Dazu Rock Carvings in Chongqing

History of the Dazu Carvings 

This is what drew me into the Dazu Rock Carvings: the history and the varying influences on what was carved. Many of them are Buddhist carvings, particularly the ones at Baodingshan and Beishan (the two most popular sites). However, there are also many carvings that depict the daily lives of people, ideals from Confucius (like filial piety), and Taoist beliefs. Nanshan, a smaller section of carvings, was intriguing in that it was more influenced by Taoism than Buddhism. 

The Dazu Rock Carvings were built during the Song and Tang Dynasties, from around 650 to 1279 or so. They were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999. Due to the fact that many of the carvings are a little out in the middle of nowhere, and previously there weren't any paved roads leading to some of the areas, the carvings were kept pretty much unharmed throughout history, except for the effects of erosion. 

What's also so fascinating are the different styles used. There's a stark difference between the carvings at Baodginsahn, Beishan and Nanshan. At Baodingshan, for example, the carvings are elaborate scenes, involving both Buddhist figures and carvings of people living their daily lives. Some scenes show family love; another, reaching Nirvana. At Beishan, however, the carvings are done in the more traditional niche-carving style, where each niche is distinct and separate from the others. Rather than forming a whole scene, they stand out on their own. And at Nanshan, there are less statue carvings and more tablets and inscriptions. If you want to get a wider perspective, I suggest visiting multiple sites; however, if you're more there for the pictures, Baodingshan would suffice. 

How to Get to Dazu from Chongqing City 

Dazu is located in Chongqing Province, but is easily accessible by bus from Chongqing city and takes about 2 hours to arrive. Buses to Dazu leave from multiple bus stations in Chongqing, including Chenjiaping and Longtousi.  

I chose to depart from Chenjiaping, as it’s closest to where I live. I arrived a little after 9:00 a.m. and was able to buy a bus ticket at the station for the bus leaving at 9:30 a.m. 

If you’re traveling during peak holiday season or just worry about tickets selling out, you can go to the bus station the day before and buy your ticket. From my understanding, you can’t buy your return ticket to Chongqing there, so you’ll have to wait to get to Dazu before you can do that. 

Bear in mind that although most train stations in China have things translated into English, there is next to no English at bus stations. Signs are in Mandarin only. It’s helpful to figure out the basic Chinese symbols for Chongqing, Dazu, the bus station you’re leaving from, and seat number. The bus you board will have a sign propped up on the inside saying that it’s going to Dazu – the ticket check is only at the bus station in order to get into the bus terminal area, so your ticket won’t be checked outside the bus right before you board. If you’re unsure you’re on the right bus, double check to verify or show your ticket to someone and ask. 

Where to Stay in Dazu 

Booking.com and Hostelworld.com won’t help you here! I wasn’t able to find anything on those main websites. However, using Trip.com (or the app), you’ll be able to find a bunch of simple hotels with quite cheap single rooms: there were a variety of options in downtown Dazu town for 60-80 yuan per night. 

I chose to stay at the Yunheng Holiday Hotel, which was a convenient 3-5 minute walk from the central bus station and had everything that I needed: a bed, a toilet, and a shower. There was an A/C unit that can also be used for heat if it’s chilly when you go, a kettle, and some cups. It was decently clean, although the building was old and many of the rugs and walls were stained, but nothing that I couldn’t handle. The bed was comfy, as well – something that isn’t always the case at hotels or hostels here. And the public bus #205 to Baodingshan picked up right outside the hotel.  

What to Eat While in Dazu 

In the downtown of Dazu you’ll see typical Chongqing-style food here: hot pot, shared plates restaurants, and noodle shops. Bubble tea shops are common if you’re craving a fancy tea drink. Street food, like meat on a stick and potatoes (these are so good) can be found as well. 

The rock carving sites themselves have less options, although there were outside food stalls at Baodingshan. At Beishan and Nanshan it’s best to bring your own snacks and food with you. I also went during off season, so I imagine that peak season had more options, particularly at Baodinghsan.  

The Rock Carving Sites at Dazu 

As I mentioned earlier, I was able to see three out of the five rock carving sites in Dazu. They're all within a 15-kilometer or so radius of the town of Dazu, so two of them are accessible by walking whilst the other three you'll have to take either the public bus or a taxi.

Baodingshan 

Baodingshan is the largest and most popular rock carving site in Dazu. Located just outside of downtown, you can choose to either take a private taxi/car or public bus to arrive. Baodingshan encompasses a huge area that houses not only the intricate carvings section, but also a museum (price included in admission), two different temples and a movie theatre (price not included in admission).  

All in all, I mosied around for about 4 hours, checking out most of what the area had to offer. The museum is definitely worth a visit, and everything was translated into English (with decent translations). The rock carvings are very well-maintained, and a lot of restoration work has also gone into making sure that the carvings don’t continue to erode.  

Admission Fee: 100 yuan off-season. Can buy with Beishan, and ticket is good for 2 days.  

Getting to Baodingshan: You can barter with a private taxi or take the #205 public bus, which picks up on the main street a block down from the bus terminal exit. The public bus costs 3 yuan and lasts maybe 30 minutes, but since it goes down a rural street, the bus doesn’t stop at every stop unless a passenger calls for it to stop, so it can go quicker. 

Beishan 

An easy 2 kilometer, 30-minute walk from the bus station in Dazu town, Beishan is the second-most popular rock carving site here. Alternatively, you could take a local metered taxi to get to this one.  

If you’re only going for a day, I highly recommend you squeeze this one in with Baodingshan. The rock carvings are still in excellent shape, although not as many are colored like the ones at Baodingshan. There are plenty of placards describing what certain well-known niches mean and what they’ve been influenced by. To limit the corrosive powers of water, structures have been built around the carvings; although a little odd, they were as tastefully done as could be.There’s also an old pagoda with 2 large Buddhas sitting underneath it in a different section of the tourist area.  

If you have extra time, there’s also a park hill that you can climb up on the way to Beishan (or on the way back to downtown). It also has an old, run-down amusement park for kids. 

Admission Fee: If bought with your Baodingshan ticket, it costs 20 yuan. The ticket is good for two days, so you don't have to worry about hitting up both spots in the same day. 

Getting to Beishan: If you have the time, I recommend walking, it’s pretty straightforward to get to. However, if you’re doing just a day trip, just tell a local taxi driver Beishan and they should know exactly how to get there.  

Once you arrive, you’ll see the ticket office – rather than walking straight if you already bought your ticket, turn towards the ticket office and the entrance to get into the rock carvings area will be nearby. I accidentally walked straight and got all turned around. However, make sure once you exit the rock carvings site to continue on up the path with the marked signs to go see the pagoda and the two large buddhas – they're worth the very short detour.  

Nanshan 

Although a little farther out than Beishan, Nanshan is still walkable from downtown Dazu. It’s also a 30-minute, 2 kilometer walk, but in the opposite direction as Beishan (bei is north in Chinese, nan is south). Here you’re a little more out into farmland, and there are quite a few steps you have to climb up to get to the site. 

The rock carving area in Nanshan is quite small, and they have more tablets with inscriptions than the other two. The Nanshan carvings are more Taoist than Buddhist, and so you’ll see some carved dragons as well. There’s an additional lookout point that gives you a good view of Dazu (although not necessarily a beautiful town, but it’s a view nonetheless). 

Additionally, on the way back towards downtown you could stop at the Martyr’s Cemetery, which is near the bus station. There isn’t a whole lot to do here, so it would only have to be a quick stop.  

Admission Fee: 5 yuan, absurdly cheap 

Getting to Nanshan: Either walk the 30-minute journey, or hail a taxi and tell them Nanshan. Even if you take a taxi you’ll have to climb some steps to get to the rock carvings site.  

Shizhuanshan and Shimenshan Rock Carvings 

These two rock carvings are outside the town’s limits as well, although you may still be able to find a public bus that could take you there. I doubt a taxi would take you there using metered fare, so you’d probably have to negotiate a rate to get you there and back. Both sites are smaller; both are known to tie together Buddhism and Taoism, and Shizhuanshan also has a carving of Confucius with his 10 disciples.  

Getting Back to Chongqing From Dazu 

I took a bus back to Chongqing Chenjiaping station that left at 16:00. The last bus to leave Dazu to Chenjiaping was at 17:30 on the day I went. It’s best to buy your ticket early the day you’re leaving so that you know what time you have to get back to the bus station. Times vary depending on which bus station you want to go to in Chongqing, but I don’t think that any of them will leave much later than 18:00.  

Day Trip or Stay Over in Dazu? 

Ultimately it depends on how much time you have, but if you’re able to spare two days I’d recommend staying 1 night. The first day I arrived in Dazu slightly before 12:00 p.m. and only checked out Baodingshan, where I spent a good portion of my day at.  

The next day I set out at around 10:00 a.m. and leisurely walked to Beishan, stayed for a few hours, checked out the nearby hill that’s been turned into a park, walked back downtown for lunch, and then walked south to go to Nanshan. I briefly stopped at the Martyr’s Cemetery on the way back from Nanshan as well. Because the two sites are in opposite directions, I probably walked at least two hours combined to even arrive at the sites, and then of course you’re walking (or climbing steps, in the case of Nanshan) at the site as well. If you take a taxi or hire a private car, you could cut back a significant amount of travel time and squeeze in one or both of the other two sites if you so desire.  

All in all, Dazu is certainly worth taking the time to go and see, whether it be for one, two or more days.