Chengdu Hotels

Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan Province in south-west China. Chengdu is located in the fertile plains of China's Sichuan province. Due to its agricultural wealth Chengdu is sometimes called "Land of Milk and Honey". The Funan river bisects the city although boat traffic, common until the 1960's, has all but disappeared. The greater city area is divided into five districts and 12 counties, altogether home to more than 9.2 million people. Chengdu is known to be a very laid-back city and ranked one of the most livable cities in China in recent years. It is credited with a good nightlife scene and contains many new western style buildings in the large city center. Summer weather is hot and humid, as the city is surrounded by mountains in the Red Basin. The most touted sites are the temples and historical sites, however they are modern re-constructions of little interest and with extremely high entrance fees. Though Sichuan's other sites may be of greater interest, Chengdu is a nice city to fly into and stay a few days before going deeper into Sichuan. Judging by the laid-back attitude, admirable green space and pockets of, well that the city is China's fifth-most populous city (the greater metropolitan area has just broached 13 million and is growing fast even by China's hyper standards). ‘Charm' – not a word often used with Chinese supercities – is not altogether inappropriate. In 2006 Chéngdû was rated by several Chinese media as the nation's second-most liveable city. Oh, true, the city is still in China. Traditional wooden architecture and tree-draped streets have been gradually giving way to neon-drenched malls, glassy high-rises, or resolutely practical new apartment complexes. That same survey above glumly noted that Chéngdû, while eminently live able, is also choking on exhaust fumes, ranking third in cars per capita.