Plan your Chengdu tour? Basically Du Fu Thatched Cottage (杜甫草堂 in Chinese ) will be on the top of your Chengdu bucket list as a first time visitor to the mega city in the southwest inland China.
Du Fu – the famous poet
Du Fu was a famous poet (712－770) in Tang Dynasty ( 618 – 907 ). In 759 Du Fu and his family fled to Chengdu to keep from the An-Shi Rebellion breaking out in 758. With the help of his friends, he built a straw-roofed hut near the Flower Rinsing Creek and lived there for over four years.
During his four years in Chengdu, He wrote 240 poems that are still popular till today in China. Among them: “My Thatched Hut was torn apart by Autumn Wind” and “The Prime Minister of Shu”. The “thatched Cottage” period was the prime time of Du Fu’s creativity.
Du Fu Thatched Cottage
After Du Fu left Chengdu, his thatched cottage was dilapidated. Wei Zhuang, a poet in the Five Dynasties (907 – 960), reconstructed the cottage on the original site in honor of Du Fu. The cottage was preserved and renovated through Song, Yuan Ming and Qing dynasties.
Today the cottage has been turned into a museum and a park, a popular destination for Du Fu enthusiasts around the world to pay tribute to the great poet. In 1961, the Du Fu Thatched House was listed as a National Heritage site.
How to get there
Du Fu Cottage ( 杜甫草堂 ) is on the west of the city center of Chengdu. Du fu Cottage (west), Qingyang Taoist Temple (north) and Wuhou Shrine (south) form a triangle and close to each other.
Entrance Fee: CNY 50
Opening Hours: 08:00-17:30 ( tickets sale closed at 15:00)
How to get there: Take subway Line 4, get off at Caotang North Road and walk there. Take bus no. 1024 and get off at Du Fu Cottage Museum Stop
Address: 37 Qinghua Road, Qingyang District, Chengdu City, Sichuan
How to visit Du Fu Thatched Cottage
Du fu Thatched Cottage has three main gates – front gate, south gate and north. I suggest entering the south gate, and exit from north gate.
At the entrance of the garden path stands a screen wall with a hand writing “Thatched Cottage”. In 1958, Ma Zedong took a photo here, hence the representative tourist attraction.
Flowery Path. In Du Fu’s Peom, “Flowery path has never been cleared for the visit of a guest”.
With years’ development, today’s Du Fu Cottage area is much larger, more like a huge park teemd with leafy bamboo, streams, creeks, pavilions, ponds, rockeries, a showcase of Chinese traditional culture, particularly Chinese gardening.
Hassle-free Chengdu Guided Tours
If you don’t want to go the do-it-yourself route and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours, here are some options for Chengdu and Sichuan guided tours:
Chengdu tour
Chengdu Car Rental with Driver
Create My Chengdu Trip
Jiuzhaigou Tour
Sichuan Tour
Further Readings
Top 10 Attractions in Chengdu
Best Time to Visit Chengdu
Chengdu Airport
Railway stations in Chengdu
Chengdu Taxi
How to visit Wuhou Shrine
How to visit Du Fu Thatched Cottage
How to visit Jinsha Site Museum
How to Visit Tomb of Wangjian
How to Visit Wangjiang Tower Park
How to Visit Qingyang Taoist Temple
How to Visit Jinli Street
How to visit Kuan Alley and Zhai Alley
How to visit Qintai Road, Qintai Street Chengdu
How to visit Shaoling Road Bar Street
How to Visit Jiuyanqiao Bar Street
The Old Teahouse in Pengzhen Town, Chengdu
Drive from Hanzhong to Ya’an
Ya’an Night View
Most Beautiful Sky Road in China
Night View of Moxi Old Town
Camp No.03 at Hailuogou Glacier
Camp No.04 at Hailuogou Glacier
Night View of Kangding
Drive from Kangding to Xinduqiao
Drive from Xinduqiao to Danba
Jiarong Tibetan Blockhouses
Jiarong Tibetan Ancient Watchtowers
Drive from Xinduqiao to Yajiang
Drive from Yajiang to Litang
Drive from Litang to Daocheng
Drive from Litang to Batang
Drive from Batang to Mangkang
Drive from Shangri-la to Daocheng
Drive from Daocheng to Yading
Yading Brings You Inner Peace
Bipenggou is a fairyland in Autumn
When is the best time to visit Jiuzhaigou?
Best Places to Visit Autumn Leaves in Sichuan
Top 10 Places to Visit in Sichuan
Ruoergai Grassland, my first trip to Ruoergai Grassland
Any questions, just drop a line.
Hello Crissy,
The Thatched Cottages has been turnen into a huge park. Usually it takes about one and half to visit the park. Personally, I’d prefer to choose Wangjiang Tower.