Shanghai Suzhou Round Trip Tour

Are you ready for your 1-day trip from Shanghai to Suzhou? First, your friendly tour guide will pick you up at the downtown hotel in Shanghai. Then you will hop on the estimated train G7268 08:05/08:37 from Shanghai Railway Station to Suzhou Railway Station. There, you will meet your guide. As the saying goes, “Heaven above, Suzhou and Hangzhou below.” Have fun at Suzhou!

In the morning, you will visit Lingering Garden and Pingjiang Road.

Lingering Garden, crowned as the World Cultural Heritage, enables you to appreciate the unique charm of Chinese classical garden architecture. With an area of about 23,300 square meters, it can divide into four parts, buildings at its east, gardens at its center, landscape stones at its west, and idyllic scenery at its north. Guanyun Peak, in Lingering Garden, is a naturally formed rock from Taihu Lake, standing near a spring with its shadow reflecting in the water. There are also many pavilions, stones, ancient trees, flowers, and small ponds. They produce an irresistible appeal to most travelers.

The next stop is Pingjiang Road, which stands out as the most typical, historical, and cultural district in Suzhou. Walking along this 1,606-meter-long road, you can feel the changes it has undergone due to Suzhou's economic development. All kinds of snack bars and souvenir shops have sprung up. Many ancient archways, bridges, trees, and wells are scattered among them. Speaking of the local delicacies, you can try the osmanthus cake, glutinous rice cake in a bamboo tube, stall tea, and other special snacks while appreciating the daily life of Pingjiang Road.

After that, it is time for lunch. In the afternoon, you will go to Tiger Hill and Suzhou No.1 Silk Factory.

Tiger Hill is seated at the northwest of Suzhou. It is 34.3 meters above sea level and covers an area of about 200,000 square meters. It bears a history of nearly 2,500 years, which is as ancient as that of Suzhou. Many visitors may wonder: are there real tigers on this hill? To be frank, no. The “tiger” in Tiger Hill mainly originated from an ancient Chinese legend. More specifically, in 496 BC, Helü, King of Wu (about 110-473 BC) died of tetanus and was buried in this mountain. Three days later, a white tiger crouched on Helü’s tomb. Therefore, it was named Tiger Hill. Currently, there are many places of interest here. Yunyan Temple Pagoda (also known as Tiger Hill Pagoda), Duanliang Palace, and Suzhou Bonsai History Culture Exhibition Hall, to name just a few. “It was a pity to go to Suzhou without visiting Tiger Hill,” said Su Dongpo, a great writer of the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Another place worth visiting on the hill is the Lu Yu Well, named after the author of the first tea book in China.

Then, you will go to Suzhou No.1 Silk Factory. Founded in 1926, this factory is on the list of Suzhou Time-Honored Brand Corporations. You will first go to its Historical Museum to get more information about this factory. Then, you will visit its production workshops to learn about each step of the silk-making process, including mulberry planting, silkworm breeding, silk reeling, and silk quilt weaving. In addition, this silk factory is mainly engaged in silk production and processing. Its products include well-made, fashionable silk quilts, silk clothing, scarves, silk bedding, etc., meeting different needs of consumers.

A day’s journey is coming to an end. After taking the estimated train G7281 17:29/18:02 back to Shanghai, you will be transferred to your hotel. If you want to visit more, welcome here again, and thanks for choosing our service!

Tiger Hill

Lingering Garden

Author： Yan Weiran

Proofreader: Lexie