Chengde

Best time to visit

1. Jan
2. Feb
3. Mar
4. Apr
5. May
6. Jun
7. Jul
8. Aug
9. Sep
10. Oct
11. Nov
12. Dec

From the airport or station to the city

Where you land, the ways into the city centre, how long each takes and what it costs.

Getting around

The Mountain Resort is in the city centre, and the open Outer Temples sit in an arc on the hills to its north and east, 1–4 km apart: combine walking with short taxi or DiDi rides (usually ¥10–20). Bus 6 goes to Puning Temple (Dafosi stop) and bus 10 to the Qingchui Peak cable car. Jinshanling Great Wall (about 100 km south-west, roughly 1.5–2 hours by car) and the Saihanba / Mulan Weichang grasslands (about 240 km north, 4 hours or more) need a hired car or a tour. Visa-free transit: the whole of Hebei, including Chengde, is inside the 240-hour visa-free transit stay area, and most visitors enter through Beijing’s airports, which are eligible ports. Real-name tickets: carry your passport to every site.

Book these before you fly

These sights need a reservation with your passport. Walk-ups are usually turned away.

• Saihanba National Forest Park (Mulan Weichang)Reserve through the official channels named in the forest farm’s latest notice (a WeChat mini-program in recent years), or join a tour from Chengde or Beijing.

Top sights

避暑山庄Chengde Mountain ResortThe Qing emperors’ summer capital: a walled park of palaces, lakes, pavilions and wooded hills, the largest surviving imperial garden in China; a UNESCO World Heritage Site.Booking recommendedHalf a day to a full day普陀宗乘之庙Putuo Zongcheng Temple (Little Potala)The largest of the Outer Temples, built in 1767–1771 as a copy of Lhasa’s Potala Palace, with a great red terrace climbing the hillside and a gilded hall on top.Booking recommended1.5–2 hours普宁寺Puning Temple (Big Buddha Temple)An active Buddhist temple from 1755, Chinese in front and Tibetan behind, whose tall pavilion holds a 22-metre wooden Guanyin with many arms, one of the largest wooden statues in the world.Booking recommended1.5 hours须弥福寿之庙Xumi Fushou TempleBuilt in 1780 to host the Sixth Panchen Lama for the Qianlong Emperor’s 70th birthday, modelled on Tashilhunpo Monastery, with gilded dragons on its main hall’s roof.Booking recommended1 hour金山岭长城Jinshanling Great WallA dramatic Ming dynasty section with dense watchtowers along a mountain ridge, partly restored and partly wild; one of the most photographed stretches of the Great Wall.3–4 hours (plus travel)磬锤峰Qingchui Peak (Sledgehammer Peak)Chengde’s landmark: a rock pillar about 38 metres high, wider at the top than the bottom, standing on a ridge east of the city; a forest park with Toad Rock and wide views.2–3 hours普乐寺Pule TempleA 1766 temple whose round, triple-roofed Xuguang Pavilion recalls Beijing’s Temple of Heaven; it faces Qingchui Peak across the slope.45 minutes安远庙Anyuan TempleA quiet 1764 temple built for Dzungar Mongols resettled in Chengde, modelled on a temple in Ili (Xinjiang), with a dark three-storey main hall.30–45 minutes普佑寺Puyou TempleA small temple next to Puning Temple, largely burned in 1964; its side halls now display rows of painted arhat (luohan) statues saved from the lost Arhat Hall.30 minutes承德博物馆Chengde MuseumA modern city museum near Puning Temple on the history of Chengde and Rehe, the Qing court’s summer life and the Tibetan Buddhist art of the temples; free entry.Booking recommended1–1.5 hours热河文庙Rehe Confucius TempleA large Confucius temple built in 1776–1779 under the Qianlong Emperor, with Dacheng Hall, steles and a library pavilion; quieter than the Buddhist temples.45 minutes双塔山Twin Pagoda Mountain (Shuangta Shan)Two sheer rock pillars in Chengde’s western suburbs, each crowned by a small brick pagoda that has survived on top for about a thousand years.1.5–2 hours鼎盛王朝·康熙大典Kangxi Grand Ceremony (evening show)A large outdoor evening show about the Kangxi Emperor, with hundreds of performers, horses and lighting effects on a hillside stage in western Chengde.Booking recommended2 hours including travel塞罕坝国家森林公园Saihanba National Forest Park (Mulan Weichang)Vast forests, meadows and lakes on the plateau where the Qing emperors held their autumn hunts; replanted from bare land since 1962 and famous for autumn colours. About 240 km north of Chengde.Booking required1–2 days御道口草原森林风景区Yudaokou Grassland and Forest Scenic AreaRolling Bashang grasslands, lakes and birch woods next to Saihanba, on the old imperial road into the Mulan hunting grounds.1 day

Map

Further out, not on this map: Saihanba National Forest Park (Mulan Weichang), Yudaokou Grassland and Forest Scenic Area

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