https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2025/apr/27/chongqing-the-worlds-largest-city-in-pictures Skip to main content The Guardian - Back to home * News * Opinion * Sport * Culture * Lifestyle [ ] Show More * News + US news + US politics + World news + Climate crisis + Middle East + Ukraine + Soccer + Business + Environment + Tech + Science + Newsletters + Wellness * Opinion + The Guardian view + Columnists + Letters + Opinion videos + Cartoons * Sport + Soccer + NFL + Tennis + MLB + MLS + NBA + WNBA + NHL + F1 + Golf * Culture + Film + Books + Music + Art & design + TV & radio + Stage + Classical + Games * Lifestyle + Wellness + Fashion + Food + Recipes + Love & sex + Home & garden + Health & fitness + Family + Travel + Money [ ] What term do you want to search? Search with google * Support us * Print subscriptions * US edition + switch to the UK edition + switch to the Australia edition + switch to the International edition + switch to the Europe edition * Search jobs * Digital Archive * Guardian Licensing * About Us * The Guardian app * Video * Podcasts * Pictures * Inside the Guardian * Guardian Weekly * Crosswords * Wordiply * Corrections * Facebook * Twitter * Search jobs * Digital Archive * Guardian Licensing * About Us [6045] Chongqing, the world's largest city - in pictures People explore the Yangtze River shoreline with the Raffles City group of skyscrapers, built in 2019, behind them. Chongqing, the world's largest city - in pictures * Share on Facebook * Share on Twitter * Share via Email The largest city in the world is as big as Austria, but few people have ever heard of it. The megacity of 34 million people in central of China is the emblem of the fastest urban revolution on the planet. The Communist party decided 30 years ago to unify and populate vast rural areas, an experiment that has become a symbol of the Chinese ability to reshape the world All photographs by Alessandro Gandolfi Main image: People explore the Yangtze River shoreline with the Raffles City group of skyscrapers, built in 2019, behind them. Sun 27 Apr 2025 02.00 EDT * The Chongqing planning exhibition hall on the east bank of the Yangtze River. Chongqing's extraordinary development reflects the country's path: in the last 20 years, the city's GDP per capita has increased 16-fold, the rate of urbanisation has doubled, and it has moved from polluting heavy industry to dominance in the automotive and IT fields Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A night-time shot of the Chongqing exhibition hall with skyscrapers lit up behind it * The 20-metre high Sisyphe bookshop inside The Ring, a brand new shopping centre in the city's prestigious New North zone Share on Facebook Share on Twitter The 20-metre high Sisyphe bookshop inside The Ring, a brand new shopping centre in the city's prestigious New North zone * The Qiansimen bridge over the Jaling River. More cars were produced in Chongqing last year than in France and England combined. One in three laptops and one in 10 motorbikes sold worldwide are made here Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A night-time shot of cars, a motorcyclist and a pedestrian on a bridge * Student lodgings on the Chongqing University campus in Shapingba district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A block of flats with trees in front of it * * The Buddhist Luohan temple, built between 1064 and 1067 during the Song dynasty and remodelled several times since Share on Facebook Share on Twitter An ancient temple with modern, glass-fronted buildings behind it * A park not far from Xingfu Plaza in Jiangbei district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter People walk along stepping stones across a lake in a park with two skyscrapers in the background * The point where the Yangtze and Jialing rivers meet. The square is at the base of the Raffles City skyscrapers in Yuzhong district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter An aerial view of people in a square looking out across a river junction with skyscrapers in the distance on the far bank * A couple on the eastern bank of the Jialing River in Jiangbei district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A dusk shot of couple the river's edge with bridges and skyscrapers behind them * * Visitors take pictures on a 250-metre high observation deck in the Raffles City complex overlooking the junction of the Yangtze and Jialing rivers Share on Facebook Share on Twitter People standing on an observation deck with a glass floor take photos * A kiosk selling lottery tickets not far from Luohan temple in Yuzhong district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A kiosk selling lottery tickets * A woman at a hair salon near the Three Gorges Museum in Yuzhong district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A woman in a blue gown looks at her phone in a hair salon * A worker stacks shelves in the new Harmay shop, not far from Time Square Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A worker stands on a small step-ladder to stack shelves * * A woman performs in the garden of the Second Lady's Home, a venue not far from the southern bank of the Jialing River Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A dusk shot of a woman singing and playing guitar in a lit tent * A man walks down a path leading to a recently built residential complex near Liujiaping metro station in Nan'an district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A man walks down a tree-lined path through a garden with residential blocks in the background * Moonwalker Sky Land, a bar on the top floor of a skyscraper overlooking the Jialing River. A flat in Chongqing costs a seventh of what it would cost in Beijing or Shanghai and is twice as big. Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Two women have a drink in a window seat of a purple-lit bar * One of the entrances to The Ring shopping centre Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A couple walk along a brightly lit futuristic corridor * * Residential buildings alongside the Yangtze River photographed from a metro train Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Residential tower blocks with a river behind them * A group of friends enjoy a barbecue on the eastern bank of the Jialing River in Jiangbei district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A dusk shot of people eating at a low table with skyscrapers in the background * The Eling Palace complex, built in 2018 by Safdie Architects, in made up of 126 apartments that follow the topography of the terrain with rooftop gardens, terraces, stairways, promenades and metal screens to shade the dwellings Share on Facebook Share on Twitter The Eling Palace complex, built in 2018 by Safdie Architects, in made up of 126 apartments that follow the topography of the terrain with rooftop gardens, terraces, stairways, promenades and metal screens to shade the dwellings * A couple hug on the metro. Equipped with 12 lines and 312 stations, the city's network is 561 kilometres long and carries more than a billion passengers in a year Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A couple hug in a busy metro carriage * * Metro line 2 passes through a 19-storey apartment building. Liziba station was built between the sixth and eighth floors to reclaim space and has become a destination for thousands of tourists who come to photograph it every day Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A metro train on a high rail emerges from the side of building * A man sells street food not far from the Luohan temple in Yuzhong district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A night-time shot of a man serving a customer from his brightly lit food van * Workers prepare the entrance to the new Apple store not far from Time Square in Yuzhong district Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Workers in a cylindrical glass structure with a giant Apple logo behind them * The eastern bank of the Yangtze River, seen from the Raffles City observation deck Share on Facebook Share on Twitter A river bank in the foreground with skyscrapers giving way to mountains in the background * Topics * China * Asia Pacific * Urbanisation More galleries Most popular * World * Europe * US * Americas * Asia * Australia * Middle East * Africa * Inequality * Global development * News * Opinion * Sport * Culture * Lifestyle Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning Sign up for our email * About us * Help * Complaints & corrections * SecureDrop * Work for us * Privacy policy * Cookie policy * Terms & conditions * Contact us * All topics * All writers * Digital newspaper archive * Tax strategy * Facebook * YouTube * Instagram * LinkedIn * Newsletters * Advertise with us * Guardian Labs * Search jobs Support the Guardian Available for everyone, funded by readers Support us Back to top (c) 2025 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. 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