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China's Top Places to See Giant Pandas

The giant panda is known as "national treasure" (国宝) in China. Covered with black and white fur on a round body, the giant panda is cute and lovely. Its smoky eyes are a beautiful characteristic. How can you miss the giant pandas if you come to China?

China Highlights has listed the best places to see giant pandas.

Best Places to See Giant Pandas in China

1. Bifengxia Giant Panda Base

Befengxia Panda BaseBifengxia Giant Panda Base

After the earthquake in 2008, the pandas of Wolong National Nature Reserve were transferred to Bifengxia Panda Base, which was established in 2003.

Bifengxia Panda Base became the largest giant panda base in the world. At present there are 155 giant pandas at the base. Bifengxia Giant Panda Base offers volunteer programs, which allow close contact with the giant pandas.

2. Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base

Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base is located in the northern suburbs of Chengdu City. It is fully equipped for giant panda breeding, with a baby panda house, several enclosures for adult pandas and cubs, health stations, a giant panda museum, and a laboratory. Thousands of bamboo plants are harvested there to feed the pandas.

The base aims to create an approximation of the panda's wild living environment, and to train the pandas to adapt to wild living, and then releases them into the wild for the continuation and preservation of this charming and endangered species. It also offers volunteer programs so that participants can learn more about and look after the giant pandas.

3. Ocean Park, Hong Kong

ocean parkA Giant Panda in Ocean Park, Hong Kong

Ocean Park is a large ocean theme park and one of several large amusement parks in Hong Kong. You can see hundreds of kinds of marine fishes.

There are four giant pandas in Ocean Park: An An, Jia Jia (the world's oldest living panda, who will be 36 on August 10th 2014), Le Le and Ying Ying. Le Le and Ying Ying are presents from China's central government to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland.

4. Beijing Zoo

Beijing Zoo is the largest zoo in China with the largest number of animal species and is one of the best zoos in the world. It was the first zoo to open in China. There is a panda house in the zoo, which is one of the most popular enclosures there.

5. Seven Star Park

seven star parkA Giant Panda in Guilin's Seven Star Park

The zoo in Seven Star Park was built in the early 1960s. The pandas are the super stars there. And standing out among them all was Meimei, who lived for 36 years until 2005, the longest-lived panda raised in captivity in the world. The two Olympic Pandas, Fengyi and Meixin, are kept in the zoo now.

6. Shanghai Zoo

  • Location: Changning District, Shanghai

Shanghai Zoo is one of the largest Chinese zoos, and one of the ten best zoos in China, located next to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport. Don't miss the lovely giant pandas, one of the most attractive animals there.

7. Chongqing Zoo

Founded in 1955, Chongqing Zoo is located in the western suburbs of Chongqing. It is a large zoo covering 45 hectares. Chongqing Zoo boasts lots of natural scenery and rolling hills. The giant panda is the great attraction there. In March 2012, their six-month-old baby panda was named Mangzi /mung-dzrr/ (莽子 'son of thick foliage') after a naming contest.

See Giant Pandas with China Highlights

China Highlights Giant Panda Tours

Contact us for a customized tour to see pandas in the wild in Sichuan or Shaanxi Province. Foping Nature reserve in Shaanxi Province, near Xi'an, is where you are most likely to see a panda in the wild.

Further Reading