Home > Chengdu > Private Tour: Day Trip to the Leshan Grand Buddha from Chengdu
USD $163.00
Private Tour: Day Trip to the Leshan Grand Buddha from Chengdu
Chengdu, China
See the world’s largest stone Buddha statue! Standing at an astounding 233 feet (71 meters), the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Grand Buddha of Leshan is proof of the significance of this religion in ancient China. Your private guide will lead you on an illuminating journey up and down the trails around the whole structure, and you’ll visit ancient Buddhist temples along the way. Your tour will include private transportation from Chengdu and a delicious Chinese lunch at a popular local restaurant.
A private vehicle will pick you up from your Chengdu hotel and take you on a two-hour drive to the Leshan Grand Buddha. Upon arrival at Leshan, indulge in a delicious Chinese lunch at a popular local restaurant. Afterwards, your guide will lead you to the Grand Buddha Temple (Lingyun Temple), located behind the Grand Buddha’s head. Marvel at the elaborate construction of its coiled hair, which is made up of around 1,020 twisted buns. Walk inside and marvel at the intricate sculptures and wall designs of the temple.
Then, follow your guide down the trail toward the left of the Grand Buddha. This walk usually takes approximately 30 minutes, but is flexible depending on any rest or photo stops you may want to make. Standing at an impressive 233 feet (71 meters) high and 92 feet (28 meters) wide, it is by far the largest carved Buddha sculpture in the entire world! Admire the grandeur of this structure as it towers over you.
Your guide will then lead you on another 30-minute walk up the trail on the right side of the Buddha to reach another temple. Walk inside the Wuyou Temple, a pink-walled building housing an abundance of calligraphic paintings, sculptures of terracotta monks and various other Buddhist artifacts. Follow your guide to the Arhat Hall, where you will see upwards of 500 Arhat statues. Outside the temple, take in magnificent aerial views of the Buddha, the surrounding forest and the Min River, Qingyi River and Dadu River converging below.
For an alternative view of the Grand Buddha, take a boat cruise on the river (at own expense). After a full day of touring this World Heritage Site, sit back and relax as your private transport drives you back to your Chengdu hotel.
Martin is great! And he is very knowledgeable about each sight we have visited . I highly recommend him to anyone and wish him the best in this business. A reall professional!
Review by: Chris H, June 2017
It's a long ride from Chengdu, but it is absolutely amazing!
Review by: Michael K, February 2017
This tour was great! The guide (Mars) was very informative and helpful. She was also really personable--it felt like I was hanging out with a friend. The driver was extremely professional as well. Highly recommended!
Review by: ANTOINE G, January 2017
Amazing journey. The Leshan Giant Buddha is absolutely stunning. One of the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Our guide, Audrey, was extremely charming and professional, giving us great information about this gigantic piece of art.
Review by: John I, December 2016
Some other reviews suggest that the boat is the best way to see the Buddha but I have to say that nothing can compare with the close-up experience of climbing down and then up the steps alongside the statue. It is good to get there as early as possible and also to avoid peak season. We were able to proceed straight to the steps._br/_ Local lunch was enjoyable and chopsticks are not so difficult to use!_br/_ For me the two-hour journey from the city was also most interesting as it gave an overview of the villages, countryside and agriculture, all such a contrast to the city itself. It was just as much part of the experience and not simply a means to get there. _br/_ The guide, as with all Viator guides that I have met, was most informative.
Review by: P H Daniel C, July 2016
Actual tour as per expectation at time of booking.
Review by: Linda T, June 2016
Our guide was willing to tailor the trip to our wishes. She was informed and very pleasant her English was excellent
Review by: Kelli G, May 2016
Really cool!
Review by: Derek G, April 2016
Great day out. Its still hard to grasp the scale after seeing it. Great food included too
Review by: steaders, April 2016
Firstly our guide 'Coral' was excellent, very friendly, spoke good English and the driver was first class especially with the traffic and 'non existent rules of the road it would appear'. The journey to Lesham takes about 2 hours and Coral gave us an excellent commentary during this journey. Unfortunately the weather was dreadful, luckily had umbrella with us. On arrival the crowds were everywhere, good job did not arrive in height of season. Throughout the visit to the Buddha, Coral gave a good history and explanation and we had a laugh. The wait to walk down the Buddha and up again was around 2 hours so we declined due to the weather conditions but Coral made up for this with her commentary. The lunch was superb. One observation perhaps to improve this visit is to climb up and be given the commentary and visit the temples then proceed to the 'boat option' rather than waiting up to 2 hours to fully view the statue then followed by the lunch, that way everybody would see everything. The return journey to the hotel took again another 2 hours so a very full day.
Review by: Angela R, November 2015
This is very impressive. For me, it was a 6 hour return journey to get there and back from the hotel, which in retrospect, I'm not sure was absolutely the best use of the limited time I had in Chengdu. having said that it is a UNESCO heritage site and I saw it and did the climb around it. It is very busy there too. I had x 2 full days in Chengdu, and with what i know now, would have done pandas on both days... the Giant Panda reserve and the centre for the cubs the next day.
Review by: Angela H, November 2015
This is very impressive. For me, it was a 6 hour return journey to get there and back from the hotel, which in retrospect, I'm not sure was absolutely the best use of the limited time I had in Chengdu. having said that it is a UNESCO heritage site and I saw it and did the climb around it. It is very busy there too. I had x 2 full days in Chengdu, and with what i know now, would have done pandas on both days... the Giant Panda reserve and the centre for the cubs the next day.
Review by: Vladimir C, July 2015
We had time to do both to sail to the Buddha and to walk to it. The second is more interesting.
Review by: phillip s, June 2015
I was met by my guide the wonderful Jeli from samtour and our driver. We drove to leshan. I chose to take the boat to the Buddha. The boat only spends about 5 mins in front of the Buddha but that was enough for a great view and some nice pictures. Aftrewards we had a very tasty lunch in a leshan restaurant. All in all another pleasant day compliments of viator and samtour
Review by: Merlene W, January 2015
Tour leader and driver very good. very interesting trip
Review by: Jessica M, December 2014
We had a really great day. Its a long drive out to Leshan from Chengdu but we arrived in plenty of time to beat the big rush of people. Our guide was very friendly and spoke excellent English. The actual trek itself was a little more challenging than I had anticipated, especially going up.. but with a few little breaks it was very manageable. We were very lucky with lines, we barely had to wait at all and our guide said that in peak seasons it can be a 4hr wait to see the buddha.. something people should keep in mind when booking this tour during the popular months. The included lunch was also good… Not the best food I had while in Chengdu, but warm and filling after our big climb. It was a pretty perfect day, my only complaint (and its not an overly big one) is that neither our driver or our guide wore seat belts in the car despite being on a freeway at over 100kms an hour. It made the journey a little nerve wracking, especially considering how insane traffic is in China compared to what were used to at home. Would definitely recommend to anyone staying in Chengdu
Review by: kvpogoda, November 2014
The weather was overcast making it dificult to get a view of the Buddah. While this is booked as a full day tour, I was back at the hotel by 3 in the afternoon. I thought it was overpriced for what it was. I do understand that most of the money goes toward the long ride and the driver waiting. There should be some back-up plan if the weather does not cooperate. The tour guide was knowledgeabl but didn't know what to do to compensate for the poor visability
Review by: Sherri E, July 2014
Great trip! We were picked up on time and Andy, our guide, was very personable and answered all of our questions. I think this trip is a little overpriced as all of it can be done by public transportation much more cheaply but if you are new to China or don't want to go without a guide, I would certainly recommend it.
Review by: Susannah v, July 2014
We had an amazing time in Leshan. Our guide, Andy, taught us so much and made it a great day. Lunch in the village was fantastic too._br/_
Thank you!!
Review by: Barbara S, October 2013
Very nice tour guide and amazing buddha. We thought it was a real hike but even small children can do these stairs. Don't take the boat, but line up to walk down.
Review by: amnon z, October 2013
It was alright. Because of the number of people climbing up we only saw it from the boat which was better for photos but was short and somewhat underwhelming
Review by: Debbie A, October 2013
Be prepared for big crowds of people, the Grand Buddha is very popular. There is more then just the Grand Buddha to see, so ensure that if you want to walk down a path and see where is goes you tell the guide as there are some spots in the scenic area that people do not go to._br/_
We skipped the very long wait in line to walk down the stairs to the foot of the Buddha and opted to take the boat instead which was extra but well worth it.
Review by: Angela B, September 2013
Really worth seeing despite the queue at the entrance and the humidity, the fog and the heat. Car, driver and guide were good. Lunch was decent.
Review by: MR TIMOTHY J C, August 2013
The car was excellent, the guide good. But the queue to view this were ridiculous(no fau;lt of the tour company). After waiting more than an hour to get to view, it was all too hard so we went home.
Review by: Matthaeus Z, May 2013
A great experience and really worth seeing.
Review by: Gareth J, April 2013
Our best guide of our Chinese trip. Very friendly and helpful. Awesome lunch too.
Review by: Karen L, December 2012
Great tour, well organized and very accommodating guide and driver. The lunch was good, and we feel like we got to see and do everything we wanted. The tour guide's English was limited, but she was very patient with all of our questions. Definitely recommend!
Review by: , October 2012
Amazing big buddha and great way to enjoy other aspect of SIchuan besides the pandas!
Review by: Amelia B, October 2012
Our guide, Lilian, was very helpful and spoke English really well. She was very infomative about the history of the site. It was extremely crowded when we went, as it was during the Mid-Autumn festival, so she helped us buy tickets to see the Buddha from the river. The lunch was decent, from a little restaurant across the road and she let us help choose the meal. The only criticism I have is that my friend and I paid for a private tour and there was another lady (who also paid for a private tour) who joined us. She was pleasant, though and we all got along well.
Review by: Anonymous, October 2012
Amazing big buddha and great way to enjoy other aspect of SIchuan besides the pandas!
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