Dazu Rock Carvings 大足石刻Dàzú Shíkè

Why go to Dazu Rock Carvings

The Dazu Rock Carvings are a World Heritage group of Buddhist, Daoist and Confucian sculpture spread across hills around Dazu, with Baodingshan as the main draw. Along a horseshoe-shaped cliff, huge reliefs of the reclining Buddha, the hell scenes and the thousand-armed Guanyin read like a stone picture book of faith and everyday life. Beishan, an older and quieter group just north of Dazu town, makes a good second stop.

The story

Carving at Beishan began in 892 under the Tang prefect Wei Junjing and carried on into the 12th century. In 1179 the monk Zhao Zhifeng began Baodingshan and, over some 70 years, shaped it to a single plan that mixes scripture with scenes of ordinary life. The carvings were opened to foreign visitors in 1980 and inscribed by UNESCO in 1999.

What to see at Dazu Rock Carvings

• Great Buddha Bend 大佛湾: The horseshoe-shaped cliff holds a continuous run of deeply cut tableaux, from the reclining Buddha entering nirvana to the Wheel of Rebirth and the hell scenes. Walking it in order feels like turning the pages of a giant illustrated sutra.
• Thousand-Hand Guanyin 千手观音: A vast figure of Avalokiteshvara fans out across the rock face with a dense halo of carved hands. It is one of the best-known images in the Baodingshan group.
• Parents' Love Transformation 父母恩重经变: A set of scenes honouring the care parents give their children, carved with a warmth that makes the religious message very human.
• Oxherding Scenes 牧牛图: A sequence of herdsman-and-ox tableaux about taming the mind, the most widely reproduced images at Baodingshan, set along the cliff near the Longevity Pavilion.
• Revolving Sutra Cave 转轮经藏窟: At Beishan, this Song-dynasty cave centres on a revolving sutra stand ringed by finely carved figures; the group also holds Guanyin forms such as the Water-Moon Avalokiteshvara.
• Peacock King Statue 孔雀明王: Another Beishan highlight, the Peacock Wisdom King sits in a niche on the long crescent cliff of Fowan.

How to visit Dazu Rock Carvings

Begin at the Dazu Rock Carvings visitor centre, where a shuttle runs to the Baodingshan site; from the car park the carvings are a short cart ride or a longer walk away. Follow Great Buddha Bend in order, then visit Shengshou Temple above it; this takes 2–3 hours. Beishan lies about 1.5 km north of Dazu town and takes 1–1.5 hours; with a full day you can see both, while a half-day is best spent at Baodingshan alone.

How to get to Dazu Rock Carvings

High-speed trains reach Dazu South from Chongqing West in about 30 minutes and from Chengdu East in about an hour, but the station sits some 37 km from the carvings, so allow another hour or more by city bus (lines 204/206 to Dazu bus station, then 205 to Baodingshan) or taxi. By road, central Chongqing is roughly 1.5 hours away.

Where to stay

Stay in Dazu town, which is closest to Beishan and has the widest choice, or base yourself in Chongqing for a long day trip by train. Check that your lodging accepts foreign guests, as some smaller places do not.

What to eat

• Youting crucian carp 邮亭鲫鱼: A spicy braised river-fish dish named for Youting, the town in Dazu where the high-speed station stands, and widely served in the district.
• Dazu pickled mustard shoots 大足冬菜: A salty, fermented mustard-green preserve, used to season soups and stir-fries or stuff dumplings and buns.

Tips for visiting Dazu Rock Carvings

• Book tickets in advance with your real name, through the official Dazu Rock Carvings WeChat account or mini-program, especially on public holidays; Baodingshan and Beishan are ticketed separately, with a combined ticket for both. Foreign visitors should check that a passport counter is available at the visitor centre.
• Baodingshan is about 15 km from Dazu town and Beishan only 1.5 km, so a taxi is the easiest link between them; allow 2–3 hours at Baodingshan and 1–1.5 hours at Beishan.
• The Dazu Rock Carvings Museum is listed as open all year in the 2025 national museum data, though older guides give Mondays as its closing day, so check before a Monday visit.

Nearby

• Anyue Rock Carvings 安岳石刻 80 km
  Tang and Song Buddhas carved into quiet hillsides, led by a 23-metre Buddha at rest
• Hongyadong & Chongqing Night Views 洪崖洞 80 km
  A cliffside stack of stilt houses glowing gold over the river every night
• Zigong, City of Salt and Dinosaurs 自贡 100 km
  Jurassic dinosaurs, ancient brine wells and the lanterns that made the city famous

Also within 30 km: Xiangguo Park, Dazu 香国公园 (under 10 km), Nanshan Rock Carvings, Dazu 南山石刻 (10 km), Shimenshan Rock Carvings, Dazu 石门山石刻 (10 km), Qicai Dream Garden 黄桷门奇彩梦园 (20 km), Xuantian Lake 玄天湖 (30 km).

On the map

Open Dazu Rock Carvings on the illustrated map to see the terrain around it, what else is close, and to add it to a trip and plan the days.

Learn more

• Wikipedia
• UNESCO World Heritage
• Wikipedia (Chinese)