Dujiangyan Panda Volunteer Tour: Dujiangyan Panda Base + Mount Qingcheng
This morning, our guide will meet you in the hotel lobby and take you to start today's Dujiangyan and Qingcheng Mountain tour. Since the giant panda volunteer activity begins at 8:30 a.m., we will depart early for the panda base to complete check-in and training.
First, you will drive about 67 kilometers (about 1.5 hours) to visit the Dujiangyan Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, hailed as a "panda paradise," to see China's adorable national treasure, the giant panda, learn about their habits and conservation, and experience the daily work of a panda keeper. The Dujiangyan Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, also known as the Dujiangyan Panda Base, is China's first specialized institution focused on giant panda rescue and disease prevention and control research. It is also an important science education base and China's "giant panda customs," where all giant pandas leaving or returning to China must stay for a three-month mandatory observation period. In addition, the Dujiangyan Panda Base is located near the World Heritage area of giant panda habitat, which is very suitable for giant pandas, with a negative oxygen ion content as high as 91%, making it an excellent place to see giant pandas and enjoy natural healing. Besides the giant pandas living here, you can also see red pandas, golden pheasants, Asian black bears, and other rare animals.
Giant panda volunteer activity content
After arriving at the Dujiangyan Panda Base, you need to sign a safety agreement and receive a volunteer work card, clothing, and gloves. Under the guidance of the keeper, you will add fresh bamboo and bamboo leaves for the giant pandas, observe their daily behaviors such as eating and moving up close, learn panda feeding techniques and behavior analysis, and have the chance to participate in making panda cakes. If you are interested, you can also taste the keeper's lunch. Then, during a short break, you can watch a giant panda documentary to learn about their breeding and growth process. Finally, you will receive a panda volunteer certificate. After taking a group photo, remember to return your work card.
Panda stars at the Dujiangyan Panda Base
1. Baiyun: Born in 1991, she lived at the San Diego Zoo for 23 years. Now 32 years old, equivalent to a centenarian in human terms, she is extremely beautiful, cute, and elegant. At present, Baiyun is enjoying a happy retirement at the Dujiangyan Base together with her long-time partner Gao Gao and their child Huamei.
2. Gao Gao: Born in 1991, he lived at the San Diego Zoo for 15 years and is affectionately called "Grandpa Gao." He and Baiyun are a loving couple and have had five cubs. Gao Gao has a gentle personality and once starred in the documentary Going Home.
3. Huamei: Born in 1999 at the San Diego Zoo in the United States, she was Baiyun's first cub. Huamei was the first giant panda born in the United States to survive to adulthood, and the first giant panda born overseas to return to her homeland, symbolizing China-US friendship.
4. Daili: Born in 1999 and rescued from the wild in 2001, he became the world's first amputee giant panda. His tenacious vitality made him a legend in the panda world, and in 2004 he was adopted by singer Fei Xiang and named "Xiangxiang." In addition, because Daili likes to lie on the wall and observe his neighbors, he is known as the "center's number one gossip bear."
If you are interested, you can take some time to learn more about the stories behind different pandas.
Practical tips for the Dujiangyan Panda Base
1. Booking notice: The number of daily participants in the panda volunteer activity is limited, so please contact our customer service in advance to secure your spot.
2. Age limit: The regular panda volunteer program accepts participants between 10 and 70 years old, such as making panda cakes and watching panda documentaries. For some activities, children need adult accompaniment, subject to official requirements.
3. Physical examination report: A physical examination report is required to apply for the panda volunteer activity. You can contact our customer service for the relevant panda volunteer activity physical examination details, or download it through official channels.
4. Dress requirements: The base has many slopes and slippery roads, and there are many insects in the mountain forest. It is recommended to wear long sleeves, long pants, and non-slip shoes. In addition, giant pandas have a very keen sense of smell, so it is recommended not to wear perfume or nail polish to avoid causing stress reactions in the pandas.
5. Chinese lunch: The canteen for giant panda keepers mainly provides two meat dishes, one vegetarian dish, rice, and porridge. If you do not like the food at the panda base, it is recommended to prepare some snacks, but avoid foods with strong odors.
In the afternoon, head to Qingcheng Mountain, one of Chengdu's popular tourist attractions. Qingcheng Mountain is one of the birthplaces of Chinese Taoism, one of the four famous Taoist mountains in China, and a famous World Cultural Heritage Site. Zhang Daoling of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the founder of Taoism, established the Way of the Celestial Master here. More than ten Taoist temples still exist, including Jianfu Palace and Tianshi Cave, and it is known as the "Fifth Cave Heaven of Taoism." In addition, Qingcheng Mountain has verdant peaks and secluded winding paths, and its trees are evergreen and lush all year round, making it a natural oxygen bar. It is known as "Qingcheng Mountain, the most secluded under heaven." Moreover, Qingcheng Mountain was a filming location for Kung Fu Panda 3. Based on Qingcheng Mountain's beautiful natural scenery and magnificent Taoist architecture, the film created the misty bamboo forest and the red-walled, green-tiled Panda Village. You can stroll through it and immersively experience the scenery of Po's hometown in Kung Fu Panda, the immortal Taoist atmosphere, and visual wonders like a fairyland.
The best way to tour Qingcheng Mountain is on foot, and Qingcheng Mountain has a rich variety of hiking routes, from easy and leisurely sections to highly challenging ones, allowing you to fully explore Taoist culture and natural wildness.
Recommended hiking route for today: Scenic area entrance → sightseeing bus (about 10 minutes) → Yuecheng Lake → walk about 20 minutes, or take a ferry → cable car station near Yuecheng Lake → cable car up the mountain (about 5 minutes) → hike about 1 hour to the summit (if walking all the way up, it takes about 3–4 hours) → pass Shangqing Palace (the largest Taoist temple on Qingcheng Mountain) and Laojun Pavilion (the best viewpoint on Qingcheng Mountain) → hike down for about 2 hours (passing Chaoyang Cave, the best Taoist cultivation site, and Tianshi Mansion, famous for the thousand-year-old ginkgo planted by Master Zhang himself) / take the cable car down.
If time permits, you can visit Jianfu Palace near the entrance. It was first built in the 12th year of the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty (724). The 394-character long couplet from the Qing Dynasty hanging in the hall is praised as "a masterpiece of Qingcheng."
After the tour, this wonderful and unforgettable one-day Chengdu Dujiangyan Qingcheng Mountain panda volunteer tour will come to an end. Our driver will take you to the airport/train station or back to your hotel. If you would like to extend this trip and explore more destinations in China, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Huangshan, Harbin, Yunnan, Xi'an, Zhangjiajie, Tibet, Guilin, Xinjiang, and more, you can also contact our customer service to arrange it for you.
🍽️ Lunch included
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