CITY · ZHEJIANG
Hangzhou
杭州 · Hángzhōu
Overview
West Lake city, ancient capital of the Southern Song dynasty and the home of Longjing tea. Marco Polo's 'Heaven on Earth' and now also the headquarters of Alibaba.
Hangzhou sits at the southern end of the Grand Canal and around the West Lake, the most-painted body of water in Chinese landscape art. The city was the capital of the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1276) and was, in Marco Polo's accounts, the largest and most prosperous city in the world. Today Hangzhou is a contradictory megacity: a UNESCO-protected lake-and-pagoda landscape ringed by tech-park skyscrapers (Alibaba is headquartered here, in the West and Binjiang districts) and the second-most-popular domestic tourist destination after Beijing.
For visitors, the West Lake is the centrepiece — 6 km long, 3 km wide, ringed by causeways, pagodas, monasteries, museums and tea gardens. A full day walks or cycles its perimeter. Beyond the lake: Lingyin Temple, the largest active Buddhist monastery in eastern China; the Longjing tea villages in the western hills; the National Tea Museum; the Wuzhen and Xitang water towns within an hour by car. Hangzhou is reachable from Shanghai in 45 minutes by HSR and is often combined with Shanghai/Suzhou as a 5-7 day eastern-China loop.
Cultural & access notes
Longjing (Dragon Well) tea harvesting is in late March — early April; the freshest grade is the most expensive Chinese tea by weight. Visitors can buy direct from the tea villages at Meijiawu or Longjing Village.
What to see
- West Lake — full circumnavigation by foot or bike (~3 hours); the iconic Broken Bridge and Su Causeway
- Lingyin Temple and Feilai Feng (Flying Peak) Buddhist carvings
- Six Harmonies Pagoda overlooking the Qiantang River
- China National Tea Museum and Longjing tea villages
- Hefang Street and Qinghefang historic shopping street
- Lei Feng Pagoda for sunset views over the lake
- Hu Xueyan's Mansion — Qing merchant residence
- Xixi National Wetland Park
What to eat
- Beggar's chicken (叫花鸡) — clay-baked whole chicken
- West Lake fish in vinegar sauce (西湖醋鱼)
- Dongpo pork — Hangzhou claims the original recipe
- Longjing tea-smoked shrimp (龙井虾仁)
- Pian'er chuan (片儿川) — Hangzhou's signature noodle
Getting there
Hangzhou Xiaoshan (HGH) airport, 30 km east — airport bus or metro Line 1+19 to the city. Hangzhou East is the HSR station: Shanghai Hongqiao 45 min, Beijing 4h 30m, Guangzhou 8h.
Getting around
Metro is comprehensive. Bike-share around the West Lake is the best way to circumnavigate. Didi works.
Where to stay
Around the West Lake (Hubin Road) for the classic central stay. Wushan / Hefang Street for old-town atmosphere. The Linping or Binjiang business areas for cheaper modern hotels.
We list neighbourhoods, not specific hotels — we don't endorse hotels.
When to go
March–May for spring tea harvest and cherry blossom; September–November for autumn light and tea-picking season. Avoid Golden Week. Summer is humid; winter is mild and damp.
Budget guide (CNY per day)
| Backpacker | ¥320 |
| Mid-range | ¥700 |
| Comfortable | ¥1700 |
Nearby attractions
Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City 良渚古城遗址
UNESCO-listed archaeological site in Hangzhou preserving the remains of a 5,000-year-old city with a sophisticated water-management system, jade ritual culture and social hierarchy — regarded as one of the earliest state-level societies in East Asia.
China National Tea Museum 中国茶叶博物馆
Comprehensive museum of Chinese tea history, varieties, and culture. Free entry; in the Longjing tea-growing hills.
Hu Xueyan's Mansion 胡雪岩故居
Restored late-Qing merchant residence in central Hangzhou. The largest preserved private mansion of its era.
Lei Feng Pagoda 雷峰塔
Pagoda on the southern shore of West Lake. Original collapsed 1924; rebuilt 2002. Most photographed at sunset for the lake view.
Lingyin Temple 灵隐寺
One of the largest active Buddhist monasteries in China, founded 326 CE in the hills west of Hangzhou. Combine with the Feilai Feng Buddhist cliff carvings.
Six Harmonies Pagoda 六和塔
Northern Song pagoda overlooking the Qiantang River. 60m tall, 7 visible storeys (13 internal). Climbable.
The Grand Canal 大运河
UNESCO-listed Grand Canal stretching 1,794 km from Beijing to Hangzhou — the longest artificial waterway in the world, built over 2,500 years and still partially navigable.
West Lake 西湖
The most-painted body of water in Chinese landscape art. UNESCO-listed since 2011. Causeways, pagodas, tea villages, full circumnavigation in half a day.
More on Hangzhou
Itineraries visiting Hangzhou
- Tea trail — Hangzhou, Wuyishan and Yunnan, 10 days
10d · Ten days through three of China's most significant tea-growing regions: Longjing (Dragon Well) green tea in Hangzhou, Wuyi rock oolong in Fujian, and Pu'er aged tea in Yunnan — each with its own landscape and tea-house culture.
- Classical Gardens Circuit — Suzhou, Hangzhou, and Beyond, 12 days
12d · China's finest classical gardens in sequence: Suzhou's UNESCO garden quartet, Hangzhou's West Lake landscape, Yangzhou's slender garden tradition, and Shaoxing's canal-town context.
- Train-only China — 14 days using HSR exclusively, no flights
14d · Fourteen days across eastern and central China using only high-speed rail — no domestic flights. A lower-carbon alternative that also provides a closer view of the country at ground level.
Food of Eastern China
- Beggar's Chicken叫花鸡
A whole chicken stuffed with aromatics, wrapped in lotus leaves and clay, then slow-baked until the meat steams in its own juices.
- Beggar's Chicken — Jiaohuaji叫花鸡 (江苏式)
A Jiangsu-province variation of clay-baked chicken with a lotus-leaf wrap and a mushroom and pork stuffing.
- Dragon Well Tea龙井茶
China's most celebrated green tea — pan-fired flat leaves from Hangzhou's West Lake district with a sweet, chestnut flavour.
- Drunken Chicken醉鸡
Chicken steamed and marinated in Shaoxing rice wine, served chilled. A Shanghai banquet starter.
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