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Voykit pocket guide · China
Beichuan
北川
Half a day from Mianyang or Chengdu: see the earthquake memorial and ruins, then leave. Not a place to sleep.
Beichuan's old county seat was destroyed in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake and left as a memorial. The 5/12 Wenchuan Earthquake Memorial Museum and the sealed-off ruins of Qushan Town are the reason to come. Most visitors spend 3–5 hours here as a day trip from Mianyang or a longer stop between Chengdu and northern Sichuan.
- Country
- China
- Local name
- 北川
- Best months
- Mar–May, Sep–Nov
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (hot and humid), Jan–Feb (cold)
- Stay
- 0 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- CNY
- Money
- Alipay and WeChat Pay accept Visa, Mastercard, JCB and Amex cards; single payments over ¥200 carry a fee of about 3% on a foreign card (smaller ones are free), and per-payment and yearly caps apply — check the app. Keep a second way to pay.
- Daily spend
- Budget ¥150–250 excl. bed · Mid ¥250–400 excl. bed · High ¥400+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- A roaming eSIM from outside China routes traffic through its home network, so Google, WhatsApp and Instagram work without a VPN — the simplest setup.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Fire 119 · Ambulance 120
- Plugs
- Types A, C, I · 220 V · 50 Hz · Many sockets take flat two-pin (A), round two-pin (C) and angled three-pin (I) plugs; UK plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Restaurants: No tip; upmarket hotels add 10–15% service.; Taxis and DiDi: No tip.; Tour guides and drivers: Expected on organised tours: about ¥100–200 a day for a guide, ¥50–100 for a driver.; Hotel porters: Not expected; ¥10–20 in luxury hotels.
- Water
- Not for drinking from the tap; bottled water ¥2–5, and kettles and free bottles in hotel rooms. Restaurants serve hot water or tea.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are frequent and free; squat toilets outside hotels and malls. Carry tissues — many have no paper.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Bus Mianyang–Beichuan one way | ¥20–25 |
| Taxi Mianyang–Beichuan one way | ¥150–200 |
| Bowl of noodles | ¥10–20 |
| Bottled water | ¥2–3 |
| Museum entry | Free |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- MIG · Mianyang Nanjiao Airport
- About 40 km (25 mi) from Beichuan; taxi or bus to Mianyang bus station, then bus to BeichuanAbout 25 mi (40 km) from Beichuan; taxi or bus to Mianyang bus station, then bus to Beichuan
- CTU · Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport
- About 160 km (99 mi); high-speed rail to Mianyang then busAbout 99 mi (160 km); high-speed rail to Mianyang then bus
Typical fares
- Bus Mianyang–Beichuan
- about ¥20–25, about 1 h (check)
- Taxi Mianyang–Beichuan
- ¥150–200 (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
Bus from Mianyang bus station (across from the train station) to Beichuan. Within the memorial area, walking. A taxi from Mianyang costs about ¥150–200 one way (check).
See and do
Known for
- 5/12 Wenchuan Earthquake Memorial Museum
- Ruins of old Beichuan (Qushan Town)
- Beichuan Middle School collapse site
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Mianyang | Bus from Beichuan, about 1 h | About 1 h |
| Chengdu | Bus to Mianyang, then high-speed rail to Chengdu, about 2 h total | About 2.5 h |
| Ya'an | Bus to Mianyang, then rail to Ya'an, about 3 h | About 3.5 h |
| Dujiangyan | Bus to Mianyang, then rail to Dujiangyan, about 2.5 h | About 3 h |
Sleep
- New Beichuan county seat (Yongchang Town)
- Basic hotels; convenient for the memorial but limited options.
- Mianyang city
- More choice and better transport links; 1 h by bus.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | 你好nǐ hǎo |
| Thank you | 谢谢xiè xiè |
| How much is it? | 多少钱？duō shǎo qián |
| Where is the museum? | 博物馆在哪里？bó wù guǎn zài nǎ lǐ |
| I don't understand | 我不懂wǒ bù dǒng |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and a nod; use surnames with a title; avoid: Hugs and cheek kisses
- Face: Disagree privately and indirectly; avoid: Correcting or embarrassing someone in front of others
- Gifts: Give with two hands; expect the gift to be refused once or twice and opened later; avoid: Clocks, umbrellas, white flowers, sets of four
- Business cards: Present and receive with both hands, read it, keep it on the table; avoid: Writing on it or pocketing it at once
- Queues and crowds: Hold your ground politely in scrums at buses and lifts; avoid: Taking pushing personally
- Temples: Walk clockwise around Tibetan stupas and prayer wheels; remove hats; avoid: Touching statues or photographing where signs forbid
- Politics: Listen; follow your host's lead; avoid: Raising Tibet, Taiwan, Xinjiang, 1989 or the party leadership
- Numbers and colour: Red and 8 are lucky; red envelopes carry money gifts; avoid: Writing names in red; the number 4
Scams and watch-outs
- The old town ruins are sealed off; viewing is from designated points only.
- The museum is closed on Mondays; plan around that.
- No accommodation in the old town; sleep in the new county seat or Mianyang.
- The site is a memorial; behave respectfully.
Safe for tourists; the main risk is emotional impact from the memorial. Watch for uneven ground at the ruins viewing area. Summer heat and mosquitoes.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Beichuan yet. Suggested stay: 0 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- 5/12 Wenchuan Earthquake Memorial Museum
- Ruins of old Beichuan (Qushan Town)
- Beichuan Middle School collapse site
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Beichuan, revision 4550033 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=4550033
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Printed from Voykit (/beichuan). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.