Post-Pandemic 8-Day Journey Through Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai
2020 was a year that would etch itself into memory. Our Spring Festival trip to Xi’an was all set—flights and hotels were booked—when the sudden outbreak of COVID-19 upended everything. There seemed to be no end in sight. By the time May Day rolled around, the first five-day Labor Day holiday in years, the pandemic had eased a little, and we arranged a trip to Nanjing—but that fell through due to workplace travel restrictions. There were no more longer breaks until National Day. By then, the domestic pandemic situation had stabilized, and the whole country was classified as low-risk. Having not left home for nearly a year, I snapped up some bargain China Southern flights and brought my parents on an 8-day trip to Hangzhou, Suzhou, and Shanghai.
**Preparations**
Once the destinations were set, the first order was booking hotels. I normally go for chain hotels—not too pricey, uniformly managed, not luxurious but never disappointing. The pandemic had hit the tourism industry hard; although hotel prices edged up during National Day, they didn’t double or triple like in previous years. We quickly locked in our stays based on the itinerary: Ibis Hangzhou Wensan Road and Hanting Suzhou Shantang Street, both family rooms, and both turned out quite fine.
Then came flights. Originally we planned only Hangzhou and Suzhou without Shanghai, budgeting for high-speed train tickets. But while browsing China Southern’s website, I spotted a flight from Shanghai to Guiyang on the evening of the 8th for just 280 CNY—on a 787 widebody, no less. I instantly booked that return leg, and that gave us an extra day in Shanghai. Next was the Guiyang–Hangzhou leg. The fare kept fluctuating between 500 and 600+ CNY, then dipped back. The day before Mid-Autumn Festival, it suddenly dropped to 460 CNY. With fees, that was over 100 CNY cheaper than the train, so I booked immediately.
**Costs at a Glance**
This Mid-Autumn & National Day trip really let us snag some deals. Transport ended up a third cheaper than expected.
Long-haul: Guiyang–Hangzhou flight (incl. fuel surcharge) 510 CNY per person; Shanghai–Guiyang flight (incl. fuel surcharge) 330 CNY per person. Airport buses totaled (60+20+25)=105 CNY per person. The three cities aren’t far apart, so we took express trains to enjoy the scenery and save money: Hangzhou–Suzhou 41.5 CNY per person, Suzhou–Shanghai 14.5 CNY per person. Total transport came to roughly 3,000 CNY.
Local transport: We used only buses and the metro. I didn’t track exactly, but no one spent over 70 CNY, so we’ll call it about 200 CNY total.
Hotels: 4 nights in Hangzhou at 283 CNY/night, 3 nights in Suzhou at 223 CNY/night — 1,800 CNY total.
Admission: Liangzhu National Archaeological Site Park (60 CNY), Wansong Academy (10 CNY), Memorial Temple of King Qian (15 CNY), Hanshan Temple (20 CNY), Humble Administrator’s Garden (80 CNY). These are adult prices; my father was over 70 and got free entry, my mother 65 and half-price — 280 CNY total. A heads-up: under pandemic control measures, *all* attractions—free or paid—require advance reservations. Check their official WeChat accounts or local government announcements and book as early as possible.
Souvenirs: I grabbed some fridge magnets and bookmarks for friends, about 220 CNY.
Food: I’m not fussy. We ate casually at local eateries, and since some sights were far, we carried dry provisions. So food was modest, just under 900 CNY.
Three people, 8 days: total about 6,400 CNY — very high value.
**Itinerary**
**Day 1, October 1:** Home to Hangzhou — practically a full travel day.
We took China Southern CZ6381, scheduled to depart Guiyang Longdongbao Airport at 2:40 PM and land at Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport at 4:45 PM. To be safe, I bought tickets for the 10:30 AM Anshun–Guiyang Airport bus. This turned out to be wise: normally 1.5 hours, the holiday traffic stretched it to 2.5 hours, and we reached the airport close to 1:00 PM. With minimal luggage and no checked bags, we printed our boarding passes, breezed through security, and waited at the gate.
The flight went smoothly with no delays, landing right on time at Xiaoshan. The airport isn’t connected to the city by metro yet, so we took the airport bus downtown (20 CNY per person) and got off at Wulinmen, then one bus to our hotel. It was just past 6:00 PM, dinner time. Still clueless about nearby restaurants, we ordered delivery and looked forward to the journey starting the next day.
**Day 2, October 2:** Liangzhu National Archaeological Site Park & Liangzhu Museum
First, a note on our hotel. The booking only included one breakfast, but because their restaurant wasn’t ready, the front desk gave each of us a 15 CNY voucher for Xinfeng Snacks, a local breakfast institution. The choices were generous: xiaolongbao, noodles, vermicelli soup, wontons, buns, bread, milk, yogurt, soy milk — more than enough. And since we’re light eaters, we had leftovers to pack as trail snacks, which kept food costs down in Hangzhou.
Liangzhu, in Yuhang District of Hangzhou, is no mystery to history buffs. Discovered in the 1920s and excavated over nearly a century, it pushed China’s rice cultivation back to around 6,000 years ago, giving archaeological backing to the view that both the Yangtze and Yellow river valleys were cradles of Chinese civilization. Its artifacts are mainly housed at the Liangzhu Museum and Zhejiang Provincial Museum. When Liangzhu was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2019, its profile soared, and the National Archaeological Site Park later opened on a trial basis at the end of last year. As a history major and archaeology enthusiast, I made this my first stop. Park ticket: 60 CNY; museum: free admission; both require advance online booking.
We headed to the park first—a trek involving one bus transfer, about 1.5 hours—arriving at the south gate around 10:00 AM. After exchanging our e-tickets at the visitor center, we queued to enter. I recommend following the park’s WeChat account for route maps and audio guides. A short walk in, there’s a shuttle bus ticket counter (20 CNY per person). Unless you’re a specialist wanting to pore over every detail, get the shuttle; the park is *huge* — don’t ask how I know. It may still be under development, but the scenery was stunning, phone photos gorgeous without any filter. As an archaeological site park, though, I felt it still falls short compared to the Hanyang Mausoleum Archaeological Park.
After about four hours, we headed to the Liangzhu Museum at Meilizhou Park (also home to the Meilizhou Church). Buses between the two took us there by nearly 3:00 PM. We showed our reservation QR codes and health codes and entered.
The museum, built in the 1990s, mainly holds artifacts unearthed from Liangzhu. A temporary exhibition displayed photos and documents about the World Heritage inscription process.
Following the guideline to limit indoor museum visits to about an hour under pandemic conditions, we moved fairly briskly through our highlights and then left.
Back at the hotel, there was a fast-food place downstairs. Not being foodies, we grabbed braised pork, shredded potatoes, and eggplant with green beans to eat in our room. It tasted good and wasn’t expensive. We ended up eating there for the rest of our Hangzhou evenings.
**Day 3, October 3:** Wansong Academy, Memorial Temple of King Qian, Su Dongpo Memorial Hall, Su Causeway
You can’t visit Hangzhou without seeing West Lake, but it’s so vast that fully exploring it could take days. So I picked a few spots of interest and split them between two days.
Wansong Academy, on Wansong Ridge at the southern edge of West Lake, was founded in 1498 (Ming Dynasty). Once called Taihe Academy and later Fuwen Academy, it was the largest, longest-lasting, and most influential gathering place for scholars in Ming-Qing Hangzhou. Big names like Wang Yangming and Qi Zhaonan lectured here, and poet Yuan Mei studied here. Emperors Kangxi and Qianlong bestowed calligraphy plaques on their southern tours. Today, though, many know it from the Butterfly Lovers legend — it’s said to be where they met and fell in love. So as soon as you start up the steps, you’re met with matchmaking ads posted by parents on behalf of their grown kids. You walk through this short “matchmaking street” before actually entering the academy.
The academy isn’t large. Main structures: Yangsheng Gate, Mingdao Hall, Dacheng Hall, Yuxiu Pavilion. Yuxiu Pavilion, once a residence for visiting scholars, now houses a “Liang-Zhu Study” recreating the lovers’ studious days. Mingdao Hall is a lecture room with exhibits on the imperial examination system. Dacheng Hall, where Confucius is venerated, features a mural of him teaching. A careful visit takes about an hour.
From the academy, we set off for the Temple of King Qian, 2 km away. We’d planned to bus, but West Lake traffic was heavily jammed, so we walked.
The temple, first built in 1077 (Northern Song), honors the achievements of Qian Liu, king of Wuyue. The current buildings are reconstructions; only the “Eight-Character Wall” remains original. The Hangzhou government rebuilt it in 2001–2003 at the original site inside Orioles Singing in the Willows Park. The complex covers 11,300 sq m with 4,600 sq m of building space. It reinstated the statues of three generations and five kings of the Qian clan, a merit archway, and main halls. Inside, displays on the Qians’ history use light, sound, and electronics to bring scenes like “King Qian builds the sea embankment” to life. There’s also an old-style stage for performances of _The Story of Qian Liu_ and various operas. The whole place blends nicely into the park.
Another quick visit, about an hour.
Leaving, we strolled along West Lake. October was still lush, willows trailing, the water so green it looked almost blue in photos, like a seaside.
We walked on to Su Causeway. Near the entrance is the Su Dongpo Memorial Hall, a two-story building with only the ground floor open. It introduces Su Dongpo’s official career in Hangzhou and other “West Lakes” across China. After a thorough look, we started down the actual causeway.
Today’s Su Causeway runs 3.2 km and crosses six arch bridges: Yingbo, Suolan, Wangshan, Yadi, Dongpu, and Kuahong. Truth be told, it has been rebuilt so many times over centuries that it now looks like an ordinary road. Most come, I suspect, because of Su Dongpo’s fame.
At the causeway’s end, across the road, sits Yue Fei Temple, but it was late and the crosswalk was far away, so we just snapped a photo and headed back by bus.
**Day 4, October 4:** Zhejiang Provincial Museum (Wulin Branch), water bus, Grand Canal Museum, Jiangshu Railway Relics Park, Hefang Street
Zhejiang Provincial Museum now has three venues: Wulin, Gushan, and a fine arts museum. Not being big on fine arts, I only targeted the first two. Today we went to Wulin, about a half-hour bus ride. The walk from the stop passed by the Grand Canal.
The Wulin branch’s permanent exhibitions are “Long Song of the Yue Land — Zhejiang History and Culture” and “Qianjiang Tide — Zhejiang Modern Revolutionary History” on the first two floors. The third floor has special displays: “Between Mountains and Waters — Huang Gongwang’s _Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains_ and Ming-Qing Landscape Paintings,” “Extraordinary Voices — Intangible World Heritage: The Chinese Guqin,” “Inspiration and Craft — Zhejiang Folk Plastic Arts,” and “Ten-Mile Red Dowry — Ningbo-Shaoxing Wedding Furniture.” The temporary gallery underground was closed when we visited.
Plan about three hours for the museum. Afterward, we walked to the Wulinmen Wharf for the water bus (Route 1) to Gongchen Bridge Wharf — fare 3 CNY. Whenever I’m in a city with river routes, I look for a water bus ride. Over the holiday, beside locals, I suspect many visitors like us were doing the same.
Our boat had a bit of an antique look. Forty-plus minutes later we docked right by the Ming Dynasty Gongchen Bridge.
The China Grand Canal Museum sits on Canal Square. We were past lunchtime, so we fed ourselves first. I wanted to try the region’s famous _shengjian_ (pan-fried buns). We picked the well-reviewed Yaobude Gaozu Shengjian and ordered two portions of shrimp shengjian and a fried rice with olive vegetables and preserved sausage. Open-minded as always, I enjoyed it all.
The museum, at the south end of Canal Culture Square in Gongshu District, is next to Gongchen Bridge, the milestone of the canal’s southern end. It covers over 10,000 sq m with 5,000+ sq m of exhibition space. The exhibits, split across halls covering the canal’s excavation and evolution, its uses, canal cities, and canal culture, showcase over a thousand artifacts and documents that bring home the waterway’s significance. In the ground-floor hall, a replica ancient boat sits center, with displays on world canals to the right.
I’d planned today’s sites as indoor ones because rain was forecast. But when we exited the museum, it was still early and we didn’t want to turn back. Rain was light, so umbrellas up, we wandered seemingly aimlessly to Jiangshu Railway Relics Park.
Jiangshu Railway, originally over 16 km, was Zhejiang’s first railway, opened in 1907 and torn up by Japanese invaders in 1944, leaving only sections of trackbed. Later the city built this 10-acre memorial park, reinstating a clock tower, waiting room, an old locomotive, and a stretch of rail.
The park doubles as a constitutional education base. The clock tower’s four sides display the history of China’s four constitutional revisions. The old waiting room houses an exhibition on the railway’s history, but it wasn’t open.
Afterward, we bussed to Hefang Street. Every city has one of these streets — parading culture, lined with lookalike old-style buildings, selling similar souvenirs, and drawing must-visit crowds. Hefang Street was no exception, though perhaps the many Longjing tea shops gave it a local twist.
We strolled aimlessly, then headed back.
**Day 5, October 5:** Xiling Seal Society, Zhejiang Provincial Museum (Gushan Branch), Bai Causeway, Hangzhou Confucius Temple, Hangzhou to Suzhou
Tonight we’d move on to Suzhou, so we checked out after breakfast and bussed to the Xiling Seal Society on West Lake’s Solitary Hill (Gushan).
Founded in 1904 by Zhejiang-school seal carvers Ding Fuzhi, Wang Fu’an, Wu Yin, Ye Weiming, and others, with Wu Changshuo as its first president, the society is dedicated “to preserving epigraphic treasures, studying seal engraving, and promoting calligraphy and painting.” It is the oldest, most accomplished, and most influential international association for epigraphy and seal art, dubbed “the foremost society under heaven.” Its 7,090 sq m grounds feature pavilions and halls terraced along the hillside — Bo Hall, Bamboo Pavilion, Yangxian Pavilion, Huanpu Retreat, etc. — all with inscribed plaques and couplets. Cliff carvings and famous calligraphy are everywhere. The site has been a protected Zhejiang heritage unit since 1961.
I’d hoped to carve a personal seal, but it was too crowded and we were on a tight schedule, so I let it go. A short walk took us to the Gushan branch of Zhejiang Provincial Museum, which houses fine ceramics, artifacts from the Leifeng Pagoda excavation, and a special display on Wenlan Pavilion and the _Siku Quanshu_. Built during the Republican era, this branch feels more historic than the newer Wulin one, though it’s much cozier — about an hour and a half is enough.
Ahead lay Bai Causeway, 1.2 km long, built when Bai Juyi governed Hangzhou. The star is Broken Bridge in the middle, packed with photo-snapping visitors; we, naturally, joined in.
We sat by the lake, snacking on the dry provisions saved from breakfast, gazing at distant hills, trying to soak up a little more of Hangzhou.
At the causeway’s end, a bus stop wasn’t far. With a bit of time to spare — and because I work at the Anshun Confucius Temple — I like visiting local Confucius temples wherever I go, so we rode over to the Hangzhou Confucius Temple (also called Hangzhou Stele Forest).
Situated at the foot of Wu Hill southeast of West Lake, on the slopes of Phoenix Hill, this site was home to Confucius temples through four dynasties — Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing — before they were destroyed. Rebuilt in the early 2000s, the new temple covers 1.32 hectares with a total floor area of 5,581 sq m. It’s divided into two interconnected but distinct sections: the western axis showcases the temple’s cultural core; the eastern is a classic Jiangnan garden, with pavilions dotted around, birdsong, flowing water, and a central pond. Buildings like the Stone Classics Pavilion, Star Map Hall, and Wenchange Pavilion are linked by winding corridors. Nearly 500 inscribed steles — the most famous being Emperor Gaozong’s Southern Song Stone Classics, Guanxiu’s Sixteen Arhats, Li Gonglin’s Confucius and His Seventy-Two Disciples, and the Five Dynasties Star Map — are integrated into the landscape.
The temple isn’t large; an hour suffices. Then we made for Hangzhou Railway Station.
After much comparison, we chose train Z282, departing Hangzhou at 17:04 and scheduled into Suzhou at 20:25, though it ran late and we arrived close to 9:00 PM.
Our Hanting Shantang Street hotel was just two metro stops from the station. The area, near Shilu Pedestrian Street and Shantang Street, was still buzzing past nine.
Late as it was, we grabbed beef noodles and guokui (crispy flatbread) from a Lanzhou noodle shop downstairs, ate, and turned in, excited for two days in Suzhou.
**Day 6, October 6:** Hanshan Temple, Imperial Kiln Gold Brick Museum, Xiaolongkan Hotpot, Shantang Street
Breakfast at the well-known Luyang Wonton shop: sesame tangyuan, wontons, and braised pork noodles — all tasty and cheap, 27 CNY total.
"Outside Gusu Hanshan Temple, the midnight bell reaches the traveler’s boat." Thanks to Tang poet Zhang Ji, Hanshan Temple became a Suzhou must-see, so we made it our first stop.
Direct bus, ticket purchased, we entered. Most current buildings date from Qing Dynasty reconstructions: Mahavira Hall, Sutra Library, Bell Tower, Stele Gallery, Maple Bridge Pavilion, Frost Bell Pavilion, etc. None of us are Buddhists, so we didn’t feel much for the temple itself — it was more about that poem.
