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Chengdu Full-Day Tour

Giant Pandas, Traditional Teahouse & Evening Tuktuk Food Tour

Start Time: 7am End Time: Approx 8:30pm

$175 USD / adult $160 USD / child 4-15

Hotel pick-up & transportation included.

Entrance ticket to Chengdu Panda Base included.

The Essentials:

Meet Chengdu’s most famous residents at the world-renowned Giant Panda Base, taste authentic Sichuan dishes at a local’s favorite “fly restaurant,” sip tea in a traditional teahouse, and explore the city’s culinary streets with our top-rated evening tuktuk food tour. Chengdu’s only full-day tour that packs wildlife, culture, and cuisine into one day!

Group Size

Small groups of 2-10 people per tour. Can be made private, by request, for an additional charge.

Start & End Locations

Hotel pick-up is available for guests staying within Chengdu’s third ring road. The tour will end at our last food tour stop near Dongmen Bridge subway station. 

Cancellation Policy

Reservations cancelled 48 hours or more before your tour start time are fully refundable.

Inclusions

  • Hotel Pick-Up
  • Guided Chengdu Panda Base Visit
  • Authentic "Fly Restaurant" Lunch
  • Local Teahouse Visit
  • Evening Food Tour by Tuktuk
  • Expert English-Speaking Guide
  • Comfortable Van Transportation
  • Bottled Water, Soft Drinks, Tea & Beer
  • China Travel Guide PDF

Dietary Requests

  • Vegetarian
  • Dairy Free
  • No Spicy
  • No Nuts
  • Vegan
  • Gluten Free

We can accommodate the checked dietary requests on this tour. All requests must be communicated at time of booking. Visit our FAQ section for more details.

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What You'll Do:

Hotel Pick-up

Hotel pick-up will be provided for guests staying within Chengdu’s third ring road. Exact pick-up times will vary and be communicated 24 hours before your tour starts.

Watching a Panda Eat
Two Pandas Playing
Chengdu Giant Panda Research Base Pathway
Child Holding Panda Ice Cream Bar

Explore Chengdu's Giant Panda Research Base

Start the day at this 400-acre park designed to give pandas a natural home. Walk along pathways and platforms to see playful cubs, adult pandas, and the rare red panda. Your guide will share stories about panda behavior, conservation, and fun facts about these iconic animals.

Duration: approx 2.5 hours

Lunch at a Chengdu Fly Restaurant

Enjoy lunch at a favorite spot for authentic Sichuan dishes. Dishes are cooked and placed on a table, where customers point at what they want and grab it! Try tea-smoked duck, chilled bean jelly noodles, pork with crispy rice, and other classic dishes.

Table Full of Dishes
Chef Slicing Roast Meat
Plates of Dandan Noodles
Outdoor Eating Area
Chef Preparing Dishes
Bowls of Mapo Tofu
View of Street Outside Teahouse
Chengdu Full-Day Tour Tea in Cups
Teahouse Wall
Locals Playing Traditional Card Game
Locals Playing Mahjong
Local at Teahouse

Visit a Traditional Local Teahouse

Travel to a historic teahouse in Chengdu where tea culture has remained unchanged for decades. Sip tea alongside locals, watch (or play!) a game of Mahjong, and learn why tea has always been a staple of local culture. From volunteers to craftsmen with decades of history, this stop offers a window into the slow, social rhythms of Chengdu life.

Duration: approx 2 hours

Taste Our Top-Rated Evening Food Tour by Tuktuk

Hop on a tuktuk and explore Chengdu’s streets with our top-rated food tour! Taste dandan noodles, “chaoshou” wontons, mapo tofu, and a variety of Sichuan specialties at hidden spots loved by locals. Your guide will make sure you get a full experience of Chengdu’s culinary highlights.

Duration: 3.5 hours

Chengdu tuktuk
Chengdu pancakes
Chengdu tuktuk evening food tour guests
Rows of Chaoshou dumplings
Chinese dumplings and chopsticks
Bowls of Chaoshou dumplings
Dan dan noodles
Local restaurant scene in Chengdu
Twice cooked pork
Cheers with plum wine
Chengdu bar scene from above

Local Plum Wine

The tour will end at a local bar with homemade plum wine, near to Dongmen Bridge subway station.

Plus More Surprises!

* This itinerary is subject to changes and adjustments based on daily vendor operations and availability, but it will always be fantastic.

Chengdu: Where Pandas, Tea, and Spices Meet.

As the heart of Sichuan culture, Chengdu is a city that invites you to slow down and savor life. Once the capital of the ancient Shu Kingdom, Chengdu has been a center of trade, craftsmanship, and cuisine for over 2,000 years. Its easygoing pace and rich history have shaped a food culture unlike anywhere else in China.

The signature mala flavor (aka numbing from Sichuan peppercorn and fiery from local chili) captures the city’s balance of heat and harmony. Between the playful pandas, the spice-filled kitchens, and the aroma of tea drifting from old teahouses, every stop we make reveals a new side of local everyday life.

People Eating Chengdu Dumplings
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Tour Highlights:

Giant Panda Eating Bamboo

Meet giant pandas of all shapes and sizes at Chengdu's famous Giant Panda Research Base.

Fly Restaurant Dishes

Enjoy authentic Sichuan cuisine at a lively local "fly restaurant."

Traditional Teahouse Decoration

Discover Chengdu’s tea culture at a historic traditional teahouse.

Bowls of Dan Dan Noodles

Hop on tuktuks for a food tour featuring 4+ stops of the city’s best street eats and local dishes.

Featured In:

“You won’t forget it after you try it.”

"We hop into tuktuks that whiz us around the neighbourhood."

Featured on National Geographic Logo

Customer Reviews:

Read All Our Reviews

Frequently Asked Questions:

This tour includes the following:

  • Hotel pick-up
  • Entrance ticket to Chengdu Giant Panda Research Base
  • Authentic lunch at a local “fly restaurant”
  • Local teahouse visit and tasting
  • Dinner (in the form of our Evening Food Tour by Tuktuk)
  • English-speaking expert Lost Plate guide
  • Ground transportation with driver
  • Bottled water throughout the day (plus soft drinks and beer during lunch and the evening food tour). 

The only items excluded during this tour are:

  • Hotel drop-off at the end of the day (the tour will end at a local bar in the city center so you have the flexibility to stay as long as you’d like)
  • Optional gratuity for your guide and driver if you wish to give them one.

A lot! We don’t take what we eat throughout the day lightly (literally). You can expect a plentiful and varied lunch with soft drinks and/or beer. For dinner, you’ll enjoy our Evening Food Tour by tuktuk which includes at least 10 dishes at 4 stops for authentic local food, plus a stop at a retro bar with local plum wine. Dinner also includes soft drinks and/or beer.

All dietary requests must be communicated at the time of booking. When booking online, you will have the opportunity to let us know if you have any dietary requirements or special requests. Please use the following information to understand if this tour is right for you.

This tour is not recommended for vegan or gluten-free travelers. Our eateries are small, family run, and very specialized, so we do our best but on this tour there just aren’t a lot of substitutes. Wheat products are featured at every stop, in sauces like soy sauce and in tour highlights like noodles and wontons. There are no substitutes or alternatives available.

This tour also cannot accommodate severe allergies as we do not have control over the preparation for your food. Travelers that don’t eat nuts are welcome, but kitchens do use nuts and cross-contamination is possible.

If you have any questions not answered here, please contact us prior to booking.

Transportation throughout the day (including hotel pick-up, the Panda Base, lunch, and the local teahouse) will be done by private van transportation. The drives to the Panda Base and teahouse are approx. 45 minutes each. Total spent spent on car rides during the day will be approx. 2-3 hours.

Our evening food tour will be conducted by private tuktuk. Please keep in mind that tuktuks are not climate controlled.

You’ll spend 2-3 hours on your feet while visiting the Panda Base (with shuttle rides in between), plus a few short walks to reach lunch and the teahouse. Some of the walkways at the Panda Base may be uneven, on a slope, or with steps.

You should also be prepared to deal with whatever the weather throws at us – whether it’s hot sunshine, a chilly downpour, or anything in between.

There is no dress code for any of the attractions that we visit during this tour.

We recommend dressing for the weather and always have layers for varying conditions throughout the day. Comfortable, close-toed footwear that you are used to wearing all day is also important.

All of our tours are rain-or-shine, so we suggest you dress for the weather. In rare cases of extreme weather, your guide will cancel the tour and provide a full refund.

Chengdu has a humid subtropical climate, with hot and humid summers, cool and cloudy winters, and light rain or drizzle throughout much of the year.

Yes, this food tour can be booked privately, either for yourself or for a group or special occasion. We’ve hosted everything from birthdays and bachelor/ette parties to corporate events and school groups. Just let us know the date, time and group size, and we’ll handle the rest – including the itinerary, dietary restrictions, logistics, and even extras like birthday cakes or a bottle of bubbly.

We can accommodate groups of any size, splitting large parties into smaller groups if needed. The minimum charge for a private tour is typically equivalent to the cost of 6 adults. Typically, private tours with 8 or more people won’t incur an extra private tour fee. Contact us directly to get started!

Our child pricing is valid for ages 4 through 15. Children ages 3 and under are free.

We welcome all travelers, but ask that guests use their own judgement to determine whether this tour is appropriate without impacting the experience of other guests. We do not recommend this tour for anyone who is unable to be on their feet for 2-3 hours at a time (including on uneven surfaces and climbing stairs), or requires mobility assistance such as a wheelchair or walker.

At the Giant Panda Base, the main paths are wide and mostly flat, but the park is large and spread out. An internal shuttle is available and recommended for anyone who prefers less walking.

Booking a private tour is always an option. This gives you some added flexibility during the itinerary to make sure you have extra time when needed during the day.

A photo of your passport details page will be collected prior to your tour. This is required when purchasing entrance tickets to the Panda Base. Ticketing rules at our destinations are strict, so pre-purchased tickets ensure a smooth entry without issues. 

You will also need to bring your passport with you on the day of the tour. 

Bookings canceled 48 hours or more before your tour are fully refundable (100% refund). Bookings canceled within 48 hours notice are not refundable. Tours cannot be rescheduled with less than 48 hours notice. 

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