Zhuji Leisure Tour: Eat Delicacies, Ride a Yacht, Climb Waterfalls, and Encounter the Lotus Goddess

Xishi Hometown Tourist Area is a national 4A-level tourist area, themed on Xishi culture, fully showcasing the ancient Yue culture and hometown charm. The entire tourist area stretches along the Huansha River, extending for several miles.

Xishi Hall is one part of the Xishi Hometown Tourist Area. The tourist area includes Xishi Hall, the Chinese Historical Ladies Museum, Fan Li Temple, Zheng Clan Ancestral Hall, and Yuchanghao Folk Museum.

The antique Xishi Hall is located at the foot of Zhuluo Mountain, by the Huansha River. Inside the hall, there is a statue of Xishi, surrounded by attractions such as Red Powder Pond, Zheng Dan Memorial Pavilion, and Worthies Pavilion.

In front of the gate, there are also the Huansha River, Huansha Stone, Xishi Pavilion, the authentic calligraphy of "Huansha" by the sage of calligraphy Wang Xizhi, a trestle bridge, winding corridors, and other sights.

This week happened to coincide with a local festival commemorating the Lotus Goddess.

According to Zhuji folk customs, citizens offered sacrifices to the Lotus Goddess—Xishi, chanted scriptures for blessings, and enjoyed activities such as lotus viewing, checking in at popular photo spots, and distributing offerings.

However, the eastern area of the Xishi Hometown Tourist Area is currently undergoing upgrades to develop nighttime tourism economy. By then, snacks and dining, hotels and B&Bs, trendy brand shopping, themed IPs, leisure entertainment, intangible cultural heritage creative products, nighttime economy, and novel tourism projects will all come together.

Address: No. 123 Huansha South Road, Zhuji City

Wuxie Scenic Area is located 20 kilometers west of Zhuji City, originally named "Wuxie Scenic Area." The scenic area is divided into four parts from outside to inside: Wuxie Lake Scenic Area, Taoyuan Scenic Area, Dongyuan (East Source), and Xiyuan (West Source). The so-called 'xie' means waterfall, and the area features a five-tiered waterfall, which is a major highlight.

At Wuxie, you can enjoy different scenery throughout the year: water play in summer, red leaves in autumn, and ginkgo in early winter!

After entering the scenic area, you first need to take a boat from the Dam Wharf across Wuxie Lake, get off at Tianyibi Wharf, and then start walking.

Transportation in the scenic area includes free shuttle boats (approximately every 45 minutes) and paid speedboats (about 20 yuan per person, available anytime) that take you directly to the pier. The speedboats are fast and thrilling, with people screaming on board.

Riding on a painted pleasure boat, you can fully enjoy the beautiful scenery of Wuxie. The reflections of Yuanbao Peak, Jiuying Peak, Xiantao Peak, Dujuan Peak, Laoseng Peak, and Xianzhang Peak on both banks bend and twist, and occasionally water birds fly low over the water, giving a sense of 'endless green mountains and clear waters' and the poetic feeling of 'each fold of green mountain is a screen, each bend of green water is a zither.' It is incredibly beautiful.

After disembarking, walk a short distance to the electric cart station. You can take an electric cart through Taoyuan Scenic Area to Wuxie Zen Temple (10 yuan one way) or walk, which takes about 20 minutes. In summer, it is recommended to take the cart; on cooler days, walking is fine and the scenery is beautiful.

The electric cart drop-off point is also the junction of Dongyuan and Xiyuan. Wuxie Waterfall and Wuxie Zen Temple are in Dongyuan, while Xiyuan offers mountain climbing. The two sides are connected at the summit. Usually, tour groups only go to Dongyuan to see the Wuxie Waterfall and then return the same way. If you have plenty of time, you can choose to ascend from one side, cross Ziwei Ridge, and descend from the other side, avoiding backtracking.

In Dongyuan, walking from bottom to top, you will encounter the fifth to first waterfalls in sequence. Each tier has a different form. The fifth waterfall is large and majestic, while the upper ones become more graceful. By the first and second waterfalls, they are very small and gentle. In summer, the waterfall area is very cool, making it a great place to escape the heat.

Continuing upward, you reach the highest point, Ziwei Ridge. Standing on the peak feels great and the view is excellent. Crossing Ziwei Ridge, you arrive at Xiyuan, which offers a completely different scenery from Dongyuan—exceptionally fresh and quiet.

The Zhuji Tea Museum has a building area of 1,166.4 square meters, divided into two floors. It has seven sections: Origins of Tea, History of Tea, Tea Matters, Tea Utensils, Tea Charm, Tea Glory, and Tea People.

It displays the origins and history of tea through pictures and documents. Exhibits include tools used in tea picking and processing such as tea baskets, seedling stools, tea cages, rolling machines, and tea crushers, as well as various tea sets for drinking. With the theme 'Tea as the National Drink,' it showcases achievements in tea and recounts anecdotes of famous figures related to tea.

The Zhuji Tea Museum integrates functions of collection, exhibition, research on tea culture, and conducting tea activities. Citizens can visit the museum to learn tea knowledge and understand tea culture.

Recently, films and TV series about the Southern Song dynasty tea-whisking culture have become popular, and the tea museum also offers an experience of this tea, which I just tried.

Xiang Street is located in Zhuji, the origin of ancient Yue culture in Zhejiang. It stretches along the waterline, complementing and interacting with the Xishi Hometown Scenic Area. While preserving the original features of the millennium-old ancient Yue culture, it cleverly integrates international fashion elements, forming a commercial layout that blends ancient and modern, creating a leisure spot that combines ancient Yue culture, intangible cultural heritage inheritance, trendy activities, and vacation travel.

Xiang Street is dominated by new cultural tourism formats such as 'dining, accommodation, cultural creativity, leisure, entertainment, and slow living,' echoing and interacting with the Xishi Hometown Scenic Area. Here, you don't have to worry about eating, drinking, and having fun. It is usually a bustling place in Zhuji, and with the 'boost' of official events, it becomes even more lively.

This time, I happened to see a large-scale performance of 'Long Drought Meets Sweet Rain,' which takes you through a thousand years to watch the spectacular scene of ancient rain prayers, with the Thunder God and Lightning Goddess making an appearance.

There are stages at both ends of the street and an open-air cinema in the middle. Coming here, besides shopping and eating, you can also watch movies, listen to opera, and see performances—plenty of entertainment activities.

Xiang Street is located at No. 286 Gentadong Road, Zhuji (near Kongque City). I think the nearby parking lot has ample spaces, suitable for self-driving. Buses are also convenient: take routes 112A, 113, 122, or 139 to Zhuji City Tourist Distribution Center stop, which is less than 100 meters away.

The summer heat over 30 degrees is no joke. When tired from strolling, of course, you need to replenish with delicious food. Here I recommend two restaurants that are very famous locally, and even tourists from other places come specially.

The first is Fengqiu Restaurant, very popular and also a hot spot online. Their specialty snack is steamed buns (baozi). Who would have thought a restaurant is famous for baozi? The bun skin is very thin, the filling is generous, a mix of lean and fatty meat, greasy but not oily, and the broth is flavorful. Besides baozi, the dishes are also great: braised duck, salt-baked chicken, chicken feet, pig trotters, etc., are all popular specialties. If you can't remember the names, just use my photos to order!

The other is Shanfeng Renjia. Both stores have the character 'feng' (abundance), probably because they both like harvest! I found this shop while playing nearby; there happened to be a huge lotus pond, and I saw it while taking photos. This place is famous for its lotus feast, so I ordered some. The taste was very good, and the presentation was exquisite. The special summer tremella soup was perfectly stewed, with all the collagen extracted, giving a very smooth texture.

Review: Fengqiu Restaurant, Review: Shanfeng Renjia

Alright, this trip to Zhuji ends here. Two days of eating, drinking, and having fun is quite relaxing.

Each scenic area will check health codes, travel history cards, nucleic acid test information, etc. Please keep your green code!