Sichuan

Chengdu (成都, Chéngdū) is no great draw when it comes to major tourist sites, yet this is one of the few super-sized Chinese cities that most visitors do end up enjoying. There's a relaxing teahouse culture – favorite local institutions have been serving the same brews for generations; a lively nightlife that mixes craft beer bars and super-hip clubs with Sichuan opera shows; and delicious food that is famous for its heat, history and variety even in cuisine-rich China, and is very much a point of pride: Chengdu is, after all, Unesco's first-ever City of Gastronomy. Oh, and as if that's not enough, this is the place to come to see China's cutest residents – the giant pandas.

Chengdu is the transport hub for the entire region and most travelers in China's southwest pass through this way at some point. Just make sure you don't rush your visit.

Chengdu

A cool, misty retreat from Sichuan basin’s heat, Emei Shan (峨眉山; 3099m) is one of China’s four sacred Buddhist Mountains (the others being Putuo Shsn, Wutai Shan and Jiuhua Shan. This excludes sacred Buddhist mountains in the Tibetan regions). A farmer built the first Buddhist temple near Jinding summit in the 1st century. That temple stood until it was gutted by fire in 1972, and many of the more than 150 temples on the mountain suffered fires or looting over the centuries but around 30 have been maintained and restored in various degrees. Reconstructed in the 9th century, Wannian Temple is the oldest surviving temple on the mountain. Beyond its rich cultural heritage, the mountain also stands on the edge of the eastern Himalayan highlands and hosts a diverse range of plants and animals, all of which helped place it on Unesco’s World Heritage list.

Emei Shan

Jiuzhaigou National Park (九寨沟风景名胜区, Jiǔzhàigōu Fēngjǐng Míngshèngqū), an enchanting Unesco World Heritage Site, is one of Sichuan’s and even China's star attractions. More than two million people visit annually – or rather, used to visit annually – to gawk at its famous bluer-than-blue lakes, rushing waterfalls and deep woodlands backlit by snowy mountain ranges. Jiuzhaigou means ‘Nine Village Valley’ and refers to the nine Tibetan villages scattered in the parklands. According to Tibetan legend, Jiuzhaigou was created when a jealous devil caused the goddess Wunosemo to drop her magic mirror, a present from her lover the warlord god, Dage. The mirror dropped to the ground and shattered into 114 shimmering turquoise lakes. In 2017, the park closed after suffering damage from a 7.0-magnitude earthquake, in addition to erosion in some areas caused by over tourism. At the time of writing, it was not possible to visit, but the park is due to reopen in October 2019.

Jiuzhaigou National Park

Wedged between high, glacial mountain peaks on the northern side of the Chola Mountains is the vast monastery and shedra (Buddhist college) complex of Dzogchen (竹庆寺; Zhú Qìng Sì), one of the most important seats of the Nyingma (Red Hat sect). Exploring this massive and ever-expanding complex of temples, prayer halls, stupas and meditation retreats alone could keep you busy for a day or three, but there's more to Dzogchen than spirituality. With snow capped mountain peaks on one side and rolling grasslands with wandering yaks and nomads on the other there's plenty of scope here for several days of exciting walking.

Dzogchen

Gongga Shan (7556m; 贡嘎山; Gòng gā shān), also known locally as Minya Konka, is the highest mountain in Sichuan and the third highest mountain in the world outside of the Himalaya. It sits at the centre of a dense cluster of snowy peaks and is considered one of the holiest mountains in Tibet. It's also one of the most dangerous. So far only 24 people have stood on the mountains summit while 37 have died trying. While we don't suggest you try climbing it we do suggest you trek around its base and explore its side valleys. It's one of the most scenically impressive areas in the entire Tibetan plateau.

Yulongsi Valley & Mt Gongga Shan

Dzongsar Valley

China's leading panda conservation centre and, almost certainly, the best place to see pandas in China, the Wolong Giant Panda Garden and surrounding nature reserve was fully reconstructed following the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. The pandas live in large cages surrounded by thick bamboo forests (which are themselves home to genuine wild – but impossible to see –pandas). They're obviously quite happy being back here because they've already started to breed and some captive bred pandas have been released into the wild.

The reserve is 82 miles (140km) from Chengdu, so visitor numbers are far lower here than at any other panda site and during the week it's possible to have the entire place almost entirely to yourself. In a private vehicle it's easy to stop here en route to the Four Sisters Mountains.

Wolong Giant Panda Garden

The still fairly unknown Huanglong National Park (黄龙景区, Huánglóng Jǐngqū) is a stunning valley with terraces of coloured limestone ponds in blues, greens, oranges, yellows and white. The best time to come from is June to October, ideally during mild July and August. Outside of this period, lack of water in the pools significantly reduces the visual impact of the park.