The best time of day to see a panda, hour by hour
Pandas are awake for about four hours a day. Getting the timing right matters more than which base you choose.
Ya’an · Sichuan
Bifengxia Panda Base
The retirement home for pandas who came back.
Bifengxia is set inside a gorge, reached by a scenic-area ticket that also covers the shuttle. The pandas are spread along a wooded valley floor, and the walk between enclosures is the pleasant part rather than the chore.
Because so many of the residents are returned loan pandas, this is a good place to see older, calmer animals with a story. It is also the least crowded of the Sichuan bases on an ordinary weekday.
What you will see
- Returned overseas pandas, including older residents
- Canyon scenery and a wildlife park next door
- Outdoor cub viewing in the cool months
- Easily combined with an overnight in Ya’an
Read before you go
All guides 
What the panda keeper programme actually involves
You will not hold a panda. You will break bamboo, wash shoots, and stand closer to a feeding animal than any ticket allows.
Doing the Chengdu base properly in one morning
A route that avoids the two worst bottlenecks, and why you should take the shuttle even though it feels lazy.