One of about 90 pandas at the Chengdu Panda Breeding and Research Center in Cheng Du, China.
One of the biggest draws for heading to Chengdu in China is the Chengdu Panda Breeding and Research Center. It’s about 6 miles outside of the city, and if you’re hotel or hostel doesn’t offer a day trip or tour out there, you’re staying in the wrong place.
Unfortunately for my group, the day we went was both unbearably hot and humid. Nature decided to top it off by throwing a few thunderstorms our way that day as well. When it gets over a certain temperature, the breeding center puts the pandas indoors for their safety. I managed to grab this shot of one of the pandas who refused to be inside and wanted to play in the rain. I spoke to another traveler who gave me a wonderful description of his trip the day after. Basically, make sure you get there, but do it when it isn’t too hot out so you can get the full benefit of a trip out there.