Tongnan (潼南) is a district of Chongqing Municipality. The main tourist attractions in Tongnan are the Dafo (Big Buddha) Temple and the old town of Shuangjiang.
Understand
[edit]In 2020, it had a population of about 690,000 people.
Get in
[edit]It lies about 108 km northwest of central Chongqing.
By train
[edit]- 1 Tongnan Railway Station (潼南站), Zhanqian Avenue (站前大道) (bus nos. 202, 203 and 310). Tongnan’s only railway station has frequent train services from central Chongqing.
By bus
[edit]Tongnan can be reached by bus in 1½-2 hours from Chen Jiaping Bus Station and other long-distance bus stations in Chongqing.
Bus stations:
- 2 Tongnan Bus Terminal (潼南汽车客运总站), 369 Qiaonan Avenue (桥南大道369号) (bus nos. 101, 106, 107, 108 and 109), ☏ +86 23 44551374. Tongnan’s main bus station.
Get around
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Most places of interest in Tongnan are accessible by public bus. Taxis are also available.
See
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- 1 Dafo Temple (Big Buddha Temple of Tongnan, 潼南大佛寺), Zitong Subdistrict (梓潼街道) (take bus no. 101 or 107), ☏ +86 23 4455296. 08:30-17:30. Just north of the downtown area on the Fuijiang River is the Dafo Temple. It is 30 min outside the downtown area along the winding river banks. The highlight is a large 18-m high Buddha carved into the rock and covered in gold. More Buddhist carvings can be seen on the cliffs outside the temple. Tourists are a rare occurrence at the temple and you will be greeted with great interest and excitement on the part of the locals. Free.
- 2 Tongnan Museum (潼南博物馆), 13 Dafo Road, Dafo Subdistrict (大佛街道大佛路13号) (a short distance south of the Dafo Temple), ☏ +86 23 44779001. 09:00-17:00, no entry after 16:30, closed on Mondays. Museum with exhibitions on the natural and human history of Tongnan. The star attraction is a 5-meter-high, 28-meter-long Mamenchisaurus skeleton, which is said to be the biggest sauropod dinosaur skeleton discovered in Asia. Free.
Shuangjiang
[edit]Shuangjiang is a historic town about 10 km west of Tongnan’s downtown area. It is best known for being the hometown of two prominent Communist Party leaders, namely Yang Angong, who was the leader of the 1926 Lushun Uprising, and his brother Yang Shangkun, who was the president of the People's Republic of China from 1988 to 1993. Shuangjiang can be reached by taking Tongnan Bus 108 (潼南108路), Sichuan-Chongqing Bus No. 1 (川渝1路) or the Tongnan-Suining Intercity Bus (潼遂城际公交).
- 3 Former residence of Comrade Yang Angong (杨闇公同志旧居), 48 Zheng Street, Shuangjiang (双江镇正街48号), ☏ +86 23 44860569. 09:00-17:00. Free.
- 4 Former residence of Yang Shangkun (杨尚昆旧居), Jinlong Village, Shuangjiang (双江镇金龙村), ☏ +86 23 44860569. 09:00-17:00. Free.
Do
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[edit]Sleep
[edit]- 1 Tongnan Konglead Hotel (重庆潼南劲力酒店), Area C, Longxin Zhongyang Street, 299 Jintian Road, Guilin Subdistrict (桂林街道办事处金田路299号隆鑫中央大街C区) (bus no. 206), ☏ +86 23 64489999. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 12:00. A four-star hotel in Tongnan’s central business district. From about ¥300 per night.