Sisters-in-Law’s Five-Day, Four-Night Budget Chongqing Getaway
Chongqing has always been a place I longed to visit. From my childhood memories, it is the Foggy City, the wartime capital, a mountain city, the KMT-CCP cooperation, Zhazidong prison, Chaotianmen Wharf, the bang-bang porters, and the fiery hotpot that brings tears and runny noses. In recent years, it has also sprouted many social media hot spots: Hongya Cave, Sky Mirror, Eling No. 2 Factory Cultural and Creative Park, the light rail passing through a building, Huangjueping Graffiti Street, Nanshan Bird’s Nest, and more—all of which made my heart itch with anticipation. On May 13, I snagged a deal on Ctrip during James Liang’s nightly 8 p.m. livestream: a two-night twin room at Lavande Hotel near Jiefangbei for 299 yuan. On July 16, I grabbed another of Mr. Liang’s livestream offers: a deluxe twin room for two nights at Crowne Plaza Poly Garden for 688 yuan. The Lavande voucher was set to expire on September 30.
After checking, I found that Lavande Hotel is close to the train station, while Crowne Plaza is near the airport, so we decided on the strategy of taking a soft sleeper train there and flying back (both booked on Ctrip).
The Lavande Hotel booking came with very strict conditions.
I thought of my elder sister-in-law in Changxing, who is retired and has nothing much to do at home. I persuaded her to come along, and she agreed.
My sister-in-law rarely travels far, so I had to plan meticulously—I couldn’t let her regret coming with me.
Duoduo, a former colleague from my old office, sent me photos that were incredibly helpful.
The Jiefangbei business district truly lives up to its reputation—towering skyscrapers, bustling crowds. I kept exclaiming: there are far more high-rises than in Hangzhou.
I was in charge of arranging the itinerary, while my sister-in-law was my companion. We used public transport the entire trip.
Then we went to the front of the train.
It started raining, so our plan to see the night view from Nanshan Yikesong had to be adjusted. Because we needed to climb the mountain, and the wet, slippery paths could be dangerous, we switched to Nanshan Yihuali Night View Park, a newly popular Instagram-worthy spot.
From Dàlǐtáng Station, we took bus 145 to Sìgōnglǐ Lǜzhōu Lóngchéng Station. At Guǎngqiánlù intersection, we transferred to bus 383 to Huángshākǎn Station, then walked to Yihuali Night View Park.
Note: From Guǎngqiánlù intersection to Huángshākǎn is only one stop by bus, but the winding mountain road means at least a half-hour walk!
We were lucky—the rain stopped as we headed up.
"Nanping Bell" has the same pronunciation as our Hangzhou "Nanping Evening Bell."
We returned here to catch bus 383 down the mountain, only to learn that a factory in front of the funeral home had caught fire, and there were no more 383 buses heading downhill.
We had to take a taxi to Haitangxi Metro Station (34 yuan) and then ride Line 2 to Jiangbei Grand Theatre. From across the Jialing River, we admired Hongya Cave, then walked across Qiansimen Bridge to view it up close from far to near.
We were too exhausted and forgot to go to the hotel’s top floor (35th floor) to take night photos—what a pity!
From Linjiangmen Station, we took bus 111 to Hongtudi Station, transferred to bus 354 to Danzishi Qunhui Road Station, and walked 200 meters to Danzishi Old Street.
That archway was blurry, and I wondered if we should ride back one stop to the bridge to retake the photo.
Entrance of Danzishi Old Street
Danzishi Old Street is the only national 4A-level scenic spot in China themed around 'port-opening culture and nine-tiered hillside urban landform.'
I later learned that entering through this gate means descending to the riverside; the usual route is to go from bottom to top.
We had already encountered 'Tushan Kiln' earlier at Nanshan Yihuali.
The core area of Tushan Kiln is on Tushan Mountain, which Danzishi Old Street leans against, hence the name. It is one of the folk kilns of the Song Dynasty and a representative imitation Jian-ware folk kiln in southwestern ancient China, mainly producing black-glazed porcelain. It began firing at the end of the Northern Song, flourished in the Southern Song, and gradually declined in the Yuan Dynasty.
The shop behind is named 'Face the Son of Heaven'—what audacity!
To see Chaotianmen Wharf, I kept walking left.
I spotted the archway of Chaotianmen.
Not satisfied, I continued walking inside.
Passing through here, I entered a coffee shop—of course, I politely requested permission first.
Xia Family Courtyard, also known as 'Black Chaomen,' is located at the foot of Lion Mountain, as referenced in the Chongqing lore of 'Green Lion and White Elephant Guarding the Great River.' Built along the slope, it originally covered over 10 mu. The main structure consists of two courtyards and a double-hall-style dam, featuring the traditional Chinese ‘four waters returning to the courtyard’ design that captures light, rain, ventilation, and wealth, absorbing the yin and yang energies of heaven and earth. There is one upper and one lower courtyard embodying the concept of ‘connecting heaven and earth,’ with over a hundred rooms of varying sizes. Tracing the Xia family history, the ancestors were daotai officials in charge of salt affairs. A platform with a yellow dragon flag stood in front of the courtyard, rumored to be the only marker in Ba County (now Chongqing) that signified the authority of imperial commands.
Actually, I had a map in my bag but forgot to take it out, so we missed the French Naval Barracks. We chose to skip 'Moon Reflection Pond' and 'Customs Stone' ourselves.
From Danzishi Station, we took the loop line to Shapingba Station and transferred to Line 1 to Ciqikou.
Ciqikou Ancient Town, originally Longyin Town, is a national 4A-level scenic spot, a famous historical and cultural street of China, a key protected traditional street of Chongqing, and one of the 'New Twelve Views of Bayu.'
We only saw the 'Young Woman and Urinating Boy' sculpture, but couldn’t find 'Wenchang Palace' or the statue of Emperor Jianwen. The waterfront had flooded, making it impassable.
Ciqikou Wharf was still being repaired after flood damage.
To get to Crowne Plaza Poly Garden Hotel, we needed to take Metro Line 3, which meant we could transfer at 'Lianglukou' and ride the 'Crown Escalator' while at it.
From Ciqikou, we took Line 1 to Lianglukou Station.
A single ride up or down costs 2 yuan, but you have to exit the station to board. There wasn’t a particularly spectacular feeling, just that it took quite a long time.
From Lianglukou Station, we took Line 3 to Jintong Road Station, transferred to bus 383 to Huyunjie 2, and walked to Crowne Plaza Poly Garden.
While planning that evening, I found that the nearest attraction was the Garden Expo Park. After checking online descriptions and photos, I thought it was worth a visit.
From Huyunjie 2, we took bus 625 or 383 to Jintong Road, then Metro Line 3 to Garden Expo Park Station.
We entered through the 'East Secondary Entrance' and, after a while, exited the same way to catch Line 3.
The entrance ticket was 16 yuan—really not expensive.
We followed the signs to 'Longjing Academy.'
Neither of us had eaten lunch, and after six hours of exploring inside, we had no energy left to continue.
1. If time allows and your stamina is good, while also wanting to save money, I think combining buses and the metro is quite convenient.
2. Personally, I recommend Danzishi Old Street—you can spend the whole day there, and there are escalators for going up and down!!! Garden Expo Park is a place to broaden your geography and history knowledge.
3. Chongqing’s night scenery is absolutely unmissable.
4. Travel light: many Chongqing metro stations lack downward escalators or have none at all, and most footbridges are all stairs.
Travelogue Index: 1. Before the Trip 2. September 2, Arrived in Chongqing, Visited Chaotianmen Wharf 3. September 3, Liziba Light Rail Through Building / Eling No. 2 Factory Cultural and Creative Park / People’s Auditorium / Nanshan Yihuali Night View Park / Hongya Cave Night View 4. September 4, Danzishi Old Street, Ciqikou Ancient Town 5. September 5, Garden Expo Park 6. September 6, Flew Back to Hangzhou 7. Summary Section Travel Information Hotel Index Guide Index Flight Index Website Navigation Travel Index Cruise Index Corporate Travel Index Join Us Distribution Alliance Friendly Links Corporate Gift Card Purchase Insurance Agency Partner Cooperation Hotel Joining Destination and Attraction Cooperation More Cooperation About Ctrip About Ctrip Ctrip Hot Topics Contact Us We are Hiring User Agreement Privacy Policy Business License Security Center Ctrip Content Center Intellectual Property Trip.com Group Algorithm Disclosure
