Where to See Pandas in China

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Giant panda, also simply known as panda, which is easily recognized by the large, distinctive black patches around its eyes, over the ears, and across its round body, is one of the rarest animal species in the world. There are total 1,864 pandas in China with 74 percent in Sichuan Province.

Little giant panda in Sichuan

How many people can resist the charm of adorable pandas? There isn’t many chance for normal people to closely see them, so when you come to China, it would be a waste if you give up the chance.

Giant Panda Bases in Sichuan

Within China, Sichuan with the best natural views has the most amounts of pandas living in due to the suitable environment for bamboos to grow that panda eats.

1. Chengdu Panda Base

As the NEAREST panda base to Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Panda Base specializes in baby pandas and their care. It's located at 10km away from the center of Chengdu where people can easily take the public transportations to, becoming one of the most popular destinations for foreign travelers. It is not only breeding pandas does Chengdu Panda Base focused on, but also the educational tours, watching documentaries and providing interactive activities which combine the fun and the knowledge about pandas and according protection. There are about 50 pandas living in Chengdu Panda Base which is the world’s only museum that focuses entirely on the critically endangered giant panda. The best time to visit Chengdu Panda Base is in the morning.

Chengdu Panda Base

2. Dujiangyan Panda Valley

Being short for the China Conservation and Research Center for Giant Panda Dujiangyan Base, Dujiangyan Panda Base is about 56km from Chengdu and 18km form the downtown Dujiangyan. It is the only giant panda care, disease prevention and control institute in the world as well as the nearest base to Chengdu which provides chance for tourists to do the panda volunteer job to get closely observe pandas and deeply understand the life habit of pandas.

The pandas are having fun in Dujiangyan Panda Valley

There are about 170 pandas living in Dujiangyan Panda Valley, which covers 506 thousand square meters, consisting of 6 zones: Panda Health Center, Panda Recovery Region, Panda training and breeding Region, Public Reception and Education Region and Natural Vegetation Region

Visitors who are interested in closely contact with these adorable pandas have a chance to do some volunteer work including cleaning panda houses, cleaning leftovers, preparing panda food like steamed corn bread, watching documentaries about panda, visiting the Panda Center of Science and Education, listening to seminars and plating bamboo.

3. Bifengxia Panda Base

With the most natural and beautiful mountainous view like dense forest and numerous waterfalls, Bifengxia Panda Base is located in the Bifengxia Parkland of Ya'an City, which is just over one hour by bus from Chengdu. It was established at 2003, and now there are more than 20 pandas living in, becoming a wonderland for pandas, a national treasure with multiple functions of raising, breeding and rescuing pandas.

The giant panda in Bifengxia Panda Base

Compared with Chengdu Panda Base, visitors coming to Bifengxia Panda Base can see pandas in a more natural environment and more comfortable status because the pandas here are trained in a simulated wild environment and have to return to the forest once the researchers believe they have the ability to survive in the wild nature according to kinds of data and reports.

4. Wolong Panda Base

Situated in the southwestern Wenchuan County, Wolong National Nature Reserve is 130km away from Chengdu. It is one the of World Natural Heritages in China, which is unfortunately destroyed by Wenchuan Earthquake on 2008. After that, Wolong National Natural Reserve had been reconstructed into a more ideal place for living and reproduction of pandas owing to its warm and humid climate with pandas’ favorite food, tons of bamboos.

The staff work for the little panda in cold winter

Wolong Panda Base, short for Wolong National Nature Reserve, has over 100 pandas once inhabited here, which accounts for 10% of the nation’s total, making itself a paradise for panda lovers. Unlike other regular zoos, Wolong Panda Base offers wild natural environment for pandas because researchers believe that keeping panda in the Base for years is not for touring or captivity but to training them to fit the nature and eventually coming back to the forest, which give the visitors a chance to run into pandas accidently when they visiting the reserve. There are several zones in the reserve according to different functions like Baby Panda Zone, Sub-adult Panda Zone, Breeding Zone and Wildness Training Zone.

Zoos with Pandas in China

Limited by tight schedule, it might be impossible for every panda lover to come to Sichuan. Actually, other than Sichuan, there are 68 zoos in China keeping more than 400 pandas for touring.

1. Beijing Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 8
Location: Xizhimen, Beijing Xicheng District
Opening Time: 7:30-18:00 (April to November), 7:30-17:00 (November to March)

2. Tianjin Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 1
Location: the southern zoo in Tianjin Water Park
Opening Time: 8:00-16:30

3. Tianjin Guanghegu Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: XinchendongDistrice, Tuanbo town, Jinghai County, Tianjin
Opening Time: 9:30-16:30

4. Shijiazhuang Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: Nandajie Street, Luquan District, Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province
Opening Time: 8:30-16:30

5. Taiyuan Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: No.2, Dongshanma Road, Xinhualing District, Taiyuan, Shanxi
Opening Time: 8:00-17:30(Summer) 8:30-17:00 (Winter)

6. E’erduosi Wild Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: No.1, Sanyuan Road, DongshengTiexie District, E’erduosi, Neimenggu
Opening Time: 9:00-18:00(Winter) 9:00-19:00 (Summer)

7. Dalian Forest Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 3
Location: No.79, Haibinxi Road, Xigang District, Dalian, Liaoning
Opening Time: 9:00-17:00

8. Siberia Tiger Park

Quantity of pandas:2
Location: Jingyue Road, Nanguan District, Changchun, Jilin
Opening Time: 8:30-17:00

9. Pandas in Yabuli Ski Resort

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: Yabuli Ski Resort, Heilongjiang
Opening Time: 8:30-16:30

10. Shanghai Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: No. 2381, Hongqiao Road, Changning District, Shanghai
Opening Time: 9:00-17:30

11. Shanghai Wild Animao Park

Quantity of pandas: 9
Location: No. 178, Nanliugong Road, Xuanqiao Town, Pudong District, Shanghai
Opening Time: 8:00-17:00 (March to November), 8:30-16:30 (December to Feburary)

12. Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 2
Location: No. 168, Heyan Road, Xiaguan District, Xuanwu District, Nanjing, Jiangsu
Opening Time: 7:30-17:30 (March to October) 8:00-16:30 (November to Feburary)

13. Wuxi Zoo

Quantity of pandas: 1
Location: No.99, Qianrong Road, Binhu District, Wuxi, Jiangsu
Opening Time: 8:30-16:30 (March to October) 8:30-16:00 (November to Feburary)