| 5th | Top cities in the People's Republic of China |
| Chéngdé | |
|---|---|
| — Prefecture-level city — | |
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Chéngdé
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| Coordinates: 40°58′01″N 117°55′57″E / 40.96694°N 117.9325°E | |
| Country | China |
| Province | Hebei |
| Area | |
| - Prefecture-level city | 39,519 km2 (15,258.4 sq mi) |
| - Urban | 709 km2 (273.7 sq mi) |
| Population (2004) | |
| - Prefecture-level city | 3,610,000 |
| - Density | 91/km2 (235.7/sq mi) |
| - Urban | 457,300 |
| - Urban Density | 645/km2 (1,670.5/sq mi) |
| Website | http://www.chengde.gov.cn |
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Pagoda Tree Rugosa Rose |
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Chengde (Chinese: 承德; pinyin: Chéngdé) is a prefecture-level city in Hebei province, People's Republic of China, situated northeast of Beijing. It is best known as the site of the Mountain Resort, a vast imperial garden formerly used by the emperors of the Qing Dynasty. The urban center has around 450,000 people as of 2009.
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In 1703, Chengde was chosen by the Kangxi Emperor as the location for his summer residence. Constructed throughout the eighteenth century, the Mountain Resort (避暑山庄; literally "avoiding the heat mountain villa") was used by both the Yongzheng and Qianlong emperors. Since the seat of government followed the emperor, Chengde was a political center of the Chinese empire during these times.
Under the Republic of China, Chengde was the capital of Rehe province. From 1933 to 1945 the city was under Japanese control as a part of the Manchurian puppet state known as Manchukuo. After World War II the Kuomintang regained jurisdiction. In 1948, the People's Liberation Army took control of Chengde. It would remain a part of Rehe until 1955, when the province was abolished, and the city was incorporated into Hebei.
The city is home to large populations of ethnic minorities, Mongol and Manchu in particular. The name for Chengde in Manchu is Erdemu be aliha fu.
With road and railroad links to Beijing, Chengde has developed into a distribution hub, and its economy is growing rapidly. The newly-built Jingcheng Expressway connects Chengde directly to central Beijing, and more freeways are planned for the city.
The project of building Chengde Mountain Resort started in 1703 and finished in 1790. The whole mountain resort covers an area 5,640,000 square meters. It is the largest royal garden in China. The wall of the mountain resort is over 10,000 meters in length. In summers, emperors of Qing Dynasty came to the mountain resort to relax themselves and escape from the high temperature in Beijing.
The whole Resort can be divided into three areas which are lakes area, plains area and hills area. The lakes area, which includes 8 lakes, covers an area of 496,000 square meters. The plains area covers an area of 607,000 square meters. The emperors held horse races and hunted in the area. The largest area of the three is the hills area. It covers an area of 4,435,000 square meters. Hundreds of palaces and temples were built on the hills in this area.
The elaborate Mountain Resort features large parks with lakes, pagodas, and palaces ringed by a wall. Outside the wall are the Eight Outer Temples (外八庙), built in varying architectural styles drawn from throughout China. One of the best-known of these is the Putuo Zongcheng Temple, built to resemble the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet. The resort and outlying temples were made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. The nearby Puning Temple, built in 1755, houses the world's tallest wooden statue of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara.
Chengde's older name of Rehe (or Jehol) came from the name for the local river (热河; Pinyin: Rèhé) which translates as "hot river." The river was so named because it did not freeze in the winter. Most sections of the river are currently dry because of a new damming project.
Another popular attraction of the Chengde area is Sledgehammer Peak (磬锤峰), a large rock formation in the shape of an inverted sledgehammer. A variety of other mountains, valleys, and grasslands lie within the borders of the city.
 Downtown Chengde, seen from the Mountain Resort. |
 A city street. |
 Bridge across the Rehe, with new housing development and Sledgehammer Peak visible in the background. |
 Saihanba National Park, in northern Chengde, near the border with Inner Mongolia. |
Chengde has city partnerships with the following cities:
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Chengde (承德; Chéngdé) is a city in Hebei.
Rehe (the former name of Chengde) was the summer residence of the early Qing Dynasty emperors. The city still maintains the fine features of this hill-side resort, such as the outer wall and large expanse of parkland that incorporates lakes, pagodas, and palaces. Outside this complex are the impressive Eight Outer Temples. The resort, along with the Outer Temples, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994.
The city is located approximately 260km northeast of Beijing and currently has a population of around 700,000.
There is a small airport in southern Chengde where occasional charter flights shuttle between Beijing and Chengde. Chengde is 180 kilometers away from the Beijing Capital International Airport. To travel by air, visitors can take a coach to Beijing and connect with their flights from there. A coach departs for Beijing every twenty minutes, making it very convenient.
There is a train (K7711) leaving Beijing train station (the main one, on metro line No.2) at 6.30am and arriving Chengde 10.48am.
Buses leave frequently (every 20 minutes) for Chengde from Beijing. The cost is around ¥65. The trip takes 4-6 hours, as it is not a direct bus, and makes many stops. Beware of getting on at the origin of the bus in the east of Beijing, as you may spend over an hour just going to Dongzhimen.
Another option is to find an unofficial taxi (heiche) from Beijing to Chengde. You will share this car with the driver and three other passengers (so that the car is full). It costs about ¥150 and takes 2-2.5 hours. It is easy to find a heiche from Chengde to Beijing (ask in any hotel if you have trouble). The other way may be more difficult, but ask around.
Buses charge a flat rate of ¥1, but there is no attendant, so have correct change. The buses have no English and little pinyin signage.
Bus 118 goes from Chengde to the temples in the North and bus 119 to the temples in the East.
Taxis generally are not metered, but sometimes will use the meter if insisted upon. Short trips are a flat rate of ¥5. Trips from one side of the city to the other are ¥10, and trips out to the temples should cost about ¥15 from the city center.
Much of Chengde is accessible by foot or bike. One can walk from one end of the city to the other in an hour.
Donkey-Rolling Roll is a long roll with stuffing wrapped in yellow rice. The Roll is served on a bed of yellow beans. The act of turning the roll on the yellow beans is just like a donkey rolling on the ground. That is how the snack got its name. It could be found in Chengde more than 200 years ago. Generally, less than ¥100 for a large plate (in Chengde restaurants, there are always large and small plates; the large plate is about ten inches wide and the small one seven inches wide).
You noodle is a kind of coarse food grain. It is slightly dark colored. The local You noodle wozi dough is first rolled out to a thin skin, and then formed to its final shape. After that, it is put into a pot and braised. You dip it in the sauce when eating. It feels smooth and jelly-like in your mouth. You noodle jiaozi is a kind of ravioli stuffed with pickled vegetables.
Pubang deer meat clusters and the cooked deer meat clusters are quite tasty, and cost only ¥4-5 for each cluster. They are well worth trying. In the street south of the Summer Resort, there are many shops featuring local specialities which cater to tourists.
In the evening, you will find mini-booths selling tangy scented baked corn along Chengde Street.
Individual restaurants worth giving a try includes:
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  | Chengde Tourist Map - Chengde Map, Map of Chengde - DIY China Tours |
| | Chengde Travel Guide - Chengde Travel Guide - Chengde Travel Service |
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