This 7-day trip takes us on a captivating journey through the diverse landscapes and rich cultural heritage in Northwestern Sichuan. This trip starts in Chengdu, which has served as the provincial capital of Sichuan province for over 2300 years and known for its laid-back life style and hospitality. In the morning, we first pay a visit to the iconic Dujiangyan Panda Valley to see giant pandas up-close in their enclosures with best natural setting before we visit the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, a world heritage site by UNESCO since 2000. The irrigation system was built in 256 BC and is the only of its kind at work. Thanks to the construction of the system, Chengdu has becomes a breadbasket of China and got the name the Land of Abundance. Then we continue to explore further westward to Maoxian, which is the most important area of Qiang ethnic group. Here we can see the unique architecture and culture of the Qiang people. After that we drive on and come the another world heritage site Huang Long National Park and Jiuzhai National Park. Both sites have been selected as world heritage sites in 1992. Here we’ll witness some of the most breathtaking alpine scenery in China, from vibrant blooming flowers to pristine lakes, ponds and waterfalls.  Along the way, we’ll have ample opportunities to photograph wildflowers including poppies and orchids, learn about the region’s history, and enjoy the stunning natural beauty that defines Northwestern Sichuan.

This 7-day trip will be guided by a WildFloraTour plant expert who will show you the beauty of endemic alpine flowers in western Sichuan. During the trip, we will show you the unique charm of the endemic alpine flowers in western China, we will also show you the rich cultural heritage in northwestern Sichuan as well as panda encounter at Dujiangyan Panda Valley, a panda facility known for its great natural environment and used for training pandas to be released in the wild. At the same time, you will be marveled at the wisdom of ancient Chinese when we visit the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2000. They successfully harnessed the Minjiang River and divert the river water into the fertile Chengdu Plain and turn Chengdu into one of the richest places in China in ancient times.

At the Ancient Qiang City, you will be shocked by the wisdom of Qiang people when they plan out their village and build up their houses. Though they used to be one of the largest ethnic groups in China, now only about 200,000 lived in this area. Now they can only be found here, their past glory can only be felt through those remaining houses and watch towers though,the Qiang people have still their own language, clothing, and vibrant festivals, being regarded as one of the most unique ethnic groups in Sichuan.In Songzhou Ancient Town, we will not only be able to enjoy its well-preserved architecture, especially the city walls, but also witness the harmonious co-existence of different ethnic groups such as Muslim, Han and Tibetans. 

In Jiuzhaigou National Park and Huang Long National Park, we will experience the ultimate natural beauty including crystal-clear lakes, scenic waterfalls, and colorful wildflower meadows. And we will also see rare alpine wild flowers like Cypripedium tibeticum, Rhododendron decorum, and Calypso bulbosa. Jiuzhaigou's pristine beauty makes it a photographer’s dream destination, with vibrant blooms and dramatic views around every corner.

This trip is crafted to provide a unique chance for both nature lovers who hope to enjoy the beauty of nature, photographers who hope to get the best images of endemic flowers and stunning landscapes in China with their cameras and those who are keen to explore the rich cultural heritage in Sichuan such as Qiang culture and Anduo Tibetan culture. No matter you hope to observe giant pandas upclose in the giant panda breeding centers, or hiking through alpine meadows covered with a carpet of blooming flowers, or getting the best pictures of endemic alpine flowers in China, you can join this trip made by our team to help you to achieve those goals. 

Trip Highlights

1. Dujiangyan Panda Valley: Visit the panda base to see giant pandas and learn about their conservation efforts.

2. Dujiangyan Irrigation System: Explore the UNESCO World Heritage site and learn about its ancient irrigation system.

3. Ancient Qiang City: Experience the rich history and culture of the Qiang people, including a ceremonial opening of the ancient city.

4. Songzhou Ancient Town: Discover the charm and history of Songzhou, an ancient town with well-preserved architecture.

5. Huanglong: Take a cable car to the top and hike to the Five-Color Pool, surrounded by beautiful alpine forests.

6. Jiuzhaigou: Explore the stunning Jiuzhaigou Scenic Area, known for its vibrant lakes, waterfalls, and wildflower meadows.

The cost includes the following:

The cost does not include the following:

D1: Arrival in Chengdu. Meals: D

We arrive at Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, where we meet our guide. After transferring to our hotel, we check in and relax. In the evening, we enjoy a welcome dinner and a briefing by your guide to help you gain a better understanding of the upcoming journey.

Overnight: Chengdu Jiuyanqiao Yue Shang Licheng Hotel

D2: Chengdu – Dujiangyan. Meals: BLD

In the morning, we visit Dujiangyan Panda Valley to observe giant pandas. After lunch, we tour the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, a UNESCO World Heritage site. In the evening, we visit Dujiangyan Blue Tears.

Overnight: Dujiangyan Center International Hotel

D3: Dujiangyan – Wenchuan Botanical Garden – Mao County. Meals: BLD

We begin the day early by visiting Qingcheng Mountain, hiking along the left trail to explore Taoist temples and immerse ourselves in Taoist culture. In the afternoon, we take the cable car down and drive to Maoxian County, passing through Wenchuan Botanical Garden to see a variety of unique Epimedium and Asarum species.During this trip, we may encounter species such as Davidia involucrata, Bletilla striata, Deutzia pilosa, Dichocarpum auriculatum, Euphorbia esula, Fuchsia hybrida, Malus halliana, Arisaema wattii, Asarum sieboldii, Asarum chinense, Asarum delavayi, Asarum porphyronotum, Asarum pulchellum, Asarum splendens, Epimedium leptorrhizum, Epimedium mikinorii, Epimedium myrianthum, Epimedium ogisui, Epimedium flavum, Calanthe discolor, Holboellia latifolia, Sauropus androgynus, Stachyurus chinensis, Stachyurus himalaicus, and Yulania liliiflora etc.

Overnight: Minshan Yinli Hotel

D4: Mao County – Songzhou Ancient Town – Huanglong. Meals: BLD

We start the day early with a visit to Ancient Qiang City and its opening ceremony to experience Qiang culture. In the afternoon, we visit Songzhou Ancient Town before continuing our journey to Huanglong.

Overnight: Huanglong Selcsa International Hotel

D5: Huanglong – Jiuzhaigou. Meals: BLD

In the morning, we take a cable car to the top of Huanglong Nature Reserve and hike to the Five-Color Pool. We pass through coniferous forests, searching for and photographing wildflowers. In the afternoon, we descend along the travertine stream, continuing to look for more flowers before heading to Jiuzhaigou. During our hike, we may encounter species such as Calypso bulbosa, Adonis coerulea, Rhododendron decorum, and Berberis amurensis etc.

Overnight: Jiuzhaigou Licheng Huating Resort Hotel

D6: Jiuzhaigou. Meals: BLD

We enter Jiuzhaigou Scenic Area early in the morning, starting with the left line and then exploring the right line. We visit various lakes and valleys, looking for wildflowers along the way.On our way, we may see Zelkova sinica, Zehneria bodinieri, Zabelia dielsii, Viola variegata, Viola hancockii, Viola grypoceras, Viola philippica, Viola dissecta, Viburnum glomeratum, Rhododendron augustinii, Rhododendron oreodoxa, Rhododendron concinnum, Ostryopsis davidiana, Michelia chapensis, Gentiana pseudoaquatica, Kerria japonica, Cypripedium plectrochilum, Daphne tangutica, Stachyurus himalaicus, Ribes takare, Ribes glaciale, Prunus szechuanica, Primula kialensis, Helleborus thibetanus, Calypso bulbosa, Arisaema lobatum, and Cymbidium hookerianum etc.

Overnight: Jiuzhaigou Licheng Huating Resort Hotel

D7: Jiuzhaigou – Tangjiahe. Meals: BLD

We drive to Tangjiahe Nature Reserve in the morning, where we hike the Motiangling Trail to admire the wildflowers and wildlife. In the evening, we stay at the reserve.Along the way, we may see Cercis chinensis, Cercis glabra, Chaenomeles speciosa, Fagus longipetiolata, Ginkgo biloba, Epimedium brevicornu, Litsea pungens, Rhododendron racemosum, Primula moupinensis, Prunus polytricha, Pleione bulbocodioides, and Tarenaya hassleriana etc.

Overnight: Tangjiahe Grand Hotel

D8: Tangjiahe – Beichuan. Meals: BLD

We explore the Tangjiahe Monkey Valley in the morning, observing both wildflowers and wildlife. In the afternoon, we drive to Yaowang Valley to enjoy the magnolia flowers in full bloom and taste the local specialty, fried magnolia petals.

Overnight: Wujian Mountain Guesthouse

D9: Beichuan – Sanxingdui – Chengdu. Meals: BLD

We visit the Sanxingdui Museum in the morning to explore the Sanxingdui archaeological site, a significant ancient site. In the afternoon, we return to Chengdu for free time to shop and explore the city.

Overnight: Chengdu Jiuyanqiao Yue Shang Licheng Hotel

D10: Departure from Chengdu. Meals: B

After breakfast, we transfer to Chengdu Tianfu International Airport for our departure, based on the flight schedule.

We will arrange one of our WildFloraTour experts for this trip based on the focus of this trip. All our experts have rich experiences of guiding tours in this region. The following are some of our best local guides for your references.

Cory Li      WildFloraTour plant expert

Cory Li,co-founder, and general manager of WildFloraTour is a super fan of nature, especially for flowers. His passion for nature grows from the beauty of greens in the little boys' eyes. As a native of Sichuan Chengdu, he has spent a lot of time exploring nature in the mountains nearby his hometown. During his study at Sichuan University, he began to take lots of outdoor activities like hiking and mountain climbing and started to study knowledge about flora by himself. After graduation, he even spent more time in the wild than office exploring wildflowers in Sichuan and nearby provinces with other nature lovers and photographed about two thousand wildflower species. He even found several new distributions of some endemic species and even some new species of plants along with some other nature lovers. He loves to share his findings and stories behind the photos with other nature lovers on the internet and became a “flora idol” in southwest China. He never expected becoming famous out of this, he just enjoys sharing the beauty of those lovely flowers with others.

Ray      WildFloraTour plant expert

Ray graduated from Leshan Normal University, majoring in plant science. As an expert at WildFlora, Ray is responsible for the daily operations of WildFloraTour. He possesses a profound passion for nature, which prompted him to resign from his job in his hometown of Deyang and relocate to Chengdu to pursue his dreams and join WildFloraTour. Having specialized in botanical studies during his university years, Ray has acquired a distinct advantage in his work, affording him opportunities to discover endemic species and make thrilling new findings. Additionally, Ray is an avid photographer who captures the ephemeral beauty of nature, preserving invaluable moments that inspire others to appreciate the wonders of the natural world. At WildFloraTour, he collaborates with a team of plant specialists to design customized tours that cater to the individual interests of each traveler who has keen interests in plants. Whether it involves botanical exploration, cultural immersion, or wildlife safaris, Ray and his team strive to provide a comprehensive and immersive experience that fosters a deeper connection with nature.

Bella      WildFloraTour bird and mammal expert

Bella, the director of AlpineBirding, was graduated from Sichuan Agricultural University with a Bachelor's Degree. She joined AlpineBirding in early 2016 and became the director of AlpineBirding in 2018. She was born and grown up in a Bai ethnic family in Yunnan Province which boasts of the largest number of bird species in China. Her interests toward birds started with her observation of a Long-tailed Minivet in her mom’s garden at a very young age. As she grows up, the interests and love toward birds become stronger and stronger. Because of that, she found AlpineBirding before graduation and joined the company for further learning of birds. Bella has guided a number of birding trips in cooperation with AlpineBirding guide in the past years, her passion, readiness to help and detail-oriented attitude have won her lots of praise from our clients. She takes great pride in the work she is doing, now she is ready to help you plan your best birding trip in China in cooperation with her colleagues.

Karen       WildFloraTour Logistic Expert

Karen Lin is a native of Chengdu, Sichuan province. She loves and knows the culture of her hometown well, such as ancient Shu civilization, folk customs and ancient Chinese poetry.She has over 14 years' experience in foreign affairs service and tourism. She is familiar with the whole process of group operation. She is always good at thinking and full of ideas, and always gives the guests a warm experience with the special attention and consideration.Karen loves birds and enjoys go out for birding with the team, sometimes, she works as assistant for the group. She likes nature and is good at parent-child natural activities and education. In addition, she has long devoted herself to public welfare, especially caring for the elderly and disabled people, environmental protection, and reading promotion. She organizes and participates in a number of related volunteer work. She is a passionate and intelligent member of our team.

Philip      WildFloraTour plant expert

As a half Kangba Tibetan, Philip is the founder of WildfloraTour and is native of Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. He has a deep love for his Kangba Tibetan heritage and the land where he was born and raised. Philip's career has gone from mining technician to teacher, to translator, and finally to a guide and tour operator. Along the way, Philip discovered his passion and love for helping tourists understand the beauty and history of his people and homeland. Philip is known for his ability to plan and execute unique and exciting adventure trips exploring the sights off the usual tourist routes. He is active, open-minded, and adventurous and always ready to share interesting and useful information with his clients. As a travel professional working in this field for more than 15 years, Philip believes travel is an art and a process of learning and discovery. Each trip is a unique artistic work created with knowledge and expertise based on the resources available and the interests and tastes of travelers. To help more people to understand the unique resources in panda habitats and neighboring areas, he established Wildflora to bring his educational fun-filled tours to more people eager to explore and learn about China. Besides, Philip is an active and knowledgeable birder and a dedicated photographer.

Besides, one of WildFloraTour's local guides in Southeast China will participate in this trip to ensure a high-end traveling experience.