Chengdu itineraries

Pandas at dawn, hotpot at night

See the pandas the minute the gates open, then work west through a temple, a teahouse and the old lanes, sweat it out over hotpot and finish on the riverbank at night. The one-day order most trip reports share.

Opera night, Giant Buddha day

Day one stays in the centre from a Chunxi Road hotel and ends with a face-changing show. Day two takes the high-speed train to Leshan to stand at the toes of the 71 m Buddha. One day in town, one day out.

West lanes, pandas, Sanxingdui

Sleep beside Kuanzhai Xiangzi. Day one is the Three Kingdoms shrine, Du Fu's cottage and the opera; day two pandas, a factory-turned-art-district and riverside hotpot; day three the bronze masks of Sanxingdui by shuttle, a teahouse, then the airport.

Festivals & seasons

• 2 — Wuhou Shrine Temple Fair & Jinli lanterns
• 3 — Longquan peach blossom
• 3 — Spring, the best walking weather
• 4 — Dujiangyan Water-Releasing Festival
• 7 — Rains and heat
• 7 — Huanglongxi temple fairs
• 10 — National Day Golden Week
• 10 — Chengdu Rowing Open
• 10 — Jiuzhaigou autumn colours
• 12 — Snow on Mount Emei's Golden Summit

Souvenirs

• Pixian doubanjiang chilli bean paste
• Panda plush and panda goods
• Sichuan pepper and hotpot base
• Shu brocade and Shu embroidery pieces
• Sichuan tea: zhuyeqing, Qingcheng green, jasmine
• Finds from Songxian Qiao antique market
• Three Kingdoms souvenirs and shadow puppets from Jinli