Two days at the Chengdu Panda Base is a struggle – you can’t quite see it all! I’ve already covered what I did see in the new expansion, and I’ve highlighted a few other key sightings at the base as well, but now time to focus on the ‘original’ part of the park. This entrance is now known as the South entrance, and is where I took a taxi to on both days (and also left from, I wasn’t really sure what the transport options were from the West gate). There are lots of barriers up to organise the crowds into a queue, I got there a little after opening and there was only a short queue to get in. The ticket desk is no longer manned, you need to buy your ticket online in advance – I couldn’t get payment to go through on the WeChat app (despite using WeChat pay for many other things), so I bought my ticket on the Trip.com app which was the same price (55RMB for an adult). All you need to do is select the date of the visit and if you want morning or afternoon entry. All you then need to enter is your passport/ID used for the booking which is very convenient.

On my way to see Yuan Meng in Panda House 1 the first panda I came across was Gong Zai – he was one of the few sitting out to eat and was ignoring his keepers calls to get him to come in, the bamboo was too appealing! He was sitting close to the front viewing area with a big pile of bamboo and I really enjoyed standing for ten-fifteen minutes watching him. It was very quiet at his enclosure, with maybe only ten people watching him so it was a very nice panda-viewing experience. I particularly loved his sign, I could definitely tell he had a strong physique and it’s fun to know that he was the prototype for Kung Fu Panda =D

You’ve seen Yuan Meng and the baby pandas at Chengdu Panda Base in September 2023, now lets see what else is brand new – and I’m talking about the huge extension that has been being built over the past few years and is now open. The expansion more than doubles the size of the panda base, and really makes the base a difficult place to cover everything in one day, you really need 2 full days to be able to see it all! I snapped a picture of the map at the South entrance when I arrived, but this map is named slightly differently to the version online. The in-person map has 4 areas marked to visit, but in the new map, the Sky Meadows Area is not included. I will have to see what this looks like now in May 2024.

When I visited in September 2023 the Star Forest Area/Panda Forest Area was closed, not sure if it was just not open or perhaps not yet finished – nevertheless, I wouldn’t have had time to visit anyway. I also didn’t make it to either the Sky Meadows Area of the Moon Valley Area/Panda Creek Valley Area which is right up at the new West entrance. So on my next trip I have 2 days at the base planned, and will start at the West entrance on 1 day so that I can see everything the new space has to offer. But for now, the Sun Hills Area/Panda Reception Hall, the Panda Pedestrian Street and the Bamboo Tower: