Finally the city is cooling down a bit, so it’s safe to come out of our air conditioned caves. Autumn (or Fall for our Yankie friends) is one of the best times to be out and about in Sichuan, as the weather is fresh, and there’s LOTs to do. New international flights, a new high-speed train to Jiuzhaihou, new sightseeing buses, and MORE. Here’s what’s new in China’s most chilled out capital…
New Direct International Flight Routes
Chengdu Tianfu International Airport launched flight routes to more foreign cities including Milan in Italy, Penang in Malaysia and to increase flights to four routes to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, Seoul in ROK and Singapore.
Earlier, Chengdu launched direct flight to Panglao Island in the Philippines and two-way flights to Kota Kinabalu (Jesselton) and Tawau City in Malaysia.
Bullet Train Service to Songpan, Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong
The section from Zhenjiang Pass to Huangsheng Pass of the Sichuan-Qinghai Railway (Chengdu-Xining) officially opened to traffic on August 30, 2024 upon the completion of its construction.
The operation of the line will drastically reduce the running time of bullet trains from Chengdu to the scenic spots along the way — the departure from Chengdu Dong Railway Station will take 1 hour and 33 minutes to get to Songpan County, 1 hour and 39 minutes to Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong, 1 hour and 54 minutes to Huangsheng Pass. The lowest ticket price for the second-class seat from Chengdu Dong Railway Station to Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong is RMB128. The operation also facilitate the transfer of passengers between Shuangliu Airport and Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong Scenic Spots, reducing the running time between the two places to 2 hours and 36 minutes.
The World Games 2025 Chengdu: One Year Countdown
The 12th World Games (TWG 2025 Chengdu) are to be held in Chengdu August 7-17, 2025, during which a total of 254 sports events in 61 categories of 35 disciplines will be staged.
Here is the recently published schedule of TWG 2025 Chengdu:
Chengdu to Set up a Downtown Duty-free Store
The Ministry of Finance and four other administrative organizations have jointly publicized a document recently called Optimization of Policies on Downtown Duty-free Shops that, to be put to effect on October 1, 2024, will apply coordinated management to the existing duty-free shops in cities. A duty-free store will be opened in eight cities including Chengdu across the country. And it will be the first duty-free shop in Chengdu.
The downtown duty-free store refers to the shop, approved by the State Council, that is located in downtown areas in the city selling duty-free goods to outbound travelers as stipulated by relevant administrations, with its target customers being the travelers, including but not limited to the Chinese nationals, to depart the country by air or international cruise within 60 days. Customers can make purchases in advance at the store and pick up their goods at outlets at the ports of departure before taking them to the outbound destination.
Chengdu to Host the 2024 East Asian Half Marathon Championships
Chengdu Sightseeing Bus
The sightseeing circuit lines up the most thrilling landmark constructions in the area, including the Tianfu Twin Towers, which presents magnificent neon views at night, Jiaozi Park, SKP, which boasts the largest sunken constructions in Asia, UFun Mall, M·Cube Shopping Center, Jincheng Wanda Plaza, Global Center, The Magic Garden City, and Chengdu Yintai Center in99, offering you the top-class shopping and catering experiences.
To present a better trip for passengers, the sightseeing route has adjusted the departure time on weekends and shortened the intervals between buses in order to provide more favorable and efficient bus services to passengers, bringing them the direct experience of the city’s people-oriented service and happy life, while presenting Chengdu’s urban landscape.
For the 4th year running the Michelin Guide has cast their discerning eyes on Chengdu’s food and beverage scene. And with one of China’s proudest food cultures, we always wonder how this will be received.
The new guide has just been released for 2025, and there aren’t many notable changes in the stars – BUT more fly restaurants on the selected restaurants and Bib Gourmand awardees have been added. Which is good news in a city so passionate about the fly restaurants that bring all walks of life together, and are great levelers.
For all the details, click here.
Léman 2024-2025 Parent Academy
The newly designed Parent Academy will play a vital role in connecting the school with Léman families and supporting students on their path to success. This year, we are excited to launch our Parent Academy early in September. This new school year, we will host 10 Parent Academy events which will be supplemented with Parent “Tea and Chats” and “Parent Information” sessions.
The Parent Academy began on the 3rd of September and will run until the 5th May 2025. Topics covered will include high quality teaching and learning; working together to stop bullying; how children learn to read and write; the importance of assessment and feedback for learning in primary and secondary schools; and keeping children safe online, plus many more.
For more information and registration, click here.
