You have come a long way to reach Chongqing - we would never cut corners on your trip. This premium four-day route strings together three national 5A-rated parks, two 4A heritage sites, the hundred-mile Wujiang Painted Gallery and the city's most photographed landmarks, with handpicked hotels and three signature banquets along the way.
Meals: own arrangement | Overnight: Chongqing
Welcome to the mountain city. Transfer to your hotel, check in and spend the rest of the day at leisure.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner | Overnight: Qianjiang
Drive to Fairy Mountain National Forest Park (at least 1 hour), known as the Oriental Switzerland. At an average elevation of 1,900 metres it holds 330,000 mu of forest and 100,000 mu of natural grassland, earning it the title of the finest pasture south of the Yangtze. Lunch is Wulong's signature bamboo steamer banquet or yipin hotpot. In the afternoon, visit the Three Natural Bridges (at least 2 hours) - a UNESCO World Heritage core zone, national geopark and the only outdoor filming location for Zhang Yimou's Curse of the Golden Flower, plus the aerial filming site for Transformers: Age of Extinction. Its three-bridges-two-sinkholes formation is a world-class geological spectacle, and you will see the Tang dynasty post station on the canyon floor.
Meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner | Overnight: Banan or Nanchuan
Begin at Zhuoshui Ancient Town, set on the Apeng River in the mysterious 30th parallel Wuling mountains, with its white tiger sculpture, water gate, virtue steles, stone archway and underground natural bridges. Continue to Chiyou Jiuli City (at least 120 minutes): the largest traditional Miao architectural complex in China, home to the world's tallest and widest Miao totem pillar, the largest stilt-house and courtyard structure, and the greatest number of ceremonial gates. Finish with a boat cruise along the Wujiang Painted Gallery, the most scenic stretch of the river, praised by Qing poet Mei Ruoweng as the finest sight in all of Shu - mountains like axe-cut cliffs, water like green jade, and the sensation of drifting through an ink scroll.
Meals: breakfast, lunch | Tour ends
Visit a regional speciality market (at least 90 minutes) showcasing selenium-rich produce, cinnabar and local goods, then walk the flagstone lanes of Ciqikou Ancient Town for Ming and Qing architecture and street food. Continue to the Liziba light rail viewing platform (about 20 minutes' drive, 15 minutes on site) to watch Line 2 pass straight through a residential building. End at Hongyadong, where you can wander the stilt houses and old mountain streets, take in Bayu culture and watch the two rivers meet. The tour disbands in Yuzhong District.
All stated timings are indicative; actual sightseeing time may vary on the day.
Cultural adventure is a style of travel built around deeper experiences – the kind that connect you to the people, traditions and everyday life of a place. And doing it in a way that reflects your pace, your interests, and what you want from the journey.
