Tengchong
Understand
Tengchong is administratively part of the city of Baoshan (保山), but is otherwise a city in its own right. The main urban area of Baoshan is approximately 170km from Tengchong.
Tengchong is popular with Chinese tourists, but sees relatively few foreign tourists. It is best known for its volcanoes and hot springs. The ancient town of Heshun, itself a popular tourist destination, is located just 4km from downtown Tengchong.
Previously known in English as Tengyue or Tengyueh, it was at one time a British trading base when British-occupied Burma had ambitions of increased trade volumes with China.
Get in
By plane
- 🌍
Tengchong Tuofeng Airport (腾冲驼峰机场), Tuofeng Village, Qingshui Township (清水乡驼峰村) (About 10km south of the city center), ☎ +86 875 5198866. Frequent flights are available from the provincial capital of Kunming. Other cities with flights to Tengchong include Beijing, Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Guiyang, Nanjing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Xi'an, Zhengzhou and Zhuhai.
Ground transportation: Taxis only
By train
The nearest train station is in Dali, about 345km away.
By bus
- 🌍 Tengchong Tourist Bus Station (腾冲旅游客运站), Rehai Road South Section (腾冲县热海路南段), (Opposite the Xiake Hotel), ☎ +86 875 5161526. This is Tengchong's busiest long-distance bus station. Buses are available to a wide range of destinations in the region, including Kunming, Baoshan, Chuxiong, Dali, Jinghong, Lijiang, Liuku, and Panzhihua.
- 🌍 Tengchong Bus Station (腾冲客运站), Dongfang Road (东方路) (Opposite Dongfang Hospital), ☎ +86 875 5152363. This used to be Tengchong's main long-distance bus station but now mainly serves buses heading to towns and cities in Dehong Prefecture such as Mangshi and Ruili.
Get around
Taxis or didi dache (Chinese Uber) are probably your best bet. The areas outside the city may be too distant to casually bicycle.
Buses are also a good option. Besides regular buses, there are also special express buses to major tourist attractions such as the Tengchong Volcano Cluster and the Rehai Geothermal Field.
See
The old British Trading Base building includes bullet holes visible from WWII when it was used as a stone bastion during skirmishes with the Japanese. Fragments of the old city wall (probably rebuilt gates by now) and the iconic pagoda on the hill south of the city. A famous seasonal wetland lake area north of the city is a great attraction for migratory birdlife. Two Qing Dynasty traditional villages are preserved, one to the southeast and one to the southwest. The latter features the first ever private museum in Yunnan. Both feature significant amounts of traditional Qing Dynasty aristocratic architecture including murals, wood and stone carvings and other significant Chinese architectural features.
Ancient towns and villages
Other historical sites
- 🌍 National Martyrs' Cemetery (国殇墓园).
- 🌍 Western Yunnan Memorial to War of Resistance Against Japan (滇缅抗战博物馆).
Parks and nature
- 🌍 Beihai Wetland (北海湿地).
- 🌍 Dieshui River Waterfall (叠水河瀑布).
- Tengchong Volcanic and Geothermal National Geopark (腾冲火山地热国家地质公园).
Do
Buy
Eat
Drink
Sleep
- 🌍 Angsana Tengchong (腾冲悦椿温泉村), Mayugu International Hot Springs Resorts, Beihai Township (北海乡玛御谷温泉国际度假区) (Approximately 12km northeast of the city center), ☎ +86 875 899-9888, e-mail: tengchong@angsana.com. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 12:00. Five-star hotel. From ¥2848.
- 🌍 Heshun Xinyue Boutique Inn (Xinyue-Liubai Boutique Inn; 心玥·留白精致雅宿（腾冲和顺店）), 18 Lijia Alley, Heshun Town (About 60 meters west of the Heshun Library), ☎ +86 15925030407. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 12:00. Four-star hotel. From ¥490.