A Weekend Trip to Chengde, Hebei | Fun, but Avoid These Pitfalls

Chengde is a city with historical significance and beautiful scenery. However, due to the lack of comprehensive travel planning, I encountered some pitfalls during my trip, which I am sharing here for your reference. 🚴Transportation Beijing Chaoyang to Chengde takes about 1 hour. 🏨Accommodation Chengde Mountain Resort Hotel has a great location and sentimental value, with a plaque provided by Pu Jie. But if you're looking for a better accommodation experience, I really don't recommend it. 🥇Attractions 1⃣️Imperial Summer Villa A must-visit attraction, I'll let you in on a little secret. Pay attention to the plaque of the 'Imperial Summer Villa'; there's a 'misplaced character'. First, visit the palace area where the emperor handled affairs and lived. After leaving the palace area, you can buy a transportation ticket, which comes in three types: Mountain area 60, Mountain + Lake area 120, Mountain + Lake + Plain area 150. I prefer not to exhaust myself when going out, so I bought the 150 ticket. 👉The mountain area is a must-buy because it's impossible to walk that far. There are three bus stops where you can get on and off freely. The first stop overlooks the cityscape of Chengde. The second stop overlooks the entire Little Potala Palace (very photogenic). The third stop is a courtyard where the emperor enjoyed the Mid-Autumn moon, which also has a 'cold palace'. There's a place called 'Biao Xia' here, where the sunset glow must be beautiful, but I didn't see it due to the wrong timing. 👉The lake area boat ticket experience is not good; it's a human-powered boat with bamboo poles, very slow. It's a one-way ticket, and you have to walk back from the Yanyu Tower, with the scenery on both sides being quite ordinary. By the way, Yanyu Tower is also known as 'Shu Fang Zhai', which feels familiar. 👉The plain area can be skipped if you're short on time; the bus starts near Yanyu Tower. The first stop is the horse selection field and the courtyard where the Siku Quanshu was stored. The second stop passes by Mongolian yurts to reach the Stupa. The third stop is the Rehe Spring. Additionally, I ate watermelon in the Imperial Melon Garden and had 'My Afternoon Tea' at Chun Hao Xuan. It was delicious, but there were too many bees, which made for a poor experience! 2⃣️Little Potala Palace I paid 100 yuan for a guide. I saw the kneeling elephant, the standing Guanyin, and the golden roof bathed in the sunset glow. I learned about the meaning of prayer flags, climbed several hundred steps, and felt pretty good. 3⃣️Puning Temple Also in Tibetan architectural style, I saw the over 20-meter-tall Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Guanyin. If you're going to offer incense, it's best to hire a guide who will mention some precautions. 4⃣️Chengde Museum A surprisingly good museum with an interesting architectural style and excellent exhibition halls. It covers the Imperial Summer Villa, Chengde's history, Manchu-Mongolian relations, and Tibetan Buddhism. A detailed visit takes 2-3 hours. All the above attractions are close by, so I recommend staying and dining nearby. 🐎Performance The Prosperous Dynasty Kangxi Ceremony was quite good, with an impressive opening horse race. But personally, I felt the content was rather superficial, though the scene utilization was very good. 🍚Dining 👉Prince's Banquet - Long queue, but the big fish head is quite tasty. 👉New Qianlong - Noisy environment, the sliced meat is good, the deer meat is average. 👉Xiang He Xing Scissor Noodles, had it while watching the Prosperous Dynasty, the noodles are good, expect a long queue. 🌲Finally, the beauty of Chengde lies in its integration, in adapting to local conditions and embracing diversity, and in being surrounded by the beauty of green mountains and clear waters. I recommend a visit.