Explore Journeys > Tours by Itinerary > Sichuan Loop

SICHUAN LOOP

Sichuan is as large as Spain, but you don’t have to travel along great distances to get a taste of the incredible diversity of the province. Within striking distance from Chengdu, the provincial capital, it’s possible to see a range of different people – Qiang, Tibetans, and Han peasants – in eclectic intersections of culture, nature and geography. These ethnic groups all have their customs, ways of dress, beliefs and superstitions, building style, and so on. And these exotic peoples live in some of the richest landscapes in the world, a tumbling terrain of high peaks and forbidden mountains. It’s a milieu that is inspiring and evocative, and the relatively short distance covered in this loop tour in central Sichuan belies the diversity we encounter: throughout the tour, the elevation changes from 500 metres to more than 6,000 metres, and the cultural fabric morphs from anachronistic old Communist-Industrialist town to the ruggedness of the Tibetan plateau.

We will visit the following places:

New Year Painting village

At the point where the Sichuan basin collides with the Himalaya mountains, there’s an old village that gave rise to one of China’s top four subgenres of the so-called “New Year Paintings” – they are called as such because traditionally people made the paintings during new year period. It’s a village of charming, old-style houses covered in white stucco, and with the house exteriors forming a canvas for the paintings. The artistic spreads depict folks doing things ranging from rural work (such as harvesting or fishing) to more esoteric gatherings (playing musical instruments or engaged in philosophical discussion) – these paintings symbolise the virtues of rural harmony, something that’s achieved by hard work, natural providence, humbleness and unity, and the pursuit of art and philosophy. 

Qiang people

The Qiang people, with their unique culture and way of life, sometimes called the People of the Clouds, are an ethnic group that live in 1000 villages along the Minjiang River valley. They have a history that stretches back about 4,000 years, making them one of the world’s oldest surviving ethnic groups. They remain one of the most esoteric ethnicities in Asia, and one of the greatest evocations is the siting of their villages: the hamlets of tightly-knit low-squat buildings and old defensive towers often cling to steep slopes in the high mountains (normally at 3,000-plus-metres high). Perhaps, being high up in the mountains, the Qiang avoided the fray and pillage left in the wake of the various conquerors who moved down the Minjiang River valley in a quest to overrun Chengdu and take over the valuable Sichuan basin. Additionally, the high turrets attached to their buildings offered a second layer of protection; the ancestors used to lock themselves into the towers with a good food supply when warring factions, marauders and bandits swept through. Ironically, it’s the inaccessibility of their villages that has allowed their culture to survive distinctly. Many Qiang still wear their old costume, which consists of black apparel with geometric splashes of colours and a strikingly black turban, and their villages remain oases of ancient culture and architecture. 

Danba

Straddling the point where the mountains reach their final steps before leveling out on the Tibetan plateau, Danba straddles the cultural zone between the Qiang and the Tibetan people. It draws cultural influences from both ends, in terms of culture and also in terms of landscape, and it is legendary for the beauty of its girls. It has the largest concentration of defensive turrets, about 40 metres high and most of them attached to private houses. The farmhouses themselves are also massive; these are constructed of slate, with wooden sections, and trimmings of Tibetan-style sculpting and brightly-painted panels of wood; some houses are three storeys high, with large courtyard and high ceilings. The villages are set up the slope from the Dadu River – which is one of the most dramatic river valleys in the world – along semi-arid terrain. Yet the villages flourish with orchards and trees and fields, which turn a riotous russet-crimson in autumn, thanks to water siphoned by the peasants from the river. South-facing slopes also hold pine forests, and during our stay in Danba we will stay with a local family, then explore the villages and go for a walk upslope to the peak almost 4,000 metres high, where we are greeted by a sweeping view of mountain peaks. 

Siguniang

The second-highest mountain in Sichuan, peaking at 6250 metres, Siguniang is famous for its series of spectacular granite peaks. It’s a massive mountain and a protected wilderness that’s crisscrossed with massive valleys hemmed in by forbidden summits. There is a range of habitats in the mountain, with broadleaf forests in the valleys, pine forests higher up, and a mix of scree and grasslands and lakes beyond the tree line. We will do an overnight trek in Siguniang, spending one night in tents.

Tagong

A pure and wild Tibetan palette awaits us in Tagong, a town set at the heart of the old Tibetan kingdom of Kham and the hub of the vast Tagong grasslands. The small town has a frontier feel and spirit: its large monastery attracts pilgrims doing Buddhist circumambulations, and the town is a mélange of nomads coming and going on horses, selling yak hides and butter, buying supplies, and being seen. They swagger in town wearing heavy robes, cowboy hats, and daggers dangling from their hips. A short hike outside town, across a pasture peppered with flowers, there is a large Tibetan monastery where sky burial is still practiced. Dotted along the grasslands undulating in the distance are the stooping black tents made of yak-hide of the nomadic herders, who follow a seasonal migratory pattern. We will experience all of this, including doing a walk or horse-ride to grazing lands where we visit a nomadic herding household.

Peasant villages

Several peasants’ villages are clustered in rich subtropical mountain valleys in south-central Sichuan, where the terrain is subtropical. The inhabitants are Han peasants who rake a living from the cultivation of major crops (mostly maize) and live in old-style wooden houses that seem to morph out of Chinese history books, decorated with folk prints and old Chinese recitations as well as figures of deities that ward evil and bring good luck. The farmhouses nestle in groves of bamboo stirring in the wind like huge fans of feathers – bamboo is planted around the houses partly for its value in making furniture and other household implements, and also for its totemic value (the peasants in the south of Sichuan believe that bamboo has talismanic powers). We will explore the atmospheric alleyways and wooden houses of some villages, the old arched stone bridges, the roadside deity shrines, and the exotic markets where hole-in-the-wall eateries make corn bread, cured meats, steamed dumplings and other local foods. In one village we will visit the ancient opera house, adjoining village square, and governor’s old house – all features that showcase the wonderful old-style Chinese masonry. One can even get lost just watching the village life – farmers peddling vegetables, day visitors sitting along the riverside and sipping tea or playing mahjong or just whiling away the time in chit-chat, children playing in the shallow stream – and sampling the local Chinese food dishes, particularly the dish known as dou hua, which is light-consistency tofu freshly made in traditional stone mill and then simply boiled and served with a pungent Sichuan sauce. 

Steam locomotive

The last steam train that runs commercially in China – and perhaps in the world – twists and hisses and heaves through subtropical mountains, passing peasant hamlets and an old coal mining town built in a Lenninist-Industrial style. The entire area, and especially the steam train, is a sight from another era: old Communist murals with firebrand revolutionary slogans still survive on facades of some buildings, the old administrative buildings are built in Soviet neoclassical style, the industrial tenements are dense and forbidden, the market has dentists and herbalists and barbers, and old people while away the time playing mahjong in the public teahouse or dancing in twirls in the square. Blacksmiths continue to make spare parts for the train the old way, and everything is manually operated. There are no roads and no cars. It’s an area that feels like a time-warp, and it’s like stepping forty years back in time, seeing once again what it was like during China’s revolutionary years at the start of the country’s industrialization. But the surprise is that all of this imagery is not some sort of re-enactment, or something set up or preserved for the sake tourism: it’s a real living town that has survived in a kind of limbo. 

Hanwang earthquake memorial

Hanwang is a former industrial town that was severely damaged during the earthquake of May 2008. The town has now been abandoned – a new town is being built a few kilometres from the destroyed town – and it will be left as it is as a memorial to the earthquake and, in a few years time, it will also emerge as a tourist site that will also have a centre that trains emergency services personnel in disaster response and management. The town is now haunting in its state of ruination and desolation; it looks like a place hit by a nuclear bomb. We will visit the town, and the tour leader will discuss Sichuan’s geology: the mountains that loom so high and dense are the conspicuous feature that explain the geologic dichotomy that makes the province susceptible to earthquakes.

Start & Finish: Chengdu

Duration: 15 days

Trekking: 3 days trekking

Difficulty Level: Treks are relatively easy; hiking is not longer than 6 hours daily. Travellers only need to carry personal belongings such as camera during treks. No special fitness is required. 

Prices: Highest-end prices start at RMB20,000 (€2,000 or US$2,900) total per person for two travellers; RMB17,000 each for three travellers, RMB15,000 for four participants, and then continues to fall commensurably thereafter depending on the size of the group. The price is all-inclusive; the only things that aren’t covered are incidental or superfluous personal expenses.

Crew & Vehicle: Vehicles range from a jeep (SUV) or seven-seat aircon van for a group of up to 4 travellers, then 10-seater or 17-seater mini-bus for larger groups. The crew consists of professional driver, tour leader and guide, as well as local guides and porters where needed. 

Accommodation: Three or four-star hotels in towns, guesthouses in Tagong and Ya’an village and Jiayang train, home-stay on two nights, camping on one night.

Dynamic Prices & Flexible Arrangements: Since we mostly cater for private groups, the itinerary here is a default or suggested itinerary that we usually alter depending on the clients’ budget and preferences. The prices quoted above are for a full complement of crew and mid-range hotels. You can change these arrangements to something that suits you better – find out more about ways with customised arrangements at Dynamic Pricing.

Detailed Info: For any questions or more details about this tour, please write to us.

Terms & Conditions: For the general terms and conditions that govern our tours and operation, and Frequently Asked Questions, please go to Nitty Gritty (FAQs).

Travel Independently: Would you prefer to travel in a more independent spirit to the places where we work, which are mostly locations beyond the main tourist circuits? We can help you arrange the logistics so that you can focus on enjoying the trip instead of using up your stamina in frustratingly trying to solve logistical tie-ups. Bear in mind that it may be impossible or very hard to find public transport to destinations where we operate, and it’s equally hard trying to find local guides and accommodation unless you speak the language and have local contacts. We can take away the hassles by fixing all these logistics, but you can still travel at your pace and unattached from general guide. Find out more at Travel Independently.