Atlas of China
Chongqing 重庆Chóngqìng
A mountain city of stacked streets, river lights and numbing hot pot
- Type
- Municipality
- Capital
- Chongqing
- Featured places
- 4
- Listed sites
- 17710 rated 5A · 142 rated 4A · 50 national heritage
About Chongqing
Built on steep hills where the Jialing River meets the Yangtze, Chongqing is a vertical city of stairways, cable cars and a monorail that runs straight through an apartment block. At night the stacked lights of the riverbanks and the cliff-hugging Hongyadong complex make the city look like a film set. Beyond the urban core lie the Dazu rock carvings, the natural stone bridges of Wulong and the start of the Three Gorges.
Chongqing at a glance
- Area
- 82,403 km²
- Population
- 32.1 million 2020
- Highest point
- Yintiaoling 阴条岭2,797 m
Area, population and highest point from Wikidata; the population is the latest census or official estimate there.
What to eat in Chongqing
- Chongqing hot pot (重庆火锅)
- Chongqing xiaomian noodles (重庆小面)
- Laziji chilli-fried chicken (辣子鸡)
Places to visit in Chongqing
-
Hongyadong & Chongqing Night Views 洪崖洞
A cliffside stack of stilt houses glowing gold over the river every night
-
Yangtze Three Gorges 长江三峡
Cliffs closing in on the Yangtze along China's most storied river passage
-
Dazu Rock Carvings 大足石刻
A cliffside storybook of Buddhist hells, mothers and thousand-armed Guanyin
-
Wulong Karst 武隆喀斯特
Three colossal natural bridges, a sinkhole canyon and a cave in the hills of Wulong
Listed sites in Chongqing
177 sites in Chongqing are on the official lists, 10 of them rated 5A and 50 protected as national heritage. They are listed by city, with what each is and how to get there.
All 177 listed sites in ChongqingGetting to Chongqing
Train, flight and driving times from the cities most visitors come from, with stations, fares and how many run a day; each opens the full comparison.
- Chengdu 成都 high-speed train 1 h 2 min, 131 a day, from ¥148
- Songpan 松潘 train 3 h 23 min with a change at Chengdu
- Xi'an 西安 high-speed train 5 h 12 min, 25 a day, from ¥312; 3 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 30 min in the air
- Guilin 桂林 high-speed train 3 h 43 min, 20 a day, from ¥321; a nonstop route is listed
- Kunming 昆明 high-speed train 4 h 39 min, 17 a day, from ¥394; 8 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 35 min in the air
- Changsha 长沙 high-speed train 3 h 53 min, 21 a day, from ¥389; 5 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 35 min in the air
- Lijiang 丽江 train 9 h 34 min with a change at Kunming; 3 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 40 min in the air
- Shangri-La 香格里拉 train 11 h 59 min with a change at Kunming; a nonstop route is listed
- Wuhan 武汉 high-speed train 3 h 53 min, 40 a day, from ¥419; 7 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 30 min in the air
- Dali 大理 high-speed train 7 h 16 min, 2 a day, from ¥531; 4 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 45 min in the air
- Zhengzhou 郑州 high-speed train 4 h 33 min, 34 a day, from ¥504; 7 nonstop flights a day, 1 h 45 min in the air
- Xining 西宁 high-speed train 9 h 3 min, 3 a day, from ¥308; 3 nonstop flights a day, 2 h 5 min in the air
- Guangzhou 广州 high-speed train 5 h 46 min, 31 a day, from ¥508; 19 nonstop flights a day, 2 h 5 min in the air
- Hong Kong 香港 high-speed train 7 h 13 min, 1 a day, from ¥788; 4 nonstop flights a day, 2 h 20 min in the air
Before you go
- Visas and visa-free entry Can I visit China without a visa?
- Paying for things How do I pay for things in China without a Chinese bank account?
- Internet and apps Will Google and my other apps work in China?
- Trains and 12306 How do I book train tickets in China with a foreign passport?
- Book popular sights early Which sights in China need booking in advance, and how?
- When to go When is the best time to visit China?
On the map
Open Chongqing on the illustrated map to see where its places sit, how far apart they are, and to add them to a trip.
Open Chongqing on the map