentioned to other guides that she met a very energetic young man, and felt that she was not old and in good health.
It is a tour that should not be missed, the walk to the city Panda is very beautiful and the visit to the village is wonderful and full of interesting data. Silvia knows every detail you can imagine of the Pandas!
Muchas gracias por tus comentarios, le deseo un agradable viaje a China.
It was a great fun day. Our guide, Well, accommodated to our needs and showered us with care throughout the entire trip. We appreciate Well and we'll be back again.
Thank you! We're thrilled you enjoyed our Chengdu day tour with Well. Your kind words will be passed on to him. Hope to host you again in future!
This experience was amazing. All the contacts were very communicative and was easy to organize all the details. We arrived to Chengdu and Jojo received us, she was the best tour guide ever, all the knowledge and kindness was very appreciated! The places we visited and the food were the best. I totally recommend this tour!
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear you had such a great experience with Jojo. We hope to welcome you back for more adventures in the future!
The trip was great! It covered the must-do places in Chengdu in a day! Very packed itinerary but if you only have 1 day in Chengdu, this is it!
Thank you for your feedback, Chengdu worth staying longer and there are more interesting places to visit, welcome back!
Good guides and choices of tourist destinations. Delicious introduction to tasty Chengdu food. Would be better if can see more or groups of pandas instead of just 3 individuals pandas
