Stand at Chaotianmen Square where the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers meet and you will see the city's logic at once: a skyline stacked on hills, bridges stitching the banks together, and boats working the water below. Chongqing rewards travellers who are willing to walk uphill, ride the metro for the views and eat where the locals eat.
This guide suits independent travellers with two or three days to spare, and anyone passing through on a Yangtze river cruise. It covers the streets, architecture and evening spectacles worth your time, plus how to string the best of them into a single day.
Top things to do in Chongqing
1. Chaotianmen Square
A large public square at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers, open around the clock. It is the clearest place to grasp how much of Chongqing's life has revolved around river trade, with views across the water to the new Chongqing Grand Theatre.
Come at night, when the lights are spectacular, and combine it with a river cruise: many cruise ships terminate nearby. Entry is free, and many bus routes end here, so it is easy to reach.
2. Hongyadong
A recreation of old Chongqing clinging to the side of the mountain, packed with small shops. It is a tourist place, but you can find recreations of old local crafts and genuine local food here.
It sits near Jiefangbei, so pair the two in one evening. Reach it via Metro Line 2 to Linjiangmen Station, Exit D, or Line 1 to Xiaoshizi Station, Exits 6 and 9. Entry is free.
3. Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street
The centre of downtown Chongqing, built around the People's Liberation Monument, a 27.5-metre-high structure formerly known as the Monument of Victory in the War of Resistance. The broad paved square is lined with glassy office towers and high-rise hotels, and the surrounding shopping square holds more than 3,000 stores.
Use it as your base for an evening: arrive by Metro Line 2 to Linjiangmen Station, walk the square, then continue to Hongyadong on foot.
4. Ciqikou
Meaning "Porcelain Port", this ancient town in Shapingba on the banks of the Jialing River long made and transported porcelain. Several streets show Chongqing as it was, and unlike similar places in China it is still in its original state rather than a reconstruction.
Allow a couple of hours. Walk uphill away from the river and the main tourist area, where regular families still live, and visit the temple at the top of the hill. The lanes lead down to the river, where you can board a restaurant boat. It is open around the clock and free to enter; take Metro Line 1 to Ciqikou Station.
5. Great Hall of the People
An architectural symbol of Chongqing and the meeting place of the Chongqing Municipal People's Congress. Construction began in 1951, but the design is traditional and mirrors China's ancient classical dynasties, somewhat resembling an enlarged version of the Temple of Heaven in Beijing.
The building is meant to be seen from the outside, so there is no need to pay admission. The People's Square in front was completed in 1997 and is paved with smooth marble tiles, with a music fountain and an open-air stage; in the evening you may see thousands of people dancing there under the lights. If you do go inside, you can read about the building's history in Chinese and view old photographs for ¥10. Access is through the pedestrian tunnel from Zengjiayan metro station on Line 2.
6. Shibati (18 Stairs)
A historic neighbourhood on the south side of the Yuzhong Peninsula, open all day. A former slum area, it underwent a major renovation between 2017 and 2021 and is now fully gentrified and commercialised.
The Shibati Memories Museum near the northern entrance explains the history of the area, which is worth a look before you walk the lanes. General entry is free. It is near Jiaochangkou Metro Station, at the intersection of Lines 1 and 2.
7. Raffles City Chongqing
Completed in 2019, this suite of eight buildings, also known as Laifushi, is one of the city's newest landmarks. Its most notable feature is the 300-metre-long, 250-metre-high skybridge named the Crystal, which connects four of the buildings and is recognised as the second highest skybridge in the world.
Tickets for the observation deck cost ¥180. It is about 600 metres northeast of Xiaoshizi Metro Station on Lines 1 and 6, which makes it easy to combine with a walk through Jiefangbei.
8. Chongqing World Financial Centre
At 339 metres tall, this is the city's third-highest skyscraper, towering above the Jiefangbei skyline. Inside is the WFC Huixianlou Skyview observation deck, which arguably delivers the most jaw-dropping panorama of Chongqing's high-rises, rivers and bridges.
The skydeck is refreshingly uncrowded, leaving you space to take in the view. Tickets cost ¥118 and can be bought online or at the lower ground floor, which is also where the high-speed elevators leave from. Opening hours are 10:00-22:00; reach it via Metro Line 2 to Linjiangmen Station.
9. Liziba Station
Here the metro line takes a surreal detour straight through the middle of a 19-storey apartment block. The train whooshes through the building, making this one of the city's quirkiest photo opportunities.
It is free to visit and runs from 06:30 to 23:50. Time your stop so you can watch a train pass through from the street below, then continue on the same line.
10. Datang Plaza
A gravity-defying square perched atop a building: street level on one side, but dropping an astonishing 22 storeys on the other. It is a true showcase of Chongqing's wild topography.
Treat it as a short stop rather than a destination in itself, and look before you step, since the two sides of the square meet the ground at very different heights.
11. Drone show "Glamorous Chongqing"
Each Saturday night from 20:30 to 20:50, and on major holidays, thousands of synchronised drones dance above the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers.
In June 2025 the show set a Guinness World Record with 11,787 drones. Plan your evening around it and watch from the riverside near the confluence.
12. Liangjiang International Film City
A recreation of downtown Chongqing as it looked in the 1940s, built for Feng Xiaogang's 2012 film Back to 1942 and now a tourist attraction. The streets feature replicas of many well-known buildings from the time, as well as staff dressed in period costumes.
It is open 08:30-17:30 and admission is ¥40. Direct bus services run from Longtousi Bus Station, and bus nos. 980, 984, 986 and 995 also stop here.
13. Chongqing East railway station
Worth a stop even if you are not catching a train. Opened in 2025, it is billed as the largest railway station in the world, a futuristic mega-terminal of glass and steel with cavernous halls and sweeping rooflines.
It is on Metro Line 6, so you can fold a look inside into a metro journey across the city.
14. Huangjueping Piano Stairs
A vibrant public art installation near the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, where a long flight of stairs is painted like a piano keyboard. Each step produces a different musical note when stepped on.
It is a fun, interactive stop for all ages, and pairs naturally with a wander around the arts institute area.
15. Chongqing Air Raid Shelter Bookstore
A bookstore uniquely built inside a former air raid shelter from the WWII era. It offers a quiet and contemplative atmosphere for reading, and represents a creative adaptive reuse of Chongqing's distinctive historical structures.
Come here when you want a break from the crowds and the heat, and give yourself time to sit with a book rather than just look around.
If you only have one day
Morning: Start at Ciqikou, walking the original streets and the temple at the top of the hill before the lanes fill up. Take Metro Line 1 back towards the centre and stop at Liziba Station to watch a train pass through the apartment block.
Afternoon: Head to Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street and walk the square around the People's Liberation Monument. Continue to the Great Hall of the People via Zengjiayan metro station on Line 2, then walk through Shibati (18 Stairs) and look into the Shibati Memories Museum near the northern entrance.
Evening: Go up to the WFC Huixianlou Skyview at the Chongqing World Financial Centre for the panorama, then walk to Hongyadong for the shops and local food. Finish at Chaotianmen Square for the night lights over the two rivers, or time your visit for Saturday, when the drone show "Glamorous Chongqing" runs from 20:30 to 20:50.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get around the main sights?
The metro does most of the work. Liziba Station is on the line that runs through the apartment block, Jiefangbei and the Chongqing World Financial Centre are reached via Linjiangmen Station on Line 2, Ciqikou has its own station on Line 1, and the Great Hall of the People is reached through the pedestrian tunnel from Zengjiayan station on Line 2.
Which sights are free?
Chaotianmen Square, Ciqikou, Hongyadong, Shibati (18 Stairs), Liziba Station and Datang Plaza all have free general entry. Paid admissions include the WFC Huixianlou Skyview at ¥118, the Raffles City observation deck at ¥180, Liangjiang International Film City at ¥40, and ¥10 if you go inside the Great Hall of the People.
When is the best time to see the rivers lit up?
At night. Chaotianmen Square is at its most spectacular after dark, and the drone show "Glamorous Chongqing" runs above the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers on Saturday nights from 20:30 to 20:50, as well as on major holidays.
What can I see if it rains?
Head indoors. The Chongqing Air Raid Shelter Bookstore sits inside a former WWII air raid shelter, the WFC Huixianlou Skyview and the Raffles City skybridge both put you above the weather, and Liangjiang International Film City keeps its period streets and costumed staff under cover of a full day out.
Pick your dates around a Saturday if you can, then start mapping the metro lines against the list above.