Mudu Town

Mudu was a substantial Suzhou-area trading town from the Ming dynasty onwards, prosperous enough by the late Qing to host several major garden estates. Yan Family Garden, the largest of these, is a classical Suzhou-school garden of substantial quality — a quarter the size of the famous Humble Administrator's Garden but with finer detail in some areas, and with substantially smaller crowds.

Hong Yin Mountain Garden was the country residence of the late-Qing official Hong Yin and is built into a hillside with the garden's halls and pavilions terraced down a slope. The garden's design plays with the mountain backdrop in a way that the flatland Suzhou gardens cannot.

Mudu Old Street, the canal-side commercial spine through the historic centre, has been restored but retains a quieter character than the Pingjiang Road circuit in central Suzhou. Stone bridges, a working canal, and small shops selling local sweets and souvenirs maintain a low-key atmosphere.

Lingyan Mountain, immediately west of Mudu, was the site of the King of Wu's palace in the 5th century BCE — the summit retains the Guanwa Palace ruin (the "Beauty's Palace" associated with Xi Shi, one of the Four Great Beauties of ancient China) and the Lingyan Pagoda. The hike to the summit takes about 90 minutes; a short cable car is also available.