Kickstart your itinerary with a visit to CiQi Kou Old Town, one of the most famous historical sites in the city. Here, you’ll wander down cobble stone streets finding endless Sichuan street food options, riverside views, tea houses and traditional wooden styled buildings.

Despite becoming a popular tourist spot, CiQi Old Town has managed to maintain much of its historical charm. While it may not be the most authentic old town anymore, it still offers a glimpse into Chongqing’s past, making it a great stop for those wanting to experience the city’s heritage. Personally, I found it to be one of the most beautiful old towns I visited in China.

Must try:

• Spicy Chongqing beef jerky – So many flavours! You can get free sample and try as many as you’d like. My favourite flavour was the chilli pepper beef jerky with its signature peppery kick.

Ever seen a train run straight through a residential building? Me neither. But at Liziba Station, this surreal sight becomes a reality. Start by taking line 2 from CiQi Kou and you’ll journey straight through the building into Liziba station yourself.

I was told that the building had been “soundproofed” but I wasn’t so convinced. Anyway, head down to the bottom floor of the station to get the best views of the train entering the apartments.

To reach Eling Park, you’ll first need to head back to Liziba Station, and then make the climb up (an experience in itself). I had heard the stories about endless stairs and steep pathways, so it was fun to finally navigate and get a taste of local life.

On the way up, make sure to stop by Erchang Culture and Creative Park, a vibrant arts hub with galleries, coffee shops, boutique clothing stories and handcrafted jewellery.

For Eling Park, it’s a peaceful escape filled with families relaxing by the lake. It also offers one of the highest viewpoints in Chongqing, with paranoia if view of the city’s skyline (with some good weather hopefully!)

As the sun sets, head over to Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street, one of the many delicious food hubs and the heart of Chongqing’s business district. Here, you can browse through the many cheap eat restaurants, enjoy the vibrant city lights and start making your way to the neon spectacle of Hongya Cave.

At night, this 11-story, golden-lit complex built on the edge of a cliff looks like something straight out of a cyberpunk movie. You can enter from Jiefangbei and descend through it’s vast restaurants, shops and arcades, eventually making you way to the riverside level.

Alternatively, use the wooden walkway just to the east of Hongya cave to make your way to the bottom.

For one of the best views of Hongya Cave, make your way through the bridge to get a birds-eye view of the golden cave. It’ll be busy every evening and it does get quite crowded, but there are plenty of places to stand.

Once you reach the end of Qiansimen Bridge, follow the street around and work your way down to the riverside level. You’ll get an amazing view of the bridge illuminating above you, whilst watching the golden glow of the cave and boats across the river.

This was one of my favourite activities in Chongqing, a peaceful escape from the city and a perfect place to unwind after a long day of travelling. I even bought some egg tarts with to enjoy whilst I sat.

However don’t stop at the park! Head right down to the bottom of the river where you’ll see hundreds of people are professional photographers taking photos alongside the river. After, you can walk around some of the scenic trails or walk to the Grand Theatre.

However, don’t stop at the Park! Head right down to the bottom of the river where you’ll see hundreds of people chilling by the river on foldable chairs and taking photos with professional photographers. The park also offers a few scenic trails too, which felt like a surreal experience with the bridge and cave in the backdrop.

Start the day with some very elaborate and confusing architecture at Kuxing Building. At first, you’ll walk onto the public square seemingly to be on the ground level, only to peak over and realise you’re on the 25th floor!

Next, take the train to the Three Gorges Museum, one of the biggest museums in Chongqing. It’s dedicated the Three Gorges Project and showcases the history of the Yangtze River and it’s recovered artefacts.

Directly next to the Three Gorges Museum is Chongqing People’s Park, a large open space where you’ll see pavilions, traditional Chinese gardens and locals passing the time.

Lastly, take a quick browse at the Great Hall of The People. It’s a large conference hall about 4 stories high with vibrant red pillars and stunning details perfectly showcasing the brilliance of Chinese architecture. During the night, the Great Hall lights up and illuminates the area.

A 24-story, maze-like apartment complex with absolutely no elevators. You can imagine the delivery drivers don’t exactly dream about coming here.

Due to its unique aesthetic, the residency has been a popular filming locations for many Chinese dramas and has gained a lot of attention from tourists.

There’s also a lot of different photography locations as you can see from my photos. To find these locations you can either follow anyone who is holding a camera or just look for people standing on rooftops.

Raffles City is definitely one of Chongqing’s amazing landmarks, but in terms of activities, there isn’t much to do beyond shopping, dining or heading up to the Crystal Sky Bridge, sitting 250 meters above ground level.

Personally, I found Raffles more impressive from a distance than up close. Whilst the Sky Bridge is a major attraction, after visiting a few too many of these high-rise viewpoints, the experience starts to feel a little repetitive and feels like just another city from above.

However, if you haven’t had the opportunity to visit a sky bridge before, it might be worth checking out.

Make your way back to Jiefangbei and enjoy some of the many canteens, restaurants and street food.

You’ll see over 230 animal species including giant pandas, red pandas, south China tigers and other native Chinese wildlife.

This was a maze-like area filled with boutique shops, tea houses and dessert cafes. Physically, it has been restored and resembles architecture of both the Ming and Qing Dynasty.

Filled with cobble stones, uneven surfaces and a lot of stairs. It’s also a great place to get a picture of the Dongshuimen bridge at night as it lights up.

Before the sun begins to set, make your way to Xiangyundun Tea Stall, an open-aired tea house perched on-top of a hill with views of Chongqing’s skyline and Yangtze River. Still located within Nan’an District, this spot is perfect for unwinding, watching the sun lower beneath the skyscrapers and seeing the lights of Chongqing come to life.

How to get there: Type in “Luori Yechaji” on Amap and it’ll take you to the area of the tea house and surrounding restaurants. Take a look at the video below to get a sneak peak of what’s in store.

Take a short walk back down to the bridge, cross over the road so the bridge is on your right side and walk into the next complex. You can get a close up view of the glowing bridge and walk onto a glass skywalk that illuminates.

This was a hidden gem for me and I was surprised that I had never even heard of it before. You’ll find vibrant, neon-lit bars and street art covering the entire complex, whilst also getting a front row seat of the river and Raffles city.

This was a great place to kickback and grab a beer as the evening was coming to an end.

Lastly, spend your last evening surrounded by a lively riverside area with bars, restaurants and live performances.

Take a day trip to Wulong National Park, a UNESCO world heritage site famous for its limestone natural bridges, large caves, gorges and waterfalls. It was also featured in a previous transformers film. 

To get to Wulong, you can either take the train from Chongqing North Railways Station (1.5 hours) or, travel by bus from Chongqing Sigongli Bus Station (2.5-3 hours).

If you’re interested, discover everything you need to know about Wulong National Park here.

This is an immersive live action performance with a rotating stage, set in the final days of China’s civil war, focusing on the Communist’s victory over the Nationalists in Chongqing.

This has been described as one of the most unique theatrical performances in China.