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Photo: Arian Zwegers from Brussels, Belgium, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Offers all the typical animals that one might expect in a zoo (elephant, tigers, giraffes, monkeys, as well as panda bears). While the zoo itself is large and spread out, some of the cages are woefully small and the facility seems understaffed. Might be good for a family to visit. The zoo has vendors selling Chinese snacks as well as some carnival type rides.
Chengdu Zoo is a zoo located in Chengdu, China. It is home to around 3,000 animals representing 300 species and is China's fourth largest zoo. It is the largest zoo in southwest China.
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成都大熊猫繁育研究基地; chéng dū dà xióng māo fán yù yán jiū jī dì
This is the biggest facility of this kind in the world. Due to habitat destruction and other reasons, the giant panda is maybe the most famous endangered animal. It is home to some 60 giant pandas, but also has some red pandas and a colony of black-necked cranes. The pandas are basically on display for tourists but views are much closer than is possible at most Western zoos. (If you want to get even closer and hold a panda or volunteer all day to feed them bamboo and clean the panda cage, visit the Dujiangyan Panda Base, about an hour's drive outside Chengdu.) A small museum and a cinema screening related documentaries is also available. A restaurant and souvenir-stalls top off the tourist installations. The best time to visit is in the morning, when pandas are most active. Pandas sleep during the hottest time of the day. Feeding time is around 09:30-10:00. Expect some crowd. It is recommended to arrive as early as you can to avoid the hordes of school and tour groups that arrive every morning.The best time to visit is early morning when pandas are most active. Feeding time is around 09:30-10:00.
Wenshu Monastery, 文殊院; wén shū yuàn
This Tang Dynasty Buddhist temple is the most impressive, and perhaps also the most used, temple in Chengdu. It is dedicated to the Buddhist representation of Wisdom, Wenshu Pusa (Manjusri Bodhisatva), and contains more than 450 Buddha statues and other precious relics. In addition to the halls and gardens, the temple also has a charming tea house that offers an insightful window of Chengdu life as it is frequented by locals who engage in games of chess, reading, knitting and just chatting with family and friends. The temple also has a delightful vegetarian restaurant with seats offering views over the gardens. There are many shops around the temple, including some of the best street food in the city, such as a sweetwater noodle shop.
成都自然博物馆
One of the largest natural history museums in western China. The museum has around 70,000 items, of which around 10,000 are on display, including many fossils. As of November, visitor numbers are limited to 5000 people per day and bookings are essential. Bookings can be made on the museum's public WeChat account. The WeChat account name is "成都自然博物馆 成都理工博物馆".
四川科技馆 (sì chuān kē jì guǎn)
This huge four-storey museum is filled with interactive exhibits about science, aerodynamics, space, mathematics, robotics and physics. Children will love the interactive displays and indoor playground on the 4th floor. Adults will appreciate the descriptions in both English and Chinese. Everyone will love the crowd-pleasers like the robotic orchestra and walk-through maps of Sichuan's waterways. During weekdays this museum can either be overrun by local school groups or be so deserted it's almost creepy. Overall, quite good value for money, especially on a rainy day.
春熙路
Take an afternoon or evening to walk down this shopping street in the center of the city. It makes for a good change of pace. There are clothing stores, bookstores, restaurants, arcades, and cinemas. It is a good place to find something to eat, as you can find a great variety including hotpot buffets, Japanese restaurants and Western food. However, the major disadvantage with this area is that each brand has many stores in this location (similar to other parts of China). For instance, Nike, Adidas, and Li-Ning, each have about 4-5 stores in Chunxi Road alone which reduces the variety of things to buy. If you are looking for stores in the same vein as Louis Vuitton and Ermenegildo Zegna, these stores are located at Chengdu IFS, which is nearer to the metro station than Chunxi Road itself.
永陵, 王建墓; yǒng líng, wáng jiàn mù / Wang Jian's Tomb
Yongling is the tomb of Wang Jian, the founding emperor of the Shu Kingdom, also known as Great Shu or Former Shu, which ruled over much of Sichuan during the early 10th century during a period known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. The burial chamber has been excavated and is open to the public. An on-site museum displays artefacts that have been excavated from the tomb.