By rail
Suzhou station, ~30 min from Shanghai
East Asia · China
Suzhou, China
Classical gardens and canals
Getting there
By air
Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA), ~1 h
Best time to visit
March to May and October to November — mild
Don't miss
The Humble Administrator's Garden
The Lingering Garden
Tiger Hill
Pingjiang Road
Things to do
The classical gardens
Canal boats
Silk workshops
Where to eat
Sources: Photo: Zhangzhugang · CC BY-SA 4.0
What to pack
Walking shoes
A quieter corner
Tongli's quiet canals, early in the morning
Questions travellers ask
How quickly can I get to Suzhou from Shanghai?
About 30 minutes by train to Suzhou station. Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA) airport is around 1 hour away.
Which of Suzhou's gardens should I see?
The Humble Administrator's Garden and the Lingering Garden. Then take a canal boat or walk Pingjiang Road.
What are Suzhou's local specialities?
Squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, and Suzhou-style noodles.
Where can I find quiet canals near Suzhou?
In Tongli, early in the morning.
About Suzhou
- Lakeside
Where it is
Suzhou lies in the south-east of Jiangsu Province, China, on the Grand Canal near the eastern shore of Lake Tai, in the Yangtze delta west of Shanghai.
History
Founded, by tradition, in 514 BC as the capital of the Wu kingdom, Suzhou prospered on the Grand Canal and the silk trade. From the Song to the Qing dynasties its scholars and officials built walled gardens of rock, water and pavilions, and nine of these classical gardens are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
People
Suzhou's people speak Mandarin and the Suzhou dialect of Wu Chinese, and the city is famed for Su embroidery, silk and fine woodwork. Kunqu, one of the oldest surviving forms of Chinese opera, took shape in the area, and pingtan ballad-singing is still performed in the teahouses.
Known for
- The Humble Administrator's Garden
- The Lingering Garden
- Canals and stone bridges along Pingjiang Road
- Suzhou silk and embroidery
- Kunqu opera and pingtan storytelling
Did you know?
The Humble Administrator's Garden, first laid out in the 16th century, is the largest of Suzhou's classical gardens.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.