Objective To know the training status and expectation of village doctors in remote and poor areas of Sichuan province and to provide the preferences for developing a viable and efficient training model. Methods The cluster sampling method, combined with questionnaire surveys and qualitative interviews, was used. A total of 463 village doctors of 302 village clinics in Pengzhou and Baoxing of Sichuan province were interviewed. Results The “three-side” phenomenon including the doctor being old, poor academic background and lack of female doctor in remote and poor areas of Sichuan was serious. In-service village doctors’ knowledge on public health and Chinese medicine increased through training. There were differences between the training village doctors participated and that they had expected. The cost of the training was somewhat high for rural doctors. The training system has not been established yet in remote areas. Conclusions Both quantity and quality should be considered in in-service village doctor training in remote areas of Sichuan Province, which should also consider local conditions and farmers’ needs . The in-service training system should be developed as soon as possible. It is suggested that the treatment of village doctors should be improved. Cultivating more young village doctors should be based on the stability of the medical team.