Chongqing

Hongyadong

Stilt-house-style buildings stacked up a Jialing River cliff, lit after dark

By EvanFacts reviewed 4 October 2026

Why it's worth the trip

As darkness falls, eleven storeys of stilt-house-style buildings light up level by level along a cliff above the Jialing River, their gold reflected in the water, like a town out of a Miyazaki film. See it from the bridge or the far bank and you understand why Chongqing is nicknamed the 8D city.

Going inside is a trick of its own: you walk in from a city street on the top floor and come out at the bottom, on the river road. Chongqing is built on slopes so steep that the ground floor depends on which side you arrive from.

It looks old but opened in 2006, copying the stilt houses that once lined both rivers, and inside it is a vertical mall of snack stalls and souvenir shops, packed on a busy evening. You come for the moment the lights come on.

Don't miss

Qiansimen Bridge
Walk out along the footpath of the bridge right beside it and turn round about halfway across. The whole building is lit in front of you, with the towers of the Yuzhong peninsula behind.
The riverside road
Leave by the bottom floor, cross to the river side of the road and look up. This is the angle people compare with the bathhouse in the Miyazaki film Spirited Away.
The north bank
Carry on to the far end of Qiansimen Bridge (the whole crossing is about 800 metres) and go down to the riverside at Jiangbeizui. From there, the lit building, the bridge and the skyline of the peninsula fit in one frame.

Fitting it in

Time to give it: An hour or two in the evening.
When to go: Be there before the lights come on and stay until it is fully dark. The lights follow a fixed evening schedule rather than sunset, later in summer than in winter, so check the time for your date. Weekday evenings are busy; on long national holidays, just getting in can take an hour.
Pair it with: Jiefangbei, the pedestrian heart of the city centre, is about fifteen minutes' walk uphill. The other way, about twenty minutes along the river, is Chaotianmen, where the night river cruises leave and the Jialing meets the Yangtze, usually the clearer river against the muddier one.
Who can skip it: If you came for old Chongqing, this is not it: the building dates from 2006. If you dislike crowds, skip the inside and look at it from across the river; all you lose is the walk from the top floor down to the river.

Questions travellers ask

Is Hongyadong worth visiting?

Yes, for the view at night. When eleven storeys of stilt-house-style buildings light up gold above the Jialing River, you are looking at Chongqing's best-known night scene. Give it an hour or two in the evening. If you want old buildings, look elsewhere: it was built in 2006.

When is the best time to see Hongyadong?

In the evening: arrive before the lights come on and stay until it is fully dark. The lights come on at a set time each evening, later in summer than in winter, so check it for your date. If you can, avoid the National Day holiday in early October and the Spring Festival holiday, when just getting in can take an hour.

Where is the best view of Hongyadong?

From the middle of Qiansimen Bridge, right beside it. Turn round about halfway across and the whole lit building is in front of you. The riverside road below gives the angle people compare with Spirited Away. From the north bank, about 800 metres across the bridge, the building, the bridge and the skyline fit in one frame.

Do you need a ticket for Hongyadong?

No, it is free. Entry may need a free online booking, and on public holidays numbers are capped, so book ahead for a holiday evening. Watching from the bridge or across the river needs no booking at all, and we can check the current rule for your date.

Was Spirited Away based on Hongyadong?

No. The Miyazaki film Spirited Away came out in 2001, five years before Hongyadong opened, and the building is modelled on the stilt houses that once lined Chongqing's two rivers. The comparison with the film's bathhouse caught on through short videos online from around 2016. Stand on the riverside road at night and look up, and you will see why.

Sources: Yuzhong District government: 洪崖洞 (Hongyadong)Chongqing Housing and Urban-Rural Development Commission: Hongyadong (2025)Chongqing Civil Affairs Bureau: the Hongya cave and its name (2024)Chongqing government: the riverside path to Chaotianmen (2025)