Chongqing Travel Guide

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Chongqing Brief

Chongqing Municipality, 334km (208 miles) SE of Chengdu, 1,346km (836 miles) S of Xi'an, 1,000km (620 miles) upstream of Three Gorges Dam If other major cities in China are undergoing face-lifts, Chongqing is having radical reconstructive surgery: In 1997, it became the fourth city to achieve the status of municipality (after Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai). With summers so hot it's been dubbed one of China's Three Furnaces, and streets so steep that no one rides a bike, terrain and weather were once its chief claims to fame. Now, this cliffside city overlooking the confluence of the Chang and Jialíng rivers has much to boast about. Chongqing is the biggest metropolitan area in the world (surpassing Tokyo); it's got the world's biggest dam site downriver; it's in the midst of building the world's tallest skyscraper (the Chongqing Tower); and a 17-station monorail system will be up and running in 2005 (not a record breaker, but no mean feat). But whether all this development is a boom or a binge is yet to be seen.

As recently as the 19th century, Chongqing was a remote walled city. Even after the steam engine eased passage through the Three Gorges, few easterners had any reason or desire to make the trip. That all changed in 1938, when Hankou fell to the Japanese and downriver residents made a mass exodus up the Cháng Jiang (Yangzi River). Chongqing became China's last wartime capital, and after withstanding 3 years of Japanese bombing, the city never looked back. Very few of the old ramshackle neighborhoods rebuilt after the war have survived "urban improvement," and except for an old prison complex and a few small museums and memorials there is little evidence of earlier eras.

Most travelers come to Chongqing because it's the first or last stop on a Three Gorges cruise. But until recently, levels of sulfur dioxide and suspended air particles were so high that visitors couldn't wait to leave. As the city implements pollution control programs, that seems to be gradually changing. Chngqing's pleasures are modest, but there's enough here to make a 2- or 3-day stay enjoyable. The city is also just a 2-hour bus ride from the Buddhist Grottoes at Dazu.

Chongqing History
Chongqing Climate
Chongqing Geography
Chongqing Transportation
Chongqing Economy
Chongqing Hotpot

Chongqing History

Chongqing's history extends back at least 3,000 years, endowing it with much historical and cultural significance. Traces of man's presence have been found from as far back as the e nd of the Old Stone Age 20,000 to 30,000 years ago. From the beginning of the Shang Dynasty (c. 16th century B.C.) to the close of the Warring States Period (221 B.C.), it was the capital of the state of Ba. From the Qin Dynasty through the Eastern Han Dynasty (221 B.C.-220 A.D.), it was a prefecture also known as Ba. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, (581-907 A.D.), it was known as the sub-prefecture of Yuzhou, hence its standard byname "Yu.'' Subsequently, during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127 A.D.), it was renamed Gongzhou. In 1189, during the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhao Dun, later the Guangzong Emperor, was given the title Prince of Gong. Regarding this as an exceedingly joyous event, he upgraded its status to that of a prefecture and renamed it as "Chongqing'' or "redoubled celebration,'' the name it carries to this day. The Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) saw goods spin in and out of the city as merchants from the four corners gathered. In 1891 Chongqing became an open port and a customs house was established there. Shipping and trade and the financial and processing industries grew steadily more prosperous as the city came to link southwestern China and the upper reaches of the Yangtze River with the rest of the world. In 1929 Chongqing was formally declared a city. Following the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan in 1937, the Kuomintang (KMT) moved the government from Nanjing to Chongqing. In 1939 the city was elevated to a municipality under the Executive Yuan. Beginning in 1940 it served as the wartime ``provisional capital'' for the KMT government, becoming China's political, economic, financial, commercial, transportation, cultural and diplomatic center. After the KMT government returned to the formerly occupied capital Nanjing in 1946, Chongqing returned to its status as a municipality under the Executive Yuan...

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Chongqing Climate

Chongqing belongs to sub-tropical monsoon climate. The features are warm winter, hot summer, early spring and short autumn. Annual average temperature is around 19.2oC The average lowest temperature is 6-8oC in winter. The average highest temperature is 27-38oC in summer and the extreme temperature can reach as high as 43.8oC. Hence it had got the name of “furnace city”. The monsoon concentrates in summertime. The annual average rainfall is 1000-1100mm. There is plenty of night rain in summer, hence the saying “Ba mountains' night rain”. Chongqing is also called “foggy city”. There is much fog from the end of autumn to early spring with at least 68 foggy days a year. Chongqing is also one of the cities with shortest sunshine time in China. The annual sunshine time is 941.9 hours...

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Chongqing Geography

Geographic coordinates: 105°17'-110°11' East, 28°10'－32°13' North

Annual average temperature: 18 °C (64 °F)

Temperature range: 0 to 47 °C

Total annual hours of sunshine: 1000-1200

Annual precipitation: 1000-1400 mm

Neighbours: Hubei (east), Hunan (east), Guizhou (south), Sichuan (west), Shaanxi (north)...

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Chongqing Transportation

Chongqing and surrounding areas are full of tourism resources. The most famous is the Three Gorges, a scenic area along Yangtze river. The 200-km long area is the most visited canyon in China. Besides its gorgeous natural scene, it is also a culturally rich area. Other tourism sites include Dazu Rock Carvings, mainly Buddhist themes, it was carved from the Tang Dynasty, now belongs to UNESCO World Heritage. City sightseeing is also a famous part of Chongqing tourism. Historical sites in World War II are located in the metropolitan area. In the surrounding areas, Fishing town is an important battlefield event in world history. In 1243, Mongol prince Mongke Khan was defeated and died here and it stopped the Mongols' expansion in Europe and Africa because of turmoil after his death...

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Chongqing Economy

Historically, Chongqing has been a major trading inland port, transporting goods from the southwestern provinces to eastern China. During the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945), Chongqing was transformed into a heavy industrial city, especially the military industry which continued to thrive for decades after 1949. Since the 1980s, many of these military industry enterprises have undergone reforms and turned from producing military goods to mostly civilian products for survival and growth.

Chongqing waterfront on the Jialing. See the funicular article for some details.Chongqing is rich in natural resources, with more than 40 kinds of minerals. Its coal reserves are estimated to be 4.8 billion tonnes. The Chuandong Natural Gas Field in Chongqing is China's largest inland production base of natural gas, with deposits of 270 billion m³, accounting for more than one-fifth of China's total. Chongqing also contains China’s largest reserve of strontium, and China has the 2nd largest reserve of the mineral in the world. Important industries in Chongqing include mining, iron, steel, aluminum, military, auto, motorcycle, chemical, textiles, machinery, electronics, building materials, food processing, retail, and tourism. Chongqing is also home to Asia's largest aluminum plant - South West Aluminium - which rolled out 213,000 tonnes of finished products in 2004 - for companies engaged in building materials, printing, electrical appliances, aerospace, packaging, and vehicle production . Chongqing's agricultural sector still employs a significant portion of the population. Other than rice, fruits especially oranges are important sources of income for the farmers. In the past 25 years, surplus labor resulted a huge number of farmers to migrate to the relatively more developed industrial centers of southern and eastern China for employment opportunities, thus making Chongqing one of the biggest labor export areas in China...

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Chongqing Hotpot

Hotpot is the most famous and favorite dish in Chongqing. Chongqing local people consider the hotpot a local specialty, which is noted for its peppery and hot taste, scalding yet fresh and tender. Nowadays, as a matter of fact, Chongqing hotpot is famous and popular all over the country.

Chongqing hotpot was first eaten by poor boatmen of the Yangtze River in Chongqing area and then spread westwards to the rest of Sichuan Province. Now it is a very popular local flavor and can be found at every corner of the city.

People gather around a small pot filled with flavorful and nutritious soup base. The pot may be boiled by various means, such as charcoal, electric or gas. You have a choice of spicy, pure or combo for the soup. There are a great variety of hotpots, including Yuanyang (Double Tastes) hotpot, four tastes hotpot, fish head hotpot, tonic hotpot, entire sheep hotpot, etc. Chongqing hotpot is characterized by its spiciness, but to suit customers of different preference, salty, sweet or sour flavors of hotpot are available. As long as you can stand the spiciness, you are advised to try the spiciest one to ensure an authentic experience...

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