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A Chengdu tea master pouring hot water in a high arc from a long-spouted copper kettle over a gaiwan, in an old bamboo-shaded teahouse
Journey · 21 days · Private

China, TakenSlowly

The unhurried version of China's southwest. Every day trip the region offers, every pillar viewpoint, and the food cities of Sichuan and Hunan at both ends.

The trip in one paragraph

Twenty-one days, four stops, and no rushed mornings. This is the full version of the southwest: six days in Chengdu including the mountains and bronzes around it, five in Chongqing including Wulong and Dazu, six under the pillars of Zhangjiajie, and four in Changsha to finish among the Han tombs and the night food streets. Built for second trips, long-service leave, and travellers who would rather go deep than wide.

From · per person
US$7,960

Per person, twin share, your choice of hotels · selected hotels

Indicative · your trip is priced when we design it.

What's included
  • Hotels
  • Guide
  • High-speed rail
Driver & vehicle

Private 5-seater · from US$350/day

Driver and bilingual guide (English & Chinese) included throughout.

Design my trip
  1. 6 nights

    Days 1 to 6: Chengdu

    1. Day 01: Pandas and tea houses

      A giant panda eating bamboo at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding
      Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding

      1. Watch the morning feeding hour at the Panda Base

      2. Settle into a tea house at People's Park

      3. Try a traditional ear-cleaning session at the tables

      4. Wander Jinli's lantern-lit snack lanes

    2. Day 02: The old city and hot pot

      A lantern-lit lane in the Kuanzhai Alleys at twilight
      Kuanzhai Alleys

      1. Visit Wenshu Monastery and its tea garden

      2. Wander the Kuanzhai Alleys

      3. Sit down to a Sichuan hot pot dinner

    3. Day 03: Leshan Giant Buddha

      The Leshan Giant Buddha carved into the red cliff above the meeting of three rivers
      Leshan Giant Buddha

      About two hours south

      1. See the Giant Buddha from the river viewpoint

      2. Walk the clifftop paths and temple grounds

      3. Return to Chengdu with the evening at leisure

    4. Day 04: Sanxingdui and Sichuan opera

      The 2.6-metre bronze standing figure from the Sanxingdui Bronze Age site, arms outstretched holding a ceremonial object
      Sanxingdui Museum

      About an hour and a half north

      1. Meet the bronze masks at the Sanxingdui Museum

      2. Return to Chengdu with time to rest

      3. Watch a Sichuan opera face-changing performance over gaiwan tea

    5. Day 05: Dujiangyan and Qingcheng Mountain

      The Dujiangyan inner channel at night, the river lit deep blue from beneath
      Dujiangyan Irrigation System

      About an hour and a half northwest

      1. Walk the Dujiangyan Irrigation System

      2. Climb the forest paths of Qingcheng Mountain

      3. Return to Chengdu for the evening

    6. Day 06: A slow farewell

      The red walls and lacquered pillars of Wuhou Shrine in evening light
      Wuhou Shrine

      1. Walk the gardens of Du Fu Thatched Cottage

      2. Visit Wuhou Shrine

      3. Stroll Jinli Ancient Street next door

      4. Take the evening at leisure

  2. High-speed rail from Chengdu, around ninety minutes

    5 nights

    Days 7 to 11: Chongqing

    1. Day 07: The two rivers and Hongya Cave

      Hongya Cave's stacked stilt houses glowing at dusk above the Jialing River
      Hongya Cave

      1. Walk Jiefangbei from the Liberation Monument

      2. See the two rivers meet at the Chaotianmen docks

      3. Ride the Yangtze River cableway across the water

      4. Watch Hongya Cave light up over the Jialing

    2. Day 08: Old Chongqing

      A Chongqing Line 2 monorail train passing through the middle floors of the Liziba residential block
      Liziba station

      1. Explore the stone lanes of Ciqikou Ancient Town

      2. Walk Eling Park above the wartime city

      3. Watch the light rail pass through the building at Liziba

      4. Sit down to a Chongqing hot pot dinner

    3. Day 09: Wulong Karst

      The Three Natural Bridges of Wulong Karst, a vast limestone arch above a green valley
      Wulong Karst Three Natural Bridges

      About two and a half hours southeast, each way

      1. Walk the valley floor beneath the Three Natural Bridges

      2. Take lunch above the gorge before the drive back

      3. Return to Chongqing and rest

    4. Day 10: Dazu Rock Carvings

      The reclining Buddha of the Great Buddha Bend at Baodingshan, attendant figures carved along the cliff below
      Baodingshan, Dazu Rock Carvings

      About two hours west

      1. Walk the Great Buddha Bend at Baodingshan

      2. Continue through the cliff galleries at your own pace

      3. Return to Chongqing and rest

    5. Day 11: Art streets and the Nanshan view

      1. See the street murals of Huangjueping

      2. Browse the studios of the Testbed 2 creative park

      3. Follow a favourite corner of the city at your own pace

      4. Watch the skyline light up from the One Tree viewpoint on Nanshan

  3. High-speed rail from Chongqing, around four hours

    6 nights

    Days 12 to 17: Zhangjiajie

    1. Day 12: Arrival and Tianmen Mountain

      Heaven's Gate, the natural limestone arch through Tianmen Mountain south of Zhangjiajie city
      Tianmen Mountain

      1. Arrive by rail or air and settle in

      2. Ride the cable car up Tianmen Mountain

      3. Walk the cliff paths at the summit

      4. Take dinner in the Dayong old town

    2. Day 13: Yuanjiajie and the pillar country

      The Bailong Elevator climbing the cliff face of Wulingyuan, the world's tallest outdoor elevator
      Bailong Elevator

      1. Ride the Bailong Elevator up the cliff face

      2. Walk the Yuanjiajie rim past the pillar formations

      3. See the No. 1 Bridge Under Heaven

      4. Continue along the quieter viewpoints

      5. Take dinner in Wulingyuan town

    3. Day 14: Tianzi Mountain and the Ten-Mile Gallery

      The Tianzi Mountain ridgeline, sandstone peaks rising through cloud across the wider Wulingyuan landscape
      Tianzi Mountain

      1. Ride the valley tram through the Ten-Mile Gallery

      2. Walk the Tianzi Mountain viewpoints

      3. Stay for the sunset viewpoints

      4. Descend for dinner in Wulingyuan town

    4. Day 15: Golden Whip Stream

      Quartz-sandstone pillars of Wulingyuan rising above the forested valley floor in morning mist
      Golden Whip Stream

      1. Walk the Golden Whip Stream beneath the pillars

      2. Take the optional cable car to Yellow Stone Village

      3. Return for an easy evening in Wulingyuan town

    5. Day 16: The Grand Canyon and the glass bridge

      The Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass Bridge, its glass deck spanning high above the canyon floor
      Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon

      About an hour east

      1. Cross the glass bridge over the gorge

      2. Walk down through the canyon to the stream

      3. Return for dinner in Wulingyuan town

    6. Day 17: Baofeng Lake and a slower afternoon

      1. Cruise Baofeng Lake between the cliffs

      2. Visit the Tujia folk customs park

      3. Or take the afternoon at leisure

      4. Keep the evening free

  4. High-speed rail from Zhangjiajie, around three hours

    4 nights

    Days 18 to 21: Changsha

    1. Day 18: Orange Isle and Yuelu

      The 32-metre granite bust of the young Mao Zedong at the head of Orange Isle, the Xiang River behind
      Orange Isle

      1. Walk Orange Isle to the granite head of the young Mao

      2. Climb Yuelu Mountain by ropeway or on foot

      3. Visit Yuelu Academy on the lower slope

      4. Eat through a many-storeyed recreation of 1980s Changsha

    2. Day 19: The Han tombs and a temple

      The painted T-shaped silk funerary banner from Lady Dai's tomb at the Hunan Museum
      Hunan Museum

      1. Spend the morning with the Mawangdui tombs at the Hunan Museum

      2. Visit Kaifu Temple

      3. Stroll the Xiang River promenade after dark

    3. Day 20: Old streets and the food lanes

      Shopfronts and snack stalls along the stone-flagged lane of Taiping Old Street, Changsha
      Taiping Old Street

      1. Wander Taiping Old Street

      2. Visit Du Fu River Pavilion above the Xiang

      3. Eat through the stinky tofu and Hunan snack lanes

      4. Watch fireworks over the river, on nights the city schedules them

    4. Day 21: A Shaoshan history day

      About an hour and a half southwest

      1. Walk the farmhouse and family fields at Shaoshan

      2. Visit the memorial museum

      3. Return to Changsha for a relaxed dinner in the old centre

When to go

When to visit,
and how it feels.

November

Chengdu
Daily max (°F): 62° · Mild
Rainfall (mm): 16 mm · Dry
Crowds: Quiet

Cool, quiet and comfortable. Our favourite month for the teahouses and temple courtyards.

Chongqing
Daily max (°F): 63° · Mild
Rainfall (mm): 50 mm · Showery
Crowds: Quiet

Cool, quiet and comfortable. Our favourite month for the stair streets and the hot springs.

Zhangjiajie
Daily max (°F): 61° · Mild
Rainfall (mm): 60 mm · Showery
Crowds: Quiet

Crisp and quiet, with autumn colour under the pillars early in the month.

Changsha
Daily max (°F): 64° · Mild
Rainfall (mm): 72 mm · Showery
Crowds: Quiet

Cool, dry and quiet. The maples on Yuelu Mountain turn deep red from mid-November.

Temperature and rainfall are China Meteorological Administration climate normals, 1991 to 2020. Crowd levels follow the Chinese public-holiday calendar and daily booking caps at the major sites.

A Chengdu tea master pouring hot water in a high arc from a long-spouted copper kettle over a gaiwan, in an old bamboo-shaded teahouse
Everonia
21 daysChina, Taken Slowly

The 21-day route, day by day, with the months that suit it

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Before you enquire

Questions worth
answering early.

  • Travellers with the leave and the appetite for one region done fully. If three weeks is too long, the 18-day route keeps the shape and drops Changsha.

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China, Taken Slowly · 21 days

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Portrait of Jack Guo

Jack Guo

Your travel specialist

Jack has spent ten years working with the guides, drivers and hoteliers across China. He'll be your contact from first enquiry to final airport pickup.

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