Jinli Ancient Street

After dark, Jinli transforms from a crowded shopping street into something genuinely magical — thousands of red lanterns cast a warm glow over the wooden architecture, and the crowds thin out enough that you can actually hear the sizzle of street food being cooked at open-air stalls. The face-changing opera performances that happen in small theaters along the street are worth the ¥30 admission — watching a performer swap masks in a fraction of a second, inches from your face, never gets old.

The snack selection here is the best in Chengdu — three-cannon tea (three sticky rice balls thrown onto a drum before being drenched in syrup), spicy rabbit heads (a local delicacy that tastes better than it sounds), and sugar paintings made to order by artists who create intricate designs with melted sugar. Skip the souvenir shops and focus on the food; this is Chengdu's most accessible introduction to Sichuan street cuisine.