Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
China: Sichuan's Pandas, Jiuzhaigou and Emeishan
8 days in Sichuan: Chengdu's pandas at opening, two nights at the lakes and waterfalls of Jiuzhaigou by high-speed train, the Leshan Giant Buddha by boat, and dawn from the Golden Summit of Emeishan.
8 days · Round trip from Chengdu · up to 12 guests
The Leshan Giant Buddha, 71 m tall, carved into the cliff from 713. Photo: xiquinhosilva, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leshan_Giant_Buddha_(1).jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 8 days, 7 nights
- Start and end
- Round trip from Chengdu
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Longest drive
- 4 h on day 5No drive day is longer than 4 hours.
- Activity level
Moderate
Mostly walking at sites, 3 to 6 hours a day on foot. Jiuzhaigou is a full day on boardwalks, mostly level or downhill, between 2,000 and about 3,060 m, with park buses between the sights. The Leshan Giant Buddha's Nine-Turn Plank Road is a steep cliff stair of several hundred steps, which you can skip and see the Buddha from the boat instead. On Emeishan a stepped path of about 1.5 km leads to the summit cableway, and the summit night is at about 3,000 m, cold at dawn. Two high-speed train rides; you lift your own suitcase onto the rack.
- Meals included
- 7 breakfasts, 5 lunches, 4 dinners
- Room of your own
- + CAD 600 (estimated price)
- Season
- Best April to June and September to October
Highlights
Why this trip
- The Chengdu panda base at its 7:30 opening, when the pandas are feeding and awake
- A Sichuan cooking class, then jasmine tea in People's Park and an evening of Sichuan opera face-changing
- The high-speed train up into the mountains to Jiuzhaigou, with two nights by the park gate
- A full day in Jiuzhaigou's valleys: Five Flower Lake, Pearl Shoal and Nuorilang Falls by park bus and boardwalk
- The 71 m Leshan Giant Buddha at opening, then face-on from a boat on the river
- Sunset and dawn from Emeishan's Golden Summit, above the sea of clouds
- A vegetarian lunch at Baoguo Temple, Wannian Temple and the forest walk to Qingyin Pavilion
What makes this trip different
Short drives, all published
Every drive is listed day by day, and none is longer than 4 hours.
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 600 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
The longest drive is 4 h, on day 5.
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Chengdu
Chengdu Tianfu (TFU) or Shuangliu (CTU) airport to central Chengdu, then the Kuanzhai Alleys
- Welcome dinner
- Stay in Chengdu
- Drive about 1 h
We meet you at Chengdu Tianfu International Airport (TFU), about an hour from the centre, or Shuangliu (CTU), about forty minutes, and drive you to a central hotel near Tianfu Square or the Kuanzhai Alleys.
Afternoon
The afternoon is free to rest after the flight.
Evening
In the early evening the group meets for a briefing on the week ahead: the early start for the pandas, the train up to Jiuzhaigou, what altitude feels like, how to pay with your phone in China and why you carry your passport each day. Then your guide walks you through the Kuanzhai Alleys, three restored Qing-era lanes of grey-brick courtyard houses, lit up after dark, to a local restaurant for a welcome dinner of Sichuan dishes shared around one table: mapo tofu, twice-cooked pork, dan dan noodles, and milder plates for anyone still getting used to the chili and the numbing Sichuan pepper. If your flight lands late, we meet you at breakfast instead.
Included
- Pick-up at Chengdu Tianfu (TFU) or Shuangliu (CTU) airport
- Evening briefing with your guide
- Walk through the Kuanzhai Alleys
- Welcome dinner of Sichuan dishes
Free time: Afternoon free to rest
Activity: Land by about 4 pm to join the briefing and dinner.
Pandas at opening, a cooking class and Sichuan opera
Chengdu to the giant panda base and back, a cooking class, People's Park, then Sichuan opera
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Chengdu
- Drive about 1 h
Morning
Giant pandas are most active in the cool of the morning, when keepers bring fresh bamboo, so we leave at 7 am for the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, about half an hour north of the centre, and walk in as it opens at 7:30. Tickets are booked ahead in your name. Paths wind through bamboo groves past outdoor enclosures, where adults feed, climb and doze, and the nursery houses, where young pandas are often on view. Red pandas have their own wooded area.
Afternoon
By late morning the pandas settle down to sleep, and we drive back into the city to a neighbourhood market with a local cooking school, buying chilies, Sichuan pepper and greens from the stalls, then cook kung pao chicken and mapo tofu, which become lunch. In the afternoon we sit with locals in a People's Park teahouse over jasmine tea, mahjong clattering around us.
Evening
After a free hour, the evening is Sichuan opera, with fire-breathing and the masks of face-changing switching in a blink.
Included
- The Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding at opening, with your guide
- Market visit and Sichuan cooking class, with lunch
- Tea in a People's Park teahouse
- Sichuan opera with face-changing
Easier option: The panda base has shuttle carts between the main areas, so you can ride instead of walking the hills.
Free time: Late afternoon free before the opera; dinner your choice
Activity: About 2 to 3 hours on foot at the base on paved, gently sloping paths.
High-speed train to Jiuzhaigou
Chengdu to Huanglong Jiuzhai station by high-speed train, then by road to Jiuzhaigou
- Breakfast and dinner
- Stay in Jiuzhaigou
- Drive about 2.5 h
Morning
After breakfast our vehicle takes the group and the luggage to the station, and your guide steers everyone through the ticket and security checks. The high-speed line to Jiuzhaigou opened in 2024 and cut a ten-hour mountain drive to a train ride of about two hours, depending on the train, climbing out of the Sichuan Basin through long tunnels into the valleys of the Min River and onto the high plateau. At Huanglong Jiuzhai station, at roughly 3,000 m, our vehicle meets us for the drive of about an hour and three quarters, down through Tibetan and Qiang villages with prayer flags strung over the river, to Zhangzha, the small town at the gate of Jiuzhaigou, at about 2,000 m.
Afternoon
Lunch is your choice when we arrive. The afternoon is deliberately free, to rest and let your body adjust to the height before tomorrow's long day.
Evening
In the evening we eat together at a local restaurant: yak meat, highland barley bread and butter tea beside Sichuan dishes.
Included
- Transfer to the Chengdu station with your guide
- Reserved seats on the high-speed train to Huanglong Jiuzhai
- Transfer from the station to Jiuzhaigou
- Dinner of local Tibetan and Sichuan dishes
Free time: Afternoon free to rest and adjust to the altitude
Activity: The station sits higher than Jiuzhaigou town; take the steps slowly and drink water.
A full day in the Jiuzhaigou valley
Jiuzhaigou park gate by park bus to the head of the Rize valley, down to Nuorilang, Long Lake, then down the Shuzheng valley
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Jiuzhaigou
- Drive about 30 min
Jiuzhaigou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a Y-shaped set of valleys of turquoise lakes, travertine shoals and waterfalls under forested peaks. We are at the gate as it opens, with tickets booked ahead in your name, and ride the park bus straight to the top of the Rize valley while most visitors start at the bottom. From there we walk the boardwalks downhill: Arrow Bamboo Lake, Panda Lake, Five Flower Lake with its fallen trees visible through the clear water, then Pearl Shoal, where water spills in a wide sheet over a tilted travertine bed.
Afternoon
Lunch is at Nuorilang, the hub where the valleys meet. In the afternoon the bus takes us up the Zechawa valley to Long Lake, the highest at about 3,060 m, and the Five-Coloured Pool, then we finish on foot down the Shuzheng valley past Nuorilang Falls and the lakes below.
Evening
Back at the hotel by late afternoon; the evening is free.
Included
- Jiuzhaigou entry and the park bus, at opening, with your guide
- The Rize valley: Arrow Bamboo Lake, Panda Lake, Five Flower Lake and Pearl Shoal
- The Zechawa valley: Long Lake and the Five-Coloured Pool
- The Shuzheng valley and Nuorilang Falls
- Lunch at Nuorilang
Easier option: Ride the park bus between each group of lakes and walk only the short boardwalks at each stop.
More active option: Walk the whole Shuzheng valley boardwalk from Nuorilang down to the lower lakes, about 2 to 3 hours.
Free time: Evening free
Activity: About 5 to 6 hours on foot, mostly level or downhill boardwalk, at 2,000 to about 3,060 m. Some areas have been closed for repairs since the 2017 earthquake; we follow whatever is open on the day.
Back down the mountains to Leshan
Jiuzhaigou to Huanglong Jiuzhai station, the high-speed train to Chengdu, then by road to Leshan
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Leshan
- Drive about 4 h
Morning
A slower morning with a late breakfast, then our vehicle takes us back up to Huanglong Jiuzhai station, about an hour and three quarters, for the high-speed train down to Chengdu, about two hours. The ride and the road are split by the train, so no one sits in a vehicle for long.
Afternoon
In Chengdu we sit down to lunch near the station, a bowl of noodles or a plate of Sichuan dumplings, while our vehicle loads the luggage, then drive about two hours south across the Sichuan Basin to Leshan, where three rivers meet: the Min, the Dadu and the Qingyi.
Evening
We check in at a hotel near the river front in the late afternoon, and at dusk your guide walks the group along the embankment and into the lanes for a dinner of Leshan snacks: bobo chicken, skewers dipped from a pot of cold chili oil, sweet-skin duck and qiaojiao beef soup. The night is short; the Buddha opens early.
Included
- Transfer to Huanglong Jiuzhai station
- Reserved seats on the high-speed train to Chengdu
- Lunch in Chengdu
- Transfer from Chengdu to Leshan
- River-front walk and a dinner of Leshan snacks
Free time: Late evening free
Activity: The longest transit day, about 3.75 hours by road in two parts with the train and lunch between. The train and Chengdu legs can be swapped for a Chengdu to Leshan high-speed train if timetables suit.
The Leshan Giant Buddha, then up Emeishan
Leshan Giant Buddha and a river boat, Baoguo Temple, then by scenic-area bus and the Jinding cableway, or the route open on the day, to the Golden Summit
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Emeishan Golden Summit
- Drive about 2.5 h
We are at the Leshan Giant Buddha as it opens, before the queue on the Nine-Turn Plank Road builds. Carved into the red sandstone cliff over about ninety years from 713, the seated Buddha is 71 m tall, its toes taller than a person. We stand by its head beside Lingyun Temple, then take the stair cut into the cliff down to its feet. Afterwards a river boat swings out in front of the cliff for the full face-on view.
Afternoon
We drive about 45 minutes to Baoguo, the town at the foot of Emeishan, one of China's four sacred Buddhist mountains, for a vegetarian lunch and a walk round Baoguo Temple.
Evening
In the afternoon the scenic-area bus climbs to the upper bus station, and a stepped path of about 1.5 km and the Jinding cableway, or whichever route is open on the day, take us to the Golden Summit at 3,079 m for sunset. Dinner and the night are at a guesthouse on top, confirmed once the summit route is.
Included
- The Leshan Giant Buddha at opening, with your guide, and the Nine-Turn Plank Road
- River boat past the Buddha
- Vegetarian lunch and Baoguo Temple
- Emeishan scenic-area entry and bus
- The Jinding cableway, or the route open on the day, to the Golden Summit
- Sunset at the Golden Summit
- Dinner at the summit
Easier option: Skip the cliff stair and see the Buddha from the head and the boat; take a sedan chair on the stepped path below the cableway.
More active option: Walk the stone path to the summit instead of the cableway, about an hour of steady steps, where it is open.
Activity: The plank road is steep and narrow, several hundred steps. The summit is cold even in summer: bring a warm layer, or rent a padded coat at the top. Emeishan's summit cableway and upper bus station are being rebuilt; we confirm the route before your dates.
Dawn on the Golden Summit, down past Wannian Temple
Golden Summit at dawn, down by cableway (or the route open) and scenic-area bus to Wannian, Wannian Temple by cable car, the walk to Qingyin Pavilion, then Baoguo
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Emeishan
- Drive about 1.5 h
Morning
Your guide knocks before dawn, and we walk a few minutes to the terrace below the gilded statue of Samantabhadra, the bodhisattva of this mountain, to watch the sun come up over the sea of clouds. On clear mornings the snow peaks of the Gongga range stand on the western skyline; on cloudy ones the clouds below are the show. Breakfast warms everyone up, then the cableway, or the route open on the day, and the scenic-area bus take us down to Wannian. A second cable car climbs to Wannian Temple, whose domed brick hall shelters a bronze Samantabhadra on a white elephant cast in 980.
Afternoon
Lunch is on the mountain, then the cable car takes us back down and a forest path of about forty minutes from the Wannian car park, past streams and the Tibetan macaques of the lower slopes, leads to Qingyin Pavilion, where two streams meet.
Evening
The bus takes us down to a hotel in Baoguo for a rest, and the group meets for a farewell dinner.
Included
- Sunrise at the Golden Summit
- Cableway, or the route open on the day, and scenic-area bus down to Wannian
- The Wannian cable car up to Wannian Temple and back
- Wannian Temple with your guide
- Lunch on the mountain
- The forest walk to Qingyin Pavilion
- Farewell dinner
Easier option: Skip the walk to Qingyin Pavilion and take the bus straight down to Baoguo for a longer rest.
More active option: Climb the stone steps between the Wannian car park and Wannian Temple instead of the cable car, where your guide confirms the path is open and the day allows.
Free time: Late afternoon free
Activity: Keep food and plastic bags out of sight on the lower paths: the macaques grab them.
Depart from Chengdu
A free morning in Baoguo, then by road to Chengdu Tianfu (TFU) or Shuangliu (CTU) airport
- Breakfast
- Drive about 3 h
Morning
The last morning is yours, with no early start after the summit dawn. Breakfast at the hotel, then time for a last walk to Baoguo Temple, a cup of Emei's own green tea, or a soak at one of the hot-spring hotels at the foot of the mountain. Late in the morning, or at the time your flight needs, our vehicle drives you back to Chengdu: about two and a quarter hours to Shuangliu (CTU) and about two and three quarters to Tianfu (TFU), on the expressway across the flat farmland of the basin.
Evening
If you would rather spend an extra night in Chengdu, for the Wenshu Monastery, a hotpot supper or another morning with the pandas, we can add a night at the trip hotel and drop you in the city instead. For international flights, book a departure after about 4:30 pm, which lets us leave Baoguo around 10 am and gives you three hours at the airport.
Included
- Drop-off at Chengdu Tianfu (TFU) or Shuangliu (CTU) airport, or at a hotel in central Chengdu
Free time: Morning free
Activity: Book a flight leaving after about 4:30 pm; for an earlier flight we leave earlier and give up part of the free morning.
- Chengdu2 nights
- Jiuzhaigou2 nights
- Leshan1 night
- Emeishan Golden Summit1 night
- Emeishan1 night
- Chengduend
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: April to June brings green valleys and full waterfalls in Jiuzhaigou and mild days in Chengdu; September and October bring clearer air, and in about mid to late October the forests around Jiuzhaigou's lakes turn red and gold. July and August are hot and humid in the Sichuan Basin and wet in the mountains, with a risk of landslides closing roads. Winter is cold on Emeishan, often icy at the summit, and some Jiuzhaigou waterfalls freeze. The summit is near freezing at dawn in any month, and cloud can hide the sunrise; the sea of clouds below often makes up for it. Pandas are most active in the cool of the morning. Emeishan's Tibetan macaques live along the lower paths: keep food out of sight. We avoid the holiday weeks in early May and early October, when Jiuzhaigou reaches its daily cap.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Travellers who want Sichuan in depth: the pandas, Jiuzhaigou, the Giant Buddha and a sacred mountain in one week
- First-time visitors to China who want a short, focused trip rather than a two-week circuit
- Travellers who were put off China tours by shopping stops
- Nature and walking lovers who want a full day on Jiuzhaigou's boardwalks, not a rushed half-day
- Solo travellers who want a small group and a published single price
Not for you if you want
- Travellers who want Beijing, Xi'an or Hong Kong: see our Beijing to Hong Kong trip
- Anyone with a heart or lung condition that makes 3,000 m a concern
- Anyone who cannot manage stairs: the plank road, the summit path and the walk down Emeishan all have steps
- Travellers who need hotel comfort every night: the summit night is in a simple guesthouse
- Those who want to sleep in: there are three early starts for the quiet hour and the dawn
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
7 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Chengdu2 nights
- Jiuzhaigou2 nights
- Leshan1 night
- Emeishan Golden Summit1 night
- Emeishan1 night
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 7 nights: 2 in central Chengdu, 2 in Jiuzhaigou by the park gate, 1 in Leshan by the river front and 1 in Baoguo at the foot of Emeishan, all in hotels of a 3-star-plus standard, plus 1 night in a monastery guesthouse or simple lodge on Emeishan's Golden Summit
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
- Hotels named when we confirm your dates
Transport
- Pick-up at Chengdu Tianfu (TFU) or Shuangliu (CTU) airport on day 1 and drop-off on day 8
- Our own vehicle and driver for the group, including every station transfer, the road from Chengdu to Leshan and the drive to Emeishan
- Reserved seats on two high-speed trains: Chengdu to Huanglong Jiuzhai and back
- The Jiuzhaigou park bus, the Emeishan scenic-area buses, the Jinding cableway (or the summit route open on the day) and the Wannian cable car, and the river boat at Leshan
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group from day 1 to day 8, including on both trains
- Licensed local site guides where a site requires them
- No shopping stops and no commission on anything you buy
Activities
- Chengdu: the Kuanzhai Alleys, the giant panda base at opening, a market visit and Sichuan cooking class, a People's Park teahouse and Sichuan opera with face-changing
- Jiuzhaigou: a full day in the Rize, Zechawa and Shuzheng valleys, including Five Flower Lake, Pearl Shoal, Long Lake and Nuorilang Falls
- Leshan: the Giant Buddha at opening, the Nine-Turn Plank Road and a river boat
- Emeishan: Baoguo Temple, sunset and dawn at the Golden Summit, Wannian Temple and the walk to Qingyin Pavilion
- All entrance fees for included sights, booked in advance
Meals
- 7 breakfasts
- 5 lunches: a Sichuan cooking-class lunch, lunch at Nuorilang in Jiuzhaigou, lunch in Chengdu on the transit day, a vegetarian lunch at Baoguo and lunch on Emeishan
- 5 dinners: a welcome Sichuan dinner, a Tibetan-style dinner in Jiuzhaigou, a Leshan snack dinner, dinner at the Golden Summit and a farewell dinner
Not included
- International flights to and from Chengdu
- China visa, where your passport needs one
- Travel insurance
- Meals not listed above, including lunch on day 3 and dinners on days 2 and 4
- Drinks
- Tips for your guide, drivers and boatmen
- Optional activities, such as hot springs at Emeishan or sedan chairs on the mountain
- Extra hotel nights before or after the trip
- Personal expenses, including padded coat rental at the summit
- Changes in Jiuzhaigou, panda base or Emeishan ticket prices announced after you book, if the park passes them on
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 600 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the price include?
Seven nights, 7 breakfasts, 5 lunches and 5 dinners, airport transfers at both ends, two high-speed trains, our own vehicle, your See Sight Tours guide throughout, and every entry and ride in the day plan: the panda base, Sichuan opera, the cooking class, Jiuzhaigou entry and park bus, the Giant Buddha and boat, and Emeishan's buses and cable cars.
Are there shopping stops on this Sichuan tour?
No. We never take the group to tea, silk, jade or other showrooms that pay commission, and your guide earns nothing on what you buy. Cheap China tours often rely on those stops; this trip's price pays for the sights instead. If you want to shop, your guide can point you to markets in your free time.
How big is the group?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 12 guests, never more. That keeps everyone close to the guide at the panda base and on Jiuzhaigou's boardwalks, gets the group through stations quickly, and means meals are at one or two tables in local restaurants rather than in a banquet hall.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group from the Chengdu airport pick-up to the final drop-off, including on both trains and on the mountain. Licensed local site guides join where a site requires them.
How fit do I need to be, and will the altitude affect me?
Moderate fitness is enough. Expect 3 to 6 hours a day on foot. Jiuzhaigou's boardwalks run between 2,000 and about 3,060 m, and the Golden Summit is 3,079 m, so most people feel a little breathless on stairs. Cable cars and buses do the climbing, and the steepest stairs each have an easy option.
I'm travelling solo. Is there a single supplement?
Yes, and it is published up front: a room of your own is CAD 600 on top of the twin-share price, shown before you book rather than at checkout. Solo travellers join the same group, sit at the same tables and get the same time with the guide as everyone else.
When is the best time to visit Jiuzhaigou and Emeishan?
April to June and September to October. Autumn colour around Jiuzhaigou's lakes peaks in about mid to late October, and spring brings full waterfalls. July and August are wet, with landslide risk on mountain roads, and winter is icy at the summit. We avoid the holiday weeks in early May and early October.
Do I need a visa for China?
Canadians can currently visit mainland China visa-free for up to 30 days under a policy set to run until 31 December 2026; we confirm the rule for 2027 dates. US citizens should get a Chinese tourist visa unless they fly on to a third country and qualify for visa-free transit. We check your passport and route at booking.
When do we see the pandas?
On day 2, the first full morning. We arrive at the Chengdu panda base as it opens at 7:30, because the pandas feed and move about in the cool of the morning and sleep through most of the afternoon. You see giant pandas in outdoor enclosures and red pandas in their own wooded area.
How do you get to Jiuzhaigou from Chengdu?
By the high-speed train that opened in 2024, about two hours (the fastest under 1 h 40 min) from Chengdu to Huanglong Jiuzhai station, then our vehicle for under two hours down to the park gate. The old road takes about ten hours. We stay two nights, so the valley gets a full day.
How does booking work?
Choose a date and send a request to book. We check availability and provide the final quote, itinerary and booking terms before you accept. No payment is taken when you send the request. We need your passport details at that point, because the trains, Jiuzhaigou and the panda base are booked in your name.
Can we travel privately or on our own dates?
Yes. Besides the small group, the trip runs as a private trip for your party only, on a date you choose, from CAD 6,650 per person, with the same no-shopping-stop promise. If you would rather travel independently on your own dates, ask us from the dates section and we will quote the same route without a group.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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