2 Days Suzhou Tongli & Xitang Water Town Discovery Tour

Day 1 Xitang Water Town

In the morning, you will picked up by your local Suzhou tour guide with a welcome signage "Suzhou Private Tour". You two days Suzhou tongli & xitang water town includes the following attractions:

Our Suzhou Pick Up Sign "Suzhou Private Tour"

First, you will be transferred to Xitang Water Town directly (it takes around 1.5 hours for one way). Xitang Water Town is a beautiful town that seems like a completely different world from the hustle and bustle of Shanghai. The quiet water, handsome bridges, and the reflections in the early morning and the rosy sunset, fishing boats and the glistening lights in the evening, form an amazing picture full of a sense of poetry which can only be seen in the south lower reaches of the Yangtze River. People in Xitang, whether local residents or travelers, feel that this is fairyland. They even have no idea as to whether people are wandering in the picture or the picture is moving in their hearts. This is Xitang, a charming, ancient water town. It truly is a world away.

The Covered Corridor
The covered corridor is the most well-known scene in Xitang. It is also the most distinctive feature this historic town offers compared with other water towns. Consisting of many sections, the whole covered corridor is more than 1,000 meters (about 1094 yards) long, attracting visitors from all over the world with its particular charm. 

The Lanes
Besides the covered corridors, the lanes here are a must-see. Among all the different lanes, the narrowest is about 80cm (about 31 inches) wide and provides space for only one person to pass through at a time. The lanes are like ropes connecting the whole town into an organic net and no matter from which point you start, you can find any other place in the town. Amazing, isn't it?

The Bridges
The bridges to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River are like the hyperlink to the internet. They are indispensable not only in terms of convenience but also in terms of beauty. Waterways are interwoven in Xitang, so it is not surprising that many bridges cross over the rivers. Here the creative shapes of bridges are very different from each other.

Free on your own for a while untill your tour guide drive you to your hotel in Xitang, and today your tour ends.

Day 2 Tongli Water Town

After breakfast, your tour guide will meet you at your hotel lobby and drive you to Tongli water town directly. It takes around 50 minutes.

Tongli water town is one of the many ancient water towns in the south of the Yangtze River Delta, which is famous for their rivers, ancient bridges and house complexes. Tongli occupies an area of 51 square miles (133 square kilometers) with a population of 55,000. The city is separated by 15 rivers into seven islets, which are connected through 49 ancient bridges. The most famous bridges among the 49 bridges in Tongli are the three bridges called Taiping (peace), Jili (luck) and Changqing (celebration) bridges, which has been important landmarks of the place and regarded as the sacred architecture by the locals.

Residential House
Tongli Water Town deserves its name of a “museum of ancient architectures” as there are many homes and temples dating from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Designed along the riverside and embellished with carved windows, porcelain furniture, figured clay bricks, flying eaves, dapper gardens and tiny stairs leading all the way down to the water, these complexes named Tongli Water Town could be a shining pearl among the water townships south of Yangtze.

Chongben Hall
Guarded by stone-paved riverbanks, Chongben Hall is nestled to the north of Changqing Bridge in Fuguan Street. It faces Jiayin Hall across the river in the east and connects Changqing Bridge in the west. If we think of Tongli as an ancient museum, Chongben Hall is considered to be a piece of delicately-carved handicraft belonging to the museum. 

Jiayin Hall
The Jaiyin Hall was built in 1922 during the National Period. Unlike many of the other major residences in Tongli. What makes this residence interesting is the different styles of buildings which can be found on the grounds. In particular, the rear area is intricately carved and has a much different feel than the main hall which can be viewed on the bottom left. The residence itself consists of 24 different rooms and was built by Liu Bingnan. Due to the large amount of woodwork and it's importance, the building was repaired in the early 1990's and opened to the public aftewards. 

Free on your own to explore Tongli Water Town for a while until your tour guide transfer you back to Suzhou and your 2 days water towns tour ends.

Price Per Person in US Dollars