150 kilometers south of Chengdu, 130 kilometers from the Shuangliu International Airport
Mount Emei is a sacred Buddhist mountain in the southern part of Sichuan, China.
Mt. Emei stands at 3099 meters (10,167 feet), and is associated with Puxian Bodhisattva (Samantabhadra) - a representation of 'Great Practice' and 'Great Virtue'. Ever since Buddhism arrived in China, it has been an important center of refuge, and the mountain contains more than one hundred temples and monasteries. The mountain is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In Mt. Emei there are four scenic regions: Baoguo Temple, Wannian Temple, Qingyin Pavilion and Golden Summit.
Wan-nian Monastery - a large monastery with a fantastic statue of Puxian Bodhisattva, who is depicted as riding a white elephant with six tusks. The monks there are great, and they add a good deal to the ambience of the mountain. The temple is a modern re-construction.
Its main peak, the Golden Summit, is 3079.3 meters (10,103 feet) above the sea level, seemingly reaching the sky. Standing on the top of it, you can enjoy the snowy mountains in the west and the vast plain in the east. In addition in Golden Summit there are four spectacles: clouds sea, sunrise, Buddha rays and saint lamps.
Leshan Grand Buddha
The Grand Buddha is a 71 meter (230 feet) high sculpture carved into one of the large cliffs by the river. In addition to the Grand Buddha, there are also numerous smaller carvings of various Buddhas on the Grand Buddha Cliff Road. Other than carvings, there are also various temples and shrines scattered about, the beautiful Haoshang bridge, and some wonderful small waterfalls.
Leshan Grand BuddhaThe Buddha was carved into the mountain face to watch over a part of the river that while very busy for transport was claiming the lives and stock of many boats. Upon completion of the now largest Buddha in the world the river became safe, and thus Buddha saved "us all". You may speculate about this and modern scientists will quickly point out the rock displacement to the river bed would have changed the currents, and killed off the eddies that were pulling boats down. Why the river is now safe i shall leave to you. There are two ways to see the giant Buddha: on foot and by river ferry. To see the giant Buddha Statue by ferry you can take one of the ferries from the dock for 50 rmb. The ferry will cross the river and stop in front of the statue for 10 minutes for everyone to go to the top deck and take pictures and then return to the dock. The total trip will take around 40 minutes. An alternative is take a taxi or bus to the statue and climb up and down on the cliff surrounding the Buddha. Costs 70RMB (35RMB with a valid student ID) to enter the park. There is a staircase next to the Buddha to take you down to its feet. In the afternoons, long lines develop to walk down the cliff to the base of the Buddha and you can expect to wait for around 2 hours. It may be best to arrive early to avoid the jostling and lines. Taking the ferry allows you to view the two guards carved into the cliff face which is not visible by foot. There is a third alternative in winter. When the water level of the 3 rivers is low, there appears a rubble island on which you can walk towards the buddha. The island ends maybe 200 metres in front of the statue, but it's a nice panorama from there. You can get to the island with a ferry from the south bank of the city (1RMB per passage) and walk about 2km from there. Entrance to the mountain, though not expensive to most, can be reduced in price if you pester them for Student or OAP discounts, both available, though a quick grasp of chinese is useful. Food in this locality is very expensive and is best avoided unless you are very hungry in which case any of the cafes nearby will do, given you will pay through the nose anyway, best chose one with air con.