Satisfying Chongqing Yichang Yangtze River Cruise Experience with Century Sun

A load of travelers had asked me about the Yangtze River Cruise in Winter. Would it be extremely cold? Would it be less beautiful than other seasons? Would it be worth the money? Then I finally got a chance to do it myself (Nov 29th - Dec 2nd). Here we go, I am going to answer all these questions based on my personal experience.

Day 1: Cruise Boarding

I live in Chengdu now, but Chongqing is my hometown, I know this city pretty well and be able to find the way to Chaotianmen Port easily. But not the same easy for travelers no matter they are Chinese or Foreigners. You’d better book a private transfer or take a taxi. Taxis won’t send passengers to the boarding piers, so you have to go downhill and walk for about 5 minutes to the ship.

Anyway, I boarded my cruise without any problem. The room was nice and spacious with a private balcony. After a short rest in my room, I went to the bar for the Welcome Party and happy to meet the cruise staff and other passengers there.

There was an interesting thing, a group of 33 booked the same ship from our company, and I recognized them because of the 2 lovely kids! We danced together and took a quick photo. What a small world!

Oh, you don’t want to miss the gorgeous night view of Chongqing city!

Day 2: Shore excursion; optional Fengdu Ghost city and included Shibaozhai Pagoda

After breakfast, gathering at lobby and be divided into serval groups, each group have their own tour guide. “Fengdu Ghost City” also be called the “City of Ghosts” on Ming Mountain with a history of 1900 years, is located on the northern bank of the Yangtze 176 kilometers downstream from Chongqing. The guide shows us to the Nothing-to-be-done Bridge (奈何桥), Ghost Torturing Pass (鬼门关), and other places and told us some stories about the ghost culture. If you are not so keen on Chinese Ancient Ghost Culture and don’t want to hike a lot, then I don’t think it is a good place for you.

See, a long way to go….

Once you reach the top of the mountain, you do get a good place to have a panoramic view of the river which really was a nice moment for me. I wish I’d have some more time sitting there and having a cup of tea.

On the way back to ship after the short trip, I encountered some lovely birds which can’t seem in other seasons. What a nice surprise!

The included shore excursion to Shibaozhai Pogada won’t start until 4 pm. I got some easy time myself to have a nap and get my energy back.

It took us around 15 minutes walking from the port. The whole tour lasted around 2 hours. The most interesting and hardest part was supposed to be climbing to the top of this Pagoda as the stairs are very narrow and steep. But I gave it up because I was traveling with my 70-year-old grandma, it is not interesting to seniors. Anyway, Shibaozhai Pagoda was good and worth visiting.

Day 3 Shore excursion; optional Baidi Town and included Shennv Stream

The highlight of today is Kuimen, the scenery listed in the cash of Chinese Yuan (10 Yuan). To be honest, I was not happy with the tour to White Emperor City at the beginning. I am not so keen on the History of Three Kingdoms and people there were always trying to sell me paintings and wood stuff. But when I reached Kuimen, it was like a big “wow”. Pictures couldn’t tell even the half of its beauty!

I thought after seeing Kuimen, there is nothing I could expect for rest of the day. Well it turned out that I was totally wrong when I saw Shennv Stream and Wu George.

After lunch, we went to the Sun Deck on 5th floor to see Qutang George.

After a short break, we took a smaller boat to visit Shennv Stream where was the 2nd highlight of today. I could even still remember the cliffs lapped by a crystal-clear river, the green tree-covered mountain and the peace in my mind.

Day 4 Shore Excursions to Three Gorges Dam Site

Today is the last day on board, breakfast starts in very early morning. I had to get up at around 6am, got everything packed and checked out at around 7:30am.

The highlight of today is the Three Gorges Dam where is way beyond my expectation! The Three Gorges Dam includes three areas: the dam itself, a hydroelectric, and a system of locks. The tour guide will tell you more about the Dam Site, so here I am just going to show you some pictures with magnificent view I got from there.

I’ll call it the end of my Yangtze River Cruise trip, it really was a good and memorable experience, will recommend it to all my friends! Well, I think there are still some questions to be answered!

Would it be extremely cold doing Yangtze River Cruise during winter time?

Yes, it’s cold but it’s ok. I could still enjoy my easy time by lying on the deck or siting at my balcony outside of my room.

Would it be less beautiful than seasons?

Definitely no! The water in Winter is even clearer than in Summer. I can say the river and Georges in Winter are as beautiful as they are in other seasons and even more.

How’s Century Sun?

Personally I think it is a nice ship. Staffs are friendly, always wearing a smile on their face. Meals on board are good as well. Chinese and Western food are both served for all 3 meals. For the rooms, I can only give my opinion on Deluxe Cabin which was clean and specious.

Hope all these information helps!

Riley

" Hi, I'm Riley. Are you interested in my Four Days Yangtze River Cruise? Feel free to contact me, and I will be glad to tell you more stunning stories about the places I have visited. Or, if you want to customize a tour on your own, I'm always ready to help at any time. With my passion, knowledge and understanding of the essence of travel, I promise I will try my best to make the tour memorable and meaningful for you. "