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Suzhou and Zhouzhuang Water Village Day Trip from Shanghai: Experience Centuries-Old Chinese Culture
3.7
410 Ratings
Suzhou
Visit two picturesque Chinese towns, Suzhou and Zhouzhuang on a day trip from Shanghai. You’ll see how daily life has remained unchanged over the centuries in these unique old towns. Visit the Suzhou’s magnificent gardens, feast on a Chinese lunch and travel through Zhouzhuang’s waterways on a Chinese-style gondola.
Duration:
10 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Master-of-Nets Garden - Suzhou is one of the oldest towns in the Yangtze basin, founded in about 600 B.C. With its interconnected waterways and beautiful environment, the city is often referred as “The Venice of the East”.
The gardens embody the harmonious principles of Chinese garden construction, which dictate that gardens should attempt to create a microcosm of the universe in a confined space. Net Master Garden is the best and most celebrated as a model Ming Dynasty Garden in all of Suzhou.
- Jinghang Waterway - The Grand Canal starts in Beijing, pass by Suzhou, and ends in Hangzhou. It is over 1,000 kilometers from the North China to South China, which is known as a miracle in the world.
- Panmen Gate - Panmen Gate is one of the oldest “ancient city walls” left in Suzhou, with the history over 1000 years. You will have the chance to picture it by Grand Canal.
- Suzhou Silk Museum - Suzhou No. 1 Silk Mill is world wide known for its silk products, with the Silk Museum in its workshop. It is your chance to purchase the traditional Chinese silk products.
- Zhouzhuang Water Town - With the reputation of No. 1 water village in the world, Zhouzhuang is well known for its beautiful environment and simple architecture, well preserved for over 900 years. The majority of the town’s residences were built in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and nearly 100 classic courtyards and 60 carved-brick archways are still in use.
Boat tour is also included in the water village.
- Zhouzhuang Boat - You will visit the water town of Zhouzhuang and board a Chinese-style gondola to cruise the waterways of the town. In this water village, locals live life on waterways, still doing everyday activities from washing clothes to shopping from vendors in boats.
What's Included
- Scenic boat tour in the picturesque water village
- Knowledgeable English-speaking tour guide
- Delicious lunch included
- Comfortable travel with in-vehicle air conditioning
- All admission tickets provided
- Convenient hotel pickup and drop off in the city center
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
Additional Information
- This is a Shared Tour - 3 people are needed as a minimum to proceed with the tour.
Location
Master-of-Nets Garden
No.11 Kuojiatou Alley, Daichengqiao Road, Canglang District,
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
3.7
(410 Ratings)
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Zohaib_p
May 25, 2024
Great experience and contrast to Shanghai - Tom was a great tour guide and very knowledgeable and engaging. Highly recommended in terms of scenery.
Review provided by Viator
Emma_m
Mar 5, 2024
Great - The tour guide and zhouzhuamg were amazing. I wish we could have also called in at the temple instead of the silk factory xx
Review provided by Viator
715winniel
Feb 25, 2024
Highly recommended to go but during quiet season - The guide is knowledgeable; fabulous water village; kept the ancient architect in good condition; clean city; should avoid going there during China holidays
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Andrew_s
Dec 14, 2023
Great to get out of the city for a day - Tom was a Shanghai native and knows the city and its environs like the back of his hand. The town of Souzhou and the water village are definitely worth seeing!
Review provided by Viator
Judith_j
Nov 3, 2023
Great trip with a knowledgeable guide - Our guide Tom was very knowledgeable and also experienced. There were plenty of opportunities for restrooms and the lunch was good. The pickup was on time and Tom communicated well about the arrangements. The others on the trip were lovely people !
Review provided by Viator
Lg964
Oct 3, 2019
Good Overview - Our tour guide Tom was excellent. He understood that we had read up on the histories of Suzhou and he added to our knowledge. We enjoyed the Master of Nets Garden which is a UNESCO site, and the water village of Zhouzhuang, where 20,000 people live and sell their wares.
Review provided by Viator
Stephanie_d
May 20, 2024
Good, however could have planned more around traffic - Overall the tour was good, quite informative. We ended up spending a lot of time on the road due to traffic. Lunch was pre-ordered, though we would have preferred to have more of a say as there were one or two dishes that was not eaten, thus wasting food.
Review provided by Viator
Joseph_b
Apr 30, 2024
Great time - The guide was totally awesome with great knowledge, personality, and excellent English. I would like less time at silk factory and more at river village. Maybe skip silk factory
Review provided by Viator
Frank
Feb 6, 2024
Learned a lot, great sightseeing!! - It was extremely interesting to see the two different towns, enjoy the scenery and savour the local cuisine. The Watertown was nice and quaint, it supposedly looks like how China was in the past. The shops were cute, artsy and reasonably priced. The whole tour felt rushed though. Even though the advertisement indicates 10 hours, we were back at the hotel in 8. The advertised tour does not mention a minimum participant number, but as they only had our 2 person party, they informed us the night before the tour that we could cancel or pay an extra $100. As we had nothing planned and it was too late to get something else, we chose for the extra ‘cash’ payment. Our guide, Tom, spoke English exceptionally well, was very interesting and had tons of things to explain. We learned a lot! He made us feel rushed though. The lunch was very good (and way too much…) in a very authentic restaurant. We would maybe have preferred to eat in the water town, but no complaints at all.
So, beside from the feeling rushed, and the last minute $100 charge, we really enjoyed the tour and are very pleased we choose it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Faraway291151
Nov 21, 2019
Day Out - The attractions were good, but the mini bus should be sent to the wreckers it was small we all had to sit sideways or if you were small legs right into the other chair, plus a bit run down, 5 hours in the van, the guide was average he fell asleep in the first hour of our trip and then on the way home, I gave him a tip and he said it wasn't enough
Review provided by Viator
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