Sanxingdui Museum (三星堆博物馆)

Museum · Chengdu. Bronze Age masks and a four-metre sacred tree, a day trip from Chengdu.

Source: https://chinafootnotes.com/places/sanxingdui-museum · Data checked 2026-10-08 · Rendered for 2026-10-09 (Asia/Shanghai). Facts carry their status; "not found yet" means we searched and found no reliable source.

Why go

The Sanxingdui Museum (三星堆博物馆) shows bronzes, gold and jade from a Bronze Age Shu capital that left no written record: masks with protruding eyes, a standing figure taller than a person and a bronze sacred tree. It sits in Guanghan, outside Chengdu's city districts, so a visit is a half-day trip with timed real-name tickets.

What to do

• See the sacred tree and the standing figure. Hall 1 holds the bronze sacred tree, the large standing figure, the gold mask and the masks with protruding eyes. The second floor carries the gods-and-people displays and is the room that fills first.
• Follow the three zones of the main hall. The exhibition runs through three zones: the century of excavation, the royal capital and the world of gods and humans, with about 1,500 objects and an excavation-pit reconstruction.
• Book the dome theatre. A digital dome theatre on the second floor of Hall 1 shows the artefacts across a 20 m LED dome. It is booked separately through the museum's WeChat account.
• Look in on the restoration hall. The restoration hall (修复馆) has its own hours and closes at 18:00 even when the main halls stay open late, so plan it before an evening visit.
• Take an evening slot on extended days. On holidays and in July and August the halls stay open to 20:00.

• Don't miss: Booking is compulsory and there is no door sale. Tickets open at 20:00 up to five days ahead, which is the earliest you can book, not a minimum notice; inbound visitors can also use the emailed booking form. Bring the passport you booked with.

• Best time: Opening time or an extended-hours evening
• Skip if: Skip if you can't commit to a timed slot or have only a few hours in Chengdu; weekends and holidays sell out at release.

Practical details

• Hours: 08:30–18:00 · to 20:00 on holidays
• Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun: 08:30–18:00, last entry 17:00
• Jul–Aug extended (07-01 to 08-31), Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun: 08:30–20:00, last entry 18:00
• Last entry is 17:00 on normal days and 18:00 on extended days; the restoration hall (修复馆) keeps 09:00–18:00 and does not extend.
• Extended opening (08:30–20:00, evening tickets check in from 17:00) applies in long holidays, July–August and school winter holidays as announced.
• Closed one day each year on Chinese New Year’s Eve; other closures only by notice.
• Visitors with evening tickets in Feb and Aug 2026 were admitted from about 16:30–16:45, before the official 17:00 check-in; staff practice varies, so do not plan around it.
• Admission: Ticketed · ¥72 adult
• Adult: ¥72 (All days, including holidays)
• Smart audio guide: ¥30 — Hall 1 lobby rental, 08:30–17:00; the museum’s visit page
• “蜀国秘镜” MR guide: ¥38 — Hall 1 lobby rental, 08:30–17:00; the museum’s visit page
• Human guide, 1–10 people: ¥400 — Per 90-minute session; foreign-language tours cost the same
• Group guide, 20–30 people: ¥30 — Per person; Chinese-language group
• Concession: Chinese-citizen full-time students (undergraduate and below) and Chinese minors aged 6–17 ¥36 (Student card, or ID or household register for minors; the notice names Chinese citizens)
• Concession: Retired military personnel ¥65 (ID and retired-soldier certificate)
• Free: Children under 6 or up to 1.3 m tall (Height check; an adult with a booked ticket must accompany, up to three children each)
• Free: Chinese citizens aged 60 and over (Resident identity card original; no ticket exchange)
• The notice lists one standard price with no separate peak, holiday or evening price.
• Concessions in the notice (¥36 students and minors aged 6–17, free entry from age 60, ¥65 retired military) are for Chinese citizens; children up to 1.3 m or under 6 enter free with a guardian who has a booked ticket, one guardian to at most three children.
• The audio-guide and human-guide fees are separate from admission.
• Booking: Advance booking · opens up to 5 days ahead
• Sanxingdui Museum website, individual booking (三星堆博物馆官网·个人预约) — https://www.sxd.cn/login?type=1
• Sanxingdui Museum website, inbound tourists (三星堆博物馆官网·入境游客购票) — https://www.sxd.cn/login?type=2 · passport: yes
• Booking Form by email (inbound visitors) (入境游客预约表（邮件）) — Download the form, fill it in, email it to wbyy@sxd.cn; pay at the ticket office on the day of the visit — https://annex.sxd.cn/BookingForm.xlsx · passport: yes
• Sanxingdui Museum WeChat official account (三星堆博物馆公众号) — WeChat → search 三星堆博物馆 → official account → 预约购票 · passport: yes
• Sanxingdui Museum mini-program (三星堆博物馆小程序) — WeChat → search 三星堆博物馆 → mini-program · passport: yes
• Passport accepted: yes — Non-mainland visitors book and check in with a passport, either online (inbound channel) or through the emailed booking form; bring the original passport you booked with.
• Real-name booking only; the museum sells nothing through third parties. Same ID once a day, twice a week; unused tickets refund until 24:00 the day before.
• Three no-shows in 60 days block booking for 60 days; a booking is valid one entry on the booked day.
• Inbound visitors without WeChat or Alipay can use the museum's booking form: download it, fill in visit date, name, nationality, ID type and ID number, email it to wbyy@sxd.cn, wait for the confirmation email, pay at the ticket office on the day and show the original passport you booked with. The museum does not publish how long approval takes.
• Foreign visitors who booked online (website or WeChat official account) take the original passport to the ticket centre to exchange the booking for a ticket.
• Last admission: Last entry 17:00 · 18:00 on extended days
• Time to allow: 3–4 hr · plus 1.5 hr each way
• Getting there: No metro · shuttle bus or train + bus from Chengdu
• Show a taxi driver: 三星堆博物馆，广汉市西安路133号（请到一号馆游客中心）
• Museum address: 133 Xi’an Road, Guanghan, Deyang (广汉市西安路133号); Guanghan is outside the five central districts of Chengdu.
• Shuttle timetable and travel times date from the 2023 launch; fare ¥25 one way and ¥45 return is from an Aug 2026 Chengdu Daily report.
• Foreign visitors: Passport accepted · online or emailed booking form

Not found yet

• foreignVisitors.foreignPhone: Registering on the museum site with an overseas phone number is not documented. The emailed Booking Form route does not ask for a phone number. Payment methods accepted at the ticket office (foreign card, cash, Alipay, WeChat) are not listed. Xiaohongshu comments from Malaysia (2025–26) mention payment failures and a Chinese-only dome-theatre page that asks for a phone number, but no named visitor reports registering with an overseas number. (searched: official site data, Chinese web search, community forum, English web search, Xiaohongshu)
• foreignVisitors.payment.foreignCard: The museum says inbound visitors pay at the ticket office on the day but does not list the accepted payment methods, and the English payment page could not be tested. (searched: official site data, Chinese web search, community forum, English web search, Xiaohongshu)
• transport.other: Tourist shuttle line 2 (Metro Line 5 Huagui Road Station exit A, weekends, public holidays and school holidays only at launch in 2023) is not mentioned in the 2026 Chengdu Daily shuttle guide, so its current operation is unknown. (searched: news, Chengdu Bus Group)

Traveler tips

• Tickets open at 20:00, up to five days ahead. Tickets for the Sanxingdui Museum (三星堆博物馆) are released every evening at 20:00 China time for the day five days ahead; five days is the longest lead time, not a minimum. For long holidays the whole holiday block is released in one batch five days before it starts. Book only through the museum website, its WeChat official account or its mini-program: the museum says it has authorised no other seller of tickets or guide tickets. Caveat: Release rules are from the museum notices (booking rules page, the visit information page and the holiday notice). Xiaohongshu visitors describe the same 20:00 release: 沛泽麻麻 (Oct 2026), 蜗牛慢慢 (Aug 2026) and 桃子罐头 (Sep 2026) for ordinary dates, and 小柿子 (Sep 2025) for an earlier holiday block released in one batch. 蜗牛慢慢 advises adding every visitor's details beforehand and being on the booking page at 19:55. (4 travelers) source
• Book with your passport: online, or by emailed form. Non-mainland visitors book and enter with a passport; Hong Kong/Macau and Taiwan permits and foreign permanent-residence cards are also accepted. Online: book on the museum website or WeChat official account, then take the original passport to the ticket centre to exchange it for your ticket. Without Chinese payment apps: download the museum's Booking Form, fill in visit date, name, nationality, ID type and ID number, email it to wbyy@sxd.cn, wait for the confirmation email and pay at the ticket office on the day. Type the passport number exactly as printed and bring that same original passport. _Caveat: The museum does not publish approval times for the form or the payment methods accepted at the ticket office. Xinhua (Jun 2025) says the website, WeChat account and mini-program have English purchase and payment pages for inbound visitors. Reddit (February 2026): sunscr33n_luver says inbound visitors with a foreign passport can reserve on sxd.cn more than five days ahead if they have Alipay or WeChat Pay for the online payment; another visitor booked entry in advance on WeChat. 叶-妈咪 (Apr 2025, a Malaysian visitor) booked on the museum's WeChat official account in the English version, entered a passport number and email, and says WeChat Pay was the only payment method offered; several anonymous commenters from Malaysia asked whether WeChat Pay works for them or reported payment failures. A family of one Chinese adult and one foreign child over 1.3 m (新西兰传奇兄弟奇遇记, Aug 2025) found the service-account booking page accepted only ID-card numbers, with no answer in the thread._ (3 travelers) source
• Passport holders use a staffed lane at the gate. Passport holders cannot use the self-service ID-card turnstiles and are checked by staff against the booking, so bring the original passport you booked with. Check the passport number carefully when booking. Caveat: Lane numbers 7 and 19 come only from Daniela (Jul 2026), whose original Xiaohongshu note was later reposted on a Guanghan forum site; she took a foreign guest in and warned about typing the passport number correctly. The museum does not publish lane numbers, so follow the staff signs. 叶-妈咪 (Apr 2025) also says passport holders use the staffed lane. Anonymous commenters disagreed in early 2025 about whether passports were accepted at the turnstiles, and a 2023 note (依婷讲文博) described a swipe machine at the far left of the gate that needed no ticket exchange; the museum's current rules, which ask foreign visitors to exchange or show the booked passport at the ticket centre, apply. (2 travelers) source
• Foreign visitors pay the full ¥72. The adult ticket is ¥72. The published concessions (¥36 for students and for minors aged 6–17, free entry from age 60) are written for Chinese citizens, so foreign visitors should budget ¥72 each. Children under 6 or up to 1.3 m tall enter free but need an adult with a booked ticket. Caveat: The notice does not say how foreign students or foreign seniors are treated; English guides that list the student price do not mention the Chinese-citizen condition. Anonymous commenters (2025–26) say foreign children and seniors also had to buy full-price tickets, but no named visitor confirms it. source
• Holiday dates sell out at the release. Long-holiday dates can sell out almost as soon as they are released; the museum offers about 25,000 tickets a day. Set an alarm for 20:00 on the release day and have every visitor's passport or ID details ready. Caveat: The 25,000 figure comes from a Sichuan Daily report of 1 Oct 2026, which also said the first six days of the autumn 2026 holiday were sold out before it began; other holidays are not documented. 蜗牛慢慢 (Aug 2026) says tickets went within minutes of release a few weeks earlier and were easier by mid-August; anonymous commenters in Sep 2025 called the 2025 holiday release easy to get, so sell-out speed varies by year. source
• Evening tickets check in from 17:00. On days with extended opening the exhibition halls stay open until 20:00 and entry closes at 18:00; evening tickets check in from 17:00. The restoration hall (修复馆) keeps its own 09:00–18:00 hours and does not extend, so see it first. Caveat: The museum's official evening check-in time is 17:00. Reposts from one Guanghan travel-forum site (JiaLiiii, simple, 伤心鸡翅, Jul–Aug 2026) say staff let evening-ticket holders in from about 16:30 and found the halls much emptier then, while 伤心鸡翅 was refused earlier than 16:30; treat that as staff practice, not a rule. Official extended periods are long holidays and July–August, with winter holidays announced separately. Three Xiaohongshu visitors agree: 渝阵 (Aug 2026) queued from 16:00 and was admitted at 16:30; 夜的小小妖 (Feb 2026, Spring Festival) was scanned in at about 16:45 although the announcement said 17:00; 🍊心想是橙吖 (Feb 2026) was let in after the 18:00 cut-off but advises against relying on it. 心想是橙吖 also found the halls cleared at 20:00 with much of the second floor unseen, so start upstairs. (4 travelers) source
• Arrive at opening or after 15:00. Visitor posts describe tour groups arriving from about 10:00, with the bronze tree and mask rooms filling first. Being in the queue at 08:20–08:30 gave a clear view, and crowds thinned after 15:00; mid-morning to early afternoon is busiest on the first floor. Caveat: The three forum posts (陈一碗饭 20 Sep, 少奶奶 23 Sep, 星成大海VV 10 Sep 2026) are reposts on one Guanghan travel forum site; the museum publishes no crowd data. 沛泽麻麻 (Oct 2026) also says to go in the moment it opens. Late visits are not always quiet: Daniela (Jul 2026) found the halls packed from 15:00 on a weekday and 渝阵 (Aug 2026) found summer crowds overwhelming. (2 travelers) source
• Walk the halls against the flow. Many visitors enter the second-floor Hall 3 through its exit and see the bronze sacred tree first, then take the escalator down to the first-floor gold mask and bronze standing figure, and finish by touring Hall 1 in the normal direction. From the entrance turn left, then right at the spiral staircase to find a lift straight up to level 2; step out and turn right to reach that gallery's exit. Caveat: This is visitor practice from 陈一碗饭 (a repost on one Guanghan travel-forum site), and 沛泽麻麻 (Oct 2026), who says the photo run took about 30 minutes before joining an official guide; it is not museum guidance, staff can redirect you and the benefit shrinks later in the day. 🍊心想是橙吖 (Feb 2026) suggests starting upstairs on evening visits because the large bronzes are there. (3 travelers) source
• Take the tourist shuttle from Chunxi Road. Board the Sanxingdui tourist shuttle at the Chunxi Road bus stop under the climbing-panda sculpture (IFS). It costs ¥25 one way or ¥45 return, bought in the Chengdu Bus app or mini-program or by the official QR code on the bus door. Caveat: The operator's launch notice (Aug 2023) gives hourly departures from Chunxi Road 07:00–16:00 and from the museum 09:30–20:30, and a Xinhua report of that launch gives about 90 minutes while the Guanghan government release says within an hour; 米可 (Sep 2026, a repost on one Guanghan travel-forum site) rode in about 50 minutes and bought the ticket on board. Check the app for the current timetable. Reddit (February 2026): MelangeMuncher prefers the bus and says to look for the official one because private operators hustle near the stop; Impossible-Many6625 reached the museum by bus via the Panda Base. 🍉贪吃小姐 (Jul 2025) says the last bus from Chunxi Road leaves at 16:00 even when the museum opens late. A guide account (翠花儿讲三星堆, Sep 2026, commercial) lists outbound buses at 07:30–14:30 every half hour and returns at 12:00–18:00 from a stop near gate 6 taking about 70 minutes, which differs from the 2023 notice; check the Chengdu Bus app. (4 travelers) source
• Train plus bus 13, or a taxi. Take a city train from Chengdu East to Guanghan North (广汉北, about 18–24 minutes, ¥18), then bus 13 to the museum (about 20–30 minutes, ¥2) or a taxi (about 15 minutes). The newer 'Sanxingdui' station is farther from the museum than Guanghan station, so do not be misled by the name. Caveat: Times and fares come from forum posts reposted on one Guanghan travel-forum site (是沫沫呀 and Corgi Dec 2025, 星成大海VV and 查有此人 Sep 2026), not from the operator; bus 13 hours are not confirmed. Visitors continuing by high-speed rail toward Jiuzhaigou or Songpan use Sanxingdui station instead (米可, 查有此人): 查有此人 paid about ¥26 and 30 minutes by the meter from the museum. 桃子罐头 (Sep 2026) also says Guanghan North is closer to the museum than Sanxingdui station, with a taxi of about 10 minutes from there; 🍊心想是橙吖 (Feb 2026) waited about 30 minutes for a taxi after getting off at Sanxingdui station in the late afternoon. (3 travelers) source
• Agree the price before a cross-city ride-hail. A cross-city ride-hail may draw a surcharge: drivers can ask extra for the empty return and tolls. Agree the fare first, or use the shuttle or train instead. Caveat: mia🐑🐑 (Jan 2026) was asked for an extra ¥47 from Kuanzhai Alley; 是沫沫呀 (Dec 2025) paid ¥48.5 for a ride with no surcharge, and 查有此人 (Sep 2026) paid ¥80 from Chengdu West for a direct car. All are reposts on one Guanghan travel-forum site. source
• Guide prices. Official guides start from the service desk in the Hall 1 lobby: a 90-minute tour for 1–10 people costs ¥400 (visitors mention a ¥500 deposit), or ¥30 per person if you join a 20–30 person group. Visitors say single travellers can usually join a small group at the desk. Caveat: Prices are from the museum's visit page; the ¥500 deposit and group-filling at the desk come from 米可, 星成大海VV and 少奶奶 (Sep 2026), reposts on one Guanghan travel-forum site. 米可 found 90 minutes tight. 桃子罐头 (Sep 2026) and 沛泽麻麻 (Oct 2026) both describe the Hall 1 desk: a group of up to 10 shares the ¥400 fee, a ¥500 deposit is taken, and a session lasts about 90 minutes to nearly two hours. 沛泽麻麻 adds ¥600 for 11–20 people and an official group of 20–30 at ¥30 each; 桃子罐头 queued from 12:30, joined a group at 12:50 and set off at 13:10. 夜的小小妖 (Feb 2026) waited about 30 minutes for a 30-person group, and 渝阵 (Aug 2026) found the guide-sales desk slow in summer. (3 travelers) source
• English guiding exists, but plan ahead. Foreign-language human tours cost the same as Chinese ones, and the museum offers English audio devices and an online guide in seven languages. Book through the service desk early or rent the bilingual audio device (¥30 standard, ¥38 MR guide). Caveat: Xinhua (Jun 2025) reports 200+ foreign-language tours, 3,000 Chinese/English devices and a seven-language online guide. Daniela (Jul 2026, Xiaohongshu; also reposted on a Guanghan forum site) found no official English guide left on a weekday afternoon and rented an English device for ¥50 (Chinese ¥30); English guides running out on busy days is the visitor's account only. source
• Reserve the dome theatre separately. The 'Heaven and Earth Echoes' (天地回响) digital dome theatre on the second floor of Hall 1 needs its own reservation through the museum's WeChat official account or mini-program; a museum ticket alone does not book it. Caveat: 川观新闻 reported the reservation route when the theatre began trial running; 陈一碗饭 and 米可 (Sep 2026) both say it needs a separate booking, and 查有此人 (Sep 2026) calls the 15-minute dome-screen show free (all reposts on one Guanghan travel-forum site). Its current opening hours and price are not published. 沛泽麻麻 (Oct 2026) books it free from the mini-program's study (研学) page, released at 20:00 five days ahead on every date including holidays, and says to arrive 15 minutes early with the ID card because late arrivals must rebook and same-day rebooking is often impossible in busy periods, so choose a slot after 12:00. 蜗牛慢慢 (Aug 2026) advises booking it right after the museum ticket. An anonymous commenter from Malaysia (Nov 2025) could not complete the booking because the page was Chinese-only and asked for a phone number. (3 travelers) source
• Free luggage storage, but plan the exit. Large bags can be left free at the storage beside the ticket-check entrance, outside the gate. The exit does not return you to the lobby, so collect bags before you head to the gate or build the walk back into your plan. Caveat: The forum posts (米可 and simple, Aug–Sep 2026) are reposts on one Guanghan travel-forum site; 沛泽麻麻 (Oct 2026) also says the free storage is beside the entrance, after which you queue to scan your ID; the museum does not describe the storage. (2 travelers) source
• No flash, selfie sticks or touching. The museum bans flash and selfie sticks in the galleries, and photography where a sign says so. It also says tickets or guide tickets bought from touts or non-official agents may not get you in, and unlicensed guides are removed. Caveat: The touts and licensed-guide crackdown is described in a May 2024 government report; current street conditions are not documented. source
• Plan the ride home after dark. After an evening visit, follow the signs to the official shuttle stop for Chunxi Road instead of accepting a lift outside the gate, because drivers there may say the buses have finished. Taxis and ride-hail are scarce after dark, so book a ride or a train in advance and leave as soon as the halls close. Caveat: One visitor account from summer 2025 puts the last bus to central Chengdu at about 20:30 and the fare at ¥25 for an adult. These accounts date from Jun 2025 to Feb 2026 and the evening schedule changes with season and holiday. 王老吉 and 🍉贪吃小姐 (both Jul 2025) were told by drivers or a guard that no buses were left but found the official one; 又几 (Jun 2025, a rainy holiday night) saw only 20:00 and 20:20 departures and about 100 people queuing; 夜的小小妖 (Feb 2026) waited ten minutes for a ride-hail driver after paying extra; 🍊心想是橙吖 (Feb 2026) waited about 30 minutes for a taxi at Sanxingdui station, and after the museum found no cars and left by sharing a ride. The child fare of ¥12.5 under 1.2 m comes from 🍉贪吃小姐 only. (5 travelers) source

Sources

• 三星堆博物馆
• 三星堆博物馆 (published 2024-06-30)
• 三星堆博物馆 (published 2026-09-20)
• 成都发布 (published 2026-09-20)
• 新华网 (published 2025-06-18)
• 四川日报 (published 2026-10-01)
• 成都日报／红星新闻 (published 2026-08-30)
• 广汉市人民政府 (published 2023-08-28)
• 新华网四川 (published 2023-08-28)
• 央视网 (published 2023-07-28)
• 川观新闻
• 四川省人民政府网站 (published 2024-05-13)
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉旅游攻略网 (ghsxd.com), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉驴友攻略网 (ghsxd.cn), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• 广汉驴友攻略网 (ghsxd.cn), sister site of one operator (same ICP filing); repost, original author unverified
• _TI***r6 (published 2026-08-20)
• Suicasmo (published 2026-05-12)
• 叶-妈咪 (published 2025-04-15)
• Daniela (published 2026-07-30)
• 蜗牛慢慢🐌 (published 2026-08-15)
• 新西兰传奇兄弟奇遇记 (published 2025-08-01)
• 王老吉 (published 2025-07-06)
• 渝阵 (published 2026-08-26)
• 🍉贪吃小姐🎀万觅觅🦄 (published 2025-07-17)
• 🍊心想是橙吖🍊 (published 2026-02-13)
• 又几 (published 2025-06-01)
• 夜的小小妖 (published 2026-02-21)
• 小柿子（好柿花生） (published 2025-09-22)
• 桃子罐头 (published 2026-09-19)
• 翠花儿讲三星堆 (published 2026-09-30)
• 沛泽麻麻 (published 2026-10-05)
• sunscr33n_luver (published 2026-02-23)
• Impossible-Many6625 (published 2026-02-23)
• MelangeMuncher (published 2026-02-23)

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