Originally Posted by
moondog
I did it years ago back when there were gorges. Frankly, assuming you don't have young kids in tow (but, maybe you do, given the interest in pandas), I think there are much cooler ways to approach the area. It's possible to knock down a lot of the best spots in Sichaun and Yunnan (Jiuzhaigou, Lijiang, Dali, Shangri-la, etc) over the course of a week (without killing yourself).... but, you will need to spend a lot of time on busses in order to make it happen. Chengdu and Kunming are interesting in and of themselves, but the places I parenthesized above --along with some of their peers-- are truly pristine. While the river cruise is more hands off, the over land journey provides significantly better scenery, adventure, and flexibility IMO.
I try to do trips like that several times per year and always come back delighted beyond belief, even if also tired and hungry.
I traveled thru Yunnan province in May 2006 (after stopping in Chengdu by air because I like the city so much) and thru Sichaun two years ago (with several days in Chengdu). I haven't been to Chongqin, but I would guess that this other large city of Sichaun would be the natural start point for any river cruises.
First of all, Moondog's China knowledge greatly exceeds mine and most peoples' because he works there, and I'm am, at best, a once-a-year visitor.
However, I have a low tolerance for vacations with lots of brief city-to-city travel ("If it's Tuesday, it must be Paris" kind of a thing.). I would never attempt a ground travel thru both Yunnan and Sichuan over even two weeks because of the distances and the rural bus connection may not exist. For example, Lugu Lake in northern Yunnan is a great scenic destination from Lijiang by an all day bus ride. Wolong (nature reserve and China's most famous panda breeding center) is an even longer bus ride from Chengdu from the opposite direction. Yet Wolong and Lugu Lake are pretty close as the bird flies thru the Sichaun mountains. But there is no easy way to get from one to the other directly!
So, I would do separate trips: Sichuan with Chengdu as a base, and northern Yunnan with Lijiang as a base. Coming out of Lijian, Lugu Lake, Dali, Zhongdian (aka Shangri-la) are all separate trips by bus via different highway. Going to Zhongdian, one has the option of getting off the bus to do the two-night easy-if-you-are-fit or the one-night hard-as-hell trek thru Tiger Leaping Gorge (I recommend two or three nights.).
There are direct flights between Chengdu and Lijian. Chengdu has a number of in-City attractions, but the surrounding county is pretty unattractive until one travels a lengthy distance by bus. Lijian has a pretty amazing old town. Guessing between the two, I would think most people would prefer a vacation seeing the sights out of Lijian over Chengdu, but I haven't been to Jiuzhaigou, which is world-class natural beauty. The budget-class "Traffic Hotel" in Chengdu (that's it's name; any cabbie can find it) has an excellent travel agency inside on the first floor who can help you with ground tours and continuing domestic travel (cash only).