Chengde
Discover Chengde
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 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 city is about 260 km northeast of Beijing and has a population of around 460,000, with about 3½ million people in the prefecture (2016).
What to Experience in Chengde
Taste of Chengde...
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: Shenyang, which is only 2h15 away on the high speed line from Beijing.
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsThere is a small airport in southern Chengde where occasional charter flights shuttle between Beijing and Chengde. Chengde is 180 km 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 are a dozen daily G-trains (High Speed) between Beijing (Chaoyang station, 北京朝阳) and Chengde (South Station, 承德南) that have shortened the trip to an hour from the 5 hours of a K train, which are still available (April 5, 2021). These G trains are on the line Beijing - Shenyang. You can get to city centre from the South station by bus. The fastest K train is K7711, leaving Beijing train station (the main one, on metro line No.2) at 08:07 and arriving in Chengde at 12:29. Another option includes the train to Dandong (stopping in Chengde mid-route), which leaves Beijing train station at 12:17, arriving at Chengde at 17:21....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
Buses charge a rate of ¥2 on most routes and ¥3 on longer routes (including the buses to and from South Station) (as of April 2025), but there is no attendant, so have correct change. The buses have no English and little pinyin signage. Buses accept T-Union cards and Alipay. Bus 118 goes from Chengde to the temples in the North and bus 119 to the temples in the East. Most taxis are metered. Short trips cost about ¥6 (plus ¥1 gas surcharge). 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.
Where to Stay
Shenyang, which is only 2h15 away on the high speed line from Beijing.
Money & Budget
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.
Safety Information
Glimpses of Chengde
a green field with mountains in the background
Cherry blossoms bloom on a branch.
a wind turbine on a grassy hill under a cloudy blue sky
a brown horse eating grass in a forest
Yanming Lake at Sunset
a branch of a pine tree with cones on it
an aerial view of a forest with a radio tower in the distance
a field with trees and wind mills in the background
a pine cone sitting on top of a tree branch
a group of wind turbines on a grassy hill
a green field with mountains in the background
Cherry blossoms bloom on a branch.
a wind turbine on a grassy hill under a cloudy blue sky