Great Chinese bars in Chongqing!

I have found Chinese bars a great place to meet people - both Chinese and expats.


Chongqing bars are no exception.

Visit my favourite bar - Dee Dees Bar next to the Holiday Inn apartments in Nan Ping.

It is a Western style bar in Chongqing run by Dee Dee, a local Chinese woman and her Welsh husband Peter.

The beer is cold and the food is good. Try the hamburger - it is as good as you will get in Chongqing.

You can watch satellite TV and play darts with the locals. Or socialise with the expats that live in the nearby Holiday Inn apartments.

Chinese people are very friendly. They love to have a drink and also practise their English - particularly Chinese girls!

Often they are students who are learning English at University and want to practise their English.

The staff also speak a few words of English and love to practise. They also like playing cards. They will teach you to play cards in between serving drinks. It is another way they practise their English.

Hotel Bars

The Western hotels usually have nice bars where you can meet fellow travellers.

One I frequented was the Monkey Bar at the Holiday Inn in Nan Ping. The friendly Chinese staff not only served great food and drinks but would play cards with you, dance and sing Karaoke with the band.

The hotels have resident bands - usually a Phillipino band who play easy listening music including requests.

Chinese Bars

Chongqing has many bars that cater for the local Chinese. However, you will always be welcome and probably will end up toasting with the locals and playing drinking games.

Along the River Yanqtze opposite Jiefangbei is a row of bars on the waterfront. It is a very pleasant place to sit, drink and take in the view - particularly in the hot summers!

Karaoke Bars are extremely popular with the Chinese.

The bar consists of a number of small rooms with Karaoke equipment in them. The room is hired and food and drink purchased. When you purchase beer, they usually bring it in a crate.

At the end, they count the number of empty bottles to determine how much you should pay.

The rooms are hired by the hour. The price depends on the establishment but about 60 to 80 rmb per hour is what you could expect to pay.

Chinese bars are a great night out. However, don't be surprised if you end up with a headache because of the noise and relatively cheap beer!