Three Gorges Museum: Chongqing's Free Museum of the River

Chongqing's flagship museum was born from a flood. Before the Three Gorges Dam reservoir swallowed some 660 km of the Yangtze valley, archaeologists raced through doomed towns and excavated thousands of tombs, temples and carvings — and the cream of that salvage lives here. It's one of China's first-tier national museums, and one of the easiest to visit: the permanent halls are completely free, and since October 2025 the museum no longer requires a reservation.

Walk in with any valid ID — a passport for foreigners (有效证件, yǒuxiào zhèngjiàn) — pass the bag check, and you're in. Hours are 9:00 AM–5:00 PM with last entry at 4:00 PM; closed Mondays except national holidays. Budget 2–3 hours; air-conditioning makes it a smart midday escape from Chongqing's heat or rain.

The museum faces the People's Great Hall (人民大礼堂, Rénmín Dàlǐtáng) across its plaza — that 1950s domed landmark is a free photo stop on the way out. Reach it on metro Line 2 to Zengjiayan (曾家岩站, Zēngjiāyán), about 10 minutes from downtown Jiefangbei.

Don't miss 壮丽三峡 ("Splendid Three Gorges") on the ground floor — a giant relief of the gorges plus the Wuyang que (乌杨阙), an intact Eastern Han stone gate salvaged from the flood zone and the museum's star piece. Upstairs, 抗战岁月 covers Chongqing's WWII years as China's wartime capital, and the 历代钱币 and 历代瓷器 halls trace Chinese coins and porcelain.

Signage is mostly Chinese — scan the lobby QR code for the free Wi-Fi audio guide covering all ten permanent halls, or book a multi-language guided tour in advance. Security is real: no tripods, selfie sticks, flash, or lighters; large bags go in free storage.