Just last year (2013), Chengdu saw the opening of the world’s largest building by floor space, the gigantic New Century Global Center. Its main fixture is the New Century Global Mall, which occupies the center of the complex.

We woke up this morning to take the Chengdu Metro Line 1, to the center. Chengdu currently has two metro lines, one going east-west, the other going north-south. When completed, the Chengdu Metro will have 8 lines in total, providing high-speed transit service to nearly the whole city.

Chengdu Metro, Line 1
The subway is as packed as a can of sardines during peak hours. Sitting space is at a premium, and is usually taken by the first riders. However, the metro is very fast, and signs as well as spoken directions are available in both English and Chinese.

Coming out of the metro tunnel for the first time, I was not prepared for the shrinking feeling upon seeing this gigantic building. At 100 meters tall and half a kilometer in length, there is nothing of compare, save for the equally large plaza surrounding the facade.

The gigantic New Century Global Center
Our first look at this absolutely massive building. Coming out of the subway tunnel, this structure completely engulfs your field of view. Even seeing it from several hundred feet away won’t allow you to take in the building in one straight look.

The center didn’t get any smaller inside. We were welcomed by a 300-feet-tall ceiling and a giant birthday cake.

Entrance of the New Century Global Center
Entrance area of the New Century Global Center. Of the many escalators in the building, these two go from the first to the fourth floor. The floors are made entirely of marble stone, a prominent feature of the entire center.

Everything in here is huge. For the first hour, you get the feeling that you’re a midget in a regular-size marble-clad mall.

New Century Global Center first anniversary
Only one year old! The center’s a baby… but you can’t tell that from its size.
New Century Global Center inside
Another look at the interior of the mall. The space between stores is very roomy, and of course, it’s hard to miss the marble adorning the floor and walls.

Sadly, the water park cost 180 CNY per person (about $30 USD), so we didn’t go inside. Instead, we opted for the skating rink. I confess, I had never skated before.

New Century Global Center ice rink
After 1 1/2 hours, I did learn to skate, at least to some extent. The ice rink is very cool!

So how big is New Century Global Center? In addition to the 400,000-square-meter mall, it has enough space to host a 1000-room hotel, a water-park with artificial beach and faux Mediterranean Village, a university campus, and several conference rooms. In total, the Global Center’s floor area covers 1.7 million square meters, or about 434 acres. You can fit 328 football fields in that space, or over 1400 swimming pools. It is a sight you must see in person to believe.

Published by Geoffrey Liu

A software engineer by trade and a classical musician at heart. Currently a software engineer at Groupon getting into iOS mobile development. Recently graduated from the University of Washington, with a degree in Computer Science and a minor in Music. Web development has been my passion for many years. I am also greatly interested in UI/UX design, teaching, cooking, biking, and collecting posters.

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