Chongqing Hongyadong （Northwest Gate） — Attraction in Chongqing

Hongyadong has witnessed the tides of history and weathered the centuries to blossom into the huge tourist attraction it is today. Until around merely 20 years ago, Hongyadong was home to the working class of Chonqing and its distinctive stilted buildings (unique to Southwestern China).

After a renovation in the 90s, the spirit of Chongqing’s hardworking people has been kept in a new dazzling form. Visitors can enjoy the unique multi-level Chongqing-style architecture of centuries before, while shopping, eating and playing, all the while being swept away by the breathtaking riverside views of the city, and of Hongyadong itself - which has been lit up with a thousand lights.

Since the rapid development of the Internet, Chongqing has become one of the hottest cities, which attracts people to visit. Chongqing is famous for stereoscopic landscapes, which is unusual in other cities. Hongyadong is one of the representative urban tourist areas with three-dimensional (3D) landscapes.

Hongyadong also named Hongya Gate before, which was one of the oldest gates in Chongqing in the past. It is located at Cangbai Road, which is the intersection riverside zone of the Yangtze River and the Jialing River. The incredible place has another name of “a stilted building on the cliff, and the old Chongqing in memories”. In the meanwhile, it is an eye-catching building community featured with Bayu culture.

Meanwhile, the major landscapes at Hongyadong are stilted buildings and imitation antique buildings. The collection of buildings cover 46 thousand m2. As a unique “pedestrian street in the air”, Hongyadong becomes an integrated area of sightseeing and recreation. Additionally, many people said that it had the silhouette of the Spirited Away, from Miyazaki Hayao, especially at night. There are 11 floors here. The lights will illuminate Hongyadong from 6 o’clock in the afternoon and lights out at 10...

HYD is beautiful when lighted up. It’s a place where you come at night, since there’s nothing much in the day.

The lighting up starts at 7pm and lights are on until 11pm.

If you want to get photos, the opposite bank will be super crowded, just beware. But there are many viewpoints in HYD that you can look out to the bay and get beautiful pictures. Another alternative is to get on the suspension bridge if you want the full picture of HYD from a further distance.

The hotpot establishments here are way too expensive and very commercialised - they don’t taste good enough for god’s sake. It’s just catered for tourists who don’t know mala and just want to have a taste, but honestly, you’re not going to get a local and honest experience if you dine here.

A lot of food options as it seems a lot of Sichuan culture has converged to setting up shops here. You can have a taste at many finger food, so you didn’t really have to sit down for a proper dinner. Drinks are a plenty too, including entertainment to personal care services like ear picking.

I didn’t choose the ear picking here since they don’t look clean to me. Again it’s just all very commercialised and aimed at tourists who don’t know the local culture enough to go to the right place.

In fact, use the local apps and check on the spot what you want and it will tell you if you are in for a good...

This place is known for its unique scence blending classical Chinese architecture into a backdrop of modern skyscrapers. Those classical buildings were built upon a stepped foundation, creating a striking visual that those pavilions appears to stack vertically on each other as if they were hanging on a cliff. This concept was implemented to reproduce an original scence where many folks with low income built their homes on a cliff facing Jialin River in old hard times until it was demolished in 1990s to give ways to modern buildings and bridges. Coincidentally, this unique sight clearly resembles a scence from Hayao Miyazaki's acclaimed Sprited Away, gaining additional internet fame in recent years and therefore attracting many young visitors that were not expected when it was built. I would recommend to visit this place during night as the lighting effect lift up the entire vibe greatly. Also it is because the hazy air during day time could serverly obstruct its visibility. Chongqing is nostorious for its summer heat. So summer may not the best...