Chengdu Tourism and Travel Guide

Chengdu, formerly romanized as Chengtu, is the provincial capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China, as well as a major city in Western China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status. The administrative area houses 14,047,625 inhabitants: 7,415,590 within the municipality's nine urban districts and 6,632,035 in the surrounding satellite towns and counties' urban, suburban and rural area. According to the 2010 census, Chengdu is the fifth-most populous city in China. Chengdu is one of the most important economic, financial, commercial, cultural, transportation, and communication centers in Western China. Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport is one of the 40 busiest airports in the world, and Chengdu Railway Station is one of the six biggest railway stations in China. Chengdu also hosts many international companies and more than 12 consulates. More than 260 Fortune 500 companies have established branches in Chengdu due to huge demand of Western China. In 2006, it was named China's 4th-most liveable city by China Daily.The fertile Chengdu Plain, on which Chengdu is located, is also known as the 'Country of Heaven' (Chinese: 天府之国; pinyin: Tiānfǔzhiguó), a phrase also often translated as 'The Land of Abundance'. The discovery of the Jinsha site suggests the area of Chengdu had become the center of the bronze age Sanxingdui culture around the time of the establishment of the state of Shu, prior to its annexation by Qin in 316 BC.