Preface

The itinerary of taking my dad to Suzhou for a trip to Jiangnan was planned four years ago when I first took my mom on a free trip to Hangzhou for ten days. Since I was young, I have always heard the saying "heaven above, Suzhou and Hangzhou below". Four years ago, after graduating from university, I took my mom alone to Hangzhou for a ten day vacation. The small bridges and flowing water in Jiangnan have always been a favorite scenery for me. Therefore, I decided to wait for my dad to retire and take him to Suzhou for a few days. After the epidemic, I also received vaccinations and took a week off with my superiors, so the journey began. The itinerary arranged this time can be considered leisurely and leisurely. Even if you are tired, you can stop and rest, walk and enjoy the scenery along the way, and experience the local customs and traditions. Carefully savor the garden clusters in Suzhou, the city of gardens, visit the Humble Administrator's Garden and Lingering Garden of the four major gardens in China, shuttle through the rockeries in the Lion Grove described in the elementary school Chinese text to admire stone lions, experience the sound of the cold mountain temple outside Suzhou at night, and visit the six famous ancient towns in Suzhou - Tongli Ancient Town in the natural studio, Zhouzhuang, the first water town in China, Luzhi Ancient Town of the same age as Suzhou City, Mudu Ancient Town, a must visit place for Qianlong's six visits to Jiangnan, Jinxi Ancient Town, the hometown of Chinese folk museums, and Qiandeng Ancient Town, the birthplace of Kunqu Opera.

[itinerary arrangement]

Day 1 (May 22, 2021): Tianjin Suzhou (visit Canglangting, Keyuan, night tour of Wangshiyuan), Hotel: Pudding Hotel Humble Administrator's Garden Cultural Theme Store

Day 2 (May 23, 2021): Suzhou (Hanshan Temple, Fengqiao Scenic Area, Lion Grove, Suzhou Museum, Humble Administrator's Garden, Guanqian Street), Hotel: Pudding Hotel Humble Administrator's Garden Cultural Theme Store

Day 3 (May 24, 2021): Suzhou (Huqiu, Liuyuan, Qilishantang, Yipu, Xiangyuan, Pingjiang Road), Hotel: Pudding Hotel Humble Administrator's Garden Cultural Theme Store

Day 4 (May 25, 2021): Suzhou (Luzhi Ancient Town, Panmen Scenic Area, Qili Mountain Pond), Hotel: Pudding Hotel Humble Administrator's Garden Cultural Theme Store

Day 5 (May 26, 2021): Suzhou - Mudu Ancient Town - Tongli Ancient Town, Hotel: Tongli Lou Jia Mumi Women's Inn

Day 6 (May 27, 2021): Tongli Ancient Town - Zhouzhuang, Hotel: Zhouzhuang Old Residence - Xiaozhu Homestay

Day 7 (May 28, 2021): Zhouzhuang Jinxi Ancient Town Qiandeng Ancient Town, Hotel: Kunshan Kuaizhilv Express Chain Hotel

Day 8 (May 29, 2021): Qiandeng Ancient Town - Shanghai - Tianjin

[Cost details]

Two person return ticket for high-speed rail: 1920 yuan

Hotel: 760 yuan

Admission: 790 yuan/person for adults, 440 yuan/person for the elderly

Bus fare (taxi, airport pick-up): 210 yuan

Small transportation (tricycle, subway, bus): 130 yuan

Diet: 560 yuan

Other: 170 yuan

Total: 5000 yuan

Per capita: 2500 yuan

[Detailed itinerary]

first day:

On May 22, 2021, at 9:30am at Tianjin West Station, the G211 high-speed train arrived at Suzhou North Station after five hours at 14:15.

Exit the station and take the subway to the Pudding Hotel to check in, pack your luggage, and the journey officially begins.

(Pudding Hotel Suzhou Guanqian Humble Administrator's Garden Cultural Theme Store Ctrip Reservation Link:

https://hotels.ctrip.com/hotels/detail?hotelid=1503638& ; cityid=14）

Departing from the hotel at around 3:30 am, I took a taxi to the Fenghuang Street area of Shiquan Street to visit Canglang Pavilion and Ke Garden, as I had booked a night tour at Wangshiyuan on Ctrip in advance.

Canglang Pavilion was first built in the Han Chinese classical garden architecture of the Northern Song Dynasty. It was originally a private garden of the literati Su Shunqin, covering an area of 1.08 hectares. It is the oldest ancient garden among the existing gardens in Suzhou, and is listed as one of the four major gardens in Suzhou along with Lion Grove, Humble Administrator's Garden, and Liuyuan.

The adult peak season ticket at Canglangting is 20 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 10 yuan. It is very convenient for Ctrip to directly book and swipe their ID card to enter the park.

The recommended travel time for Canglang Pavilion is half an hour to one hour. Although the park is not large, it has a unique scenery. Although it is on Saturday, the arrival time is relatively late, so there are not many tourists in the park. You can slowly appreciate the garden scenery.

After visiting Canglang Pavilion and leaving the park at around 4:30, we went directly to the opposite Ke Garden to continue our tour.

Keyuan is a classical garden architecture dating back to the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Only one alley away from Canglang Pavilion. The garden gate faces south and faces Canglang Pavilion across the water.

The recommended length of the Keyuan tour is half an hour to one hour, with stop and go, resting in a small pavilion, and experiencing the scenery of Suzhou gardens. The adult peak season ticket for Ke Yuan is 25 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 12.5 yuan.

The visit to Canglangting and Keyuan ended less than 5:30 pm. After checking the navigation, we found that it took about 20 minutes to walk to Wangshiyuan. Our Wangshiyuan night tour started at 7:30 pm, so we decided to walk to the vicinity of Wangshiyuan for dinner. The area around Wangshiyuan is famous for its various delicacies, including Shiquan Street and Fenghuang Street.

We finally chose Xishengyuan with a high score to eat Wonton, ordered a bowl of Kaiyang Wonton and a bowl of shepherd's purse fresh meat Wonton.

It's the flavor I like to eat, and the soup is also very delicious, fantastic.

After dinner, set off at 6:30 pm and walk for about 10 minutes to prepare for today's highlight - a night tour of Netshi Garden.

It officially starts at 7:30, and each batch is led by a butler to watch eight programs in the park in order, experiencing a series of corresponding programs in the garden under the night sky.

Kun dance "Yulan" in Jixu Studio, "Kanhua Tea Rhyme" in Songdu Painting Pavilion, "Xiaoxiao Poetry and Singing" in Dianchun Pavilion, realistic holographic Kun opera "Dreams of Wandering in the Garden" in Zhuoying Water Pavilion, "Wumen Qin Yin" in Xiaoshancong Guixuan, "Jiangnan Silk and Bamboo" in Wanjuantang, Kun opera "Fifteen Guan Visits and Surveys" in Xixiu Tower, and "Gusu Pingtan" in Tiyun Room.

An hour of experience, a different garden, listening to music and watching plays in the garden at night, as if traveling back to ancient times and being in it.

On the way out of the Netizens Park, I met a French bulldog who had always been super Q at a small shop. It was so cute~

After the night tour of the online teacher park, take a taxi back to the pudding hotel to rest, gather energy and prepare for tomorrow's itinerary. The first night in Suzhou~

the second day:

On the morning of May 23rd at 7 o'clock, I woke up to find that it was starting to rain outside, just in time. The misty rain in Jiangnan, except for a missing oil paper umbrella, haha.

At 8:00, we packed up and went out for breakfast. We wanted to eat the dumb fried chicken on the Linton Road. We could walk from the hotel for about 10 minutes. When we got there, we found that the dumb fried chicken was still very popular on Sunday and it rained. We gave up when there were many people. After searching, we turned right and found a super famous Changmen Yaoji soybean milk, and went straight to Yaoji soybean milk for breakfast. We ordered a steamed stuffed bun with Meigan cai, a drawer of Xiaolongbao, and two bowls of soybean milk.

After breakfast, take a taxi to Hanshan Temple outside of Gusu City to experience the midnight sound of the daytime on the passenger ship, haha.

Cold Mountain Temple in the Rain.

The adult peak season ticket for Hanshan Temple is 20 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 10 yuan. Half price tickets need to be purchased on-site.

After visiting Hanshan Temple, come out and take a stroll around Fengqiao Scenic Area next to it. There are no additional tickets for Fengqiao Scenic Area.

The Maple Bridge of the ancients~

Zhang Ji's "Night Mooring at Maple Bridge"~

After the tour, take a taxi back to the city center and prepare to visit the most representative landscapes of Suzhou - Lion Grove, Suzhou Museum, and Humble Administrator's Garden. I booked tickets for Suzhou Museum one day in advance and made reservations in different periods. Because the reservation time was a little late, only tickets for admission were available from 12:00 to 1:00 at noon. So at 11:00, I bought Rice and vegetable roll from the whole family for lunch, and then I went to the Lion Forest to play directly.

The Lion Grove represents the Yuan Dynasty, and is named "Lion Grove" due to the towering stone peaks resembling lions in the park. In my memory, there was a Chinese language text from a primary and secondary school that specifically described the rockery stone lions in the Lion Grove. Finally, I had the opportunity to personally experience shuttling through the rockery.

The recommended travel time for Lion Grove is one to two hours. Due to the rain, we did not play too much in the rockeries. If time and weather permit, we still recommend that everyone can play more in the rockeries and experience the fun of being there. If you accidentally get lost.

The adult peak season ticket in Lion Grove costs 40 yuan, while the half price ticket for the elderly costs 20 yuan. On the official account of Suzhou Gardens, there are some discount packages for garden series travel on the same day, which can be selected for reference.

Around 12 o'clock, walk for ten minutes from the Lion Grove to Suzhou Museum and embark on a wonderful museum journey.

The old site of the Suzhou Museum is the Zhongwang Mansion of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, while the new museum is a modern architecture designed with inspiration from the scattered gardens that go beyond the traditional online design.

The entrance is from the new museum, and after visiting the riverside small square, you can enter the old site of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Loyalty Prince Mansion. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Loyalty Prince Mansion is located at the exit of the Suzhou Museum.

The Suzhou Museum cleverly utilizes the water surface to integrate with the neighboring Zhongwang Mansion, becoming an extension of its architectural style.

The Humble Administrator's Garden is located next to the exit of the Zhongwang Mansion in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

One of the Four Great Gardens in China, a representative work of classical gardens in Jiangnan during the Ming Dynasty, and the largest classical garden in Suzhou.

Even if it rains, people can't stop coming to visit him. The Humble Administrator's Garden is divided into three parts: east, middle and west. The east garden is open and clear, the middle garden is the essence of the whole garden, and the west garden is beautifully built and has its own characteristics.

The recommended travel time for the Humble Administrator's Park is two to three hours. The adult peak season ticket for the Humble Administrator's Park is 80 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 40 yuan. Both are booked by Ctrip in different time slots, and it is very convenient to enter the park directly by swiping your ID card.

At around three o'clock, the main itinerary for today came to an end. I walked back to the hotel and thought about taking my dad on a trip, but the schedule was not very tight. So I let my dad rest at the hotel and walked alone for about 15 minutes to check in and view the front street.

Memorial archway of Guanqian Street from different angles.

I bought Suzhou specialty on Guanqian Street, Lala~

Around 6 o'clock, I returned to the hotel and picked up my dad to eat noodles at the nearby Weiji Aomian restaurant.

How can you not eat noodles in Jiangnan? Braised pork noodles in red oil+fragrant pork noodles, one bowl of noodles for each person, ending the next day's journey~

on the third day:

On the third day of coming to Suzhou, the weather was sunny. At 8 o'clock, I went out to continue eating the unfinished mute pan fry for breakfast. A pan fry bun opened today's journey.

The mute pan fry at 8 o'clock on Monday was noticeably quieter. After happily finishing breakfast, I took a taxi to the first scenic spot in Wuzhong, Huqiu Mountain
Scenic Spot.

Recommend a tour route from the north gate to the south gate. The south gate is just right outside and you can take bus tour route 1 for a few stops to visit the park for a day.

After we arrived at the north gate, there were tour buses, carriages, and other options to choose from. In order to prevent our father from getting too tired, we took a tour bus for 20 yuan per person to go up the mountain to the highest point, the Tiger Hill Pagoda, and enjoyed the scenery along the way. The mountain is not actually very high. For young people, it is recommended to enter the north gate and climb up on foot, then descend from the other side and exit from the south gate.

Arriving at the highest point of Huqiu Yunyan Temple, due to uneven soil thickness of the tower foundation and incomplete design and construction of the tower pier foundation, Huqiu Pagoda began to tilt towards the northwest since the Ming Dynasty, thus also known as the Leaning Tower of China Pisa.

To the south of Huqiu Pagoda lies another iconic landscape of Huqiu Mountain - Huqiu Sword Pool; The third spring. Continuing southward, there are Yanghe Run, Sun Wu Training Ground, Wanjing Mountain Villa, etc.

The adult peak season ticket in Huqiu costs 70 yuan, while the half price ticket for the elderly costs 35 yuan. Recommended travel time is 1.5-2.5 hours.

Around 11 o'clock, take the tour route 1 from the south gate to one of the Four Famous Gardens in China and the representative of the Four Great Gardens in Jiangsu during the Qing Dynasty.

In the garden, one can enjoy four different landscapes: mountains and waters, countryside, mountains and forests, and gardens.

The adult peak season ticket for staying in the kindergarten is 55 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 27.5 yuan. Recommended travel time is 1-2 hours.

The essence of Lingering Garden is "Ugly Stone", which can be described as "wrinkled", "thin", "leaky" and "transparent" in four words. You can experience these four characteristics of ugly stones from different angles.

At about 12 o'clock, you can take two bus stops to reach Shantang Street. There are many snack bars near the station. We chose the Danfenglou Restaurant with a high score. All the specialties in Jiangnan can be caught, including a bowl of fresh meat Wonton, an egg yolk meat dumplings, a fried dumpling, and a bowl of fermented osmanthus dumplings.

After lunch, we will visit Qili Shantang Ancient Street for sightseeing~

After the tour of Qili Mountain Pond, walk for about half an hour into a small alley to explore the niche garden art garden.

Yipu is a classical private garden architecture built during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, and is a representative of the existing Ming style small gardens in Suzhou.

The adult peak season ticket for Yipu is 10 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 5 yuan. Recommended travel time is 1 hour.

After the tour of Yipu ended, I walked out of the alley and took a taxi back to the hotel. It was still my dad resting in the hotel, and I continued to explore Suzhou city alone. It takes about a ten minute walk from the hotel to reach the Pingjiang Road Historical and Cultural District. First, we visited the Couple Garden near Pingjiang Road.

The adult peak season ticket costs 25 yuan. The original name of the Couple Garden was Sheyuan, and it is named because there is a garden on both sides of the house, which also symbolizes the perfect couple.

After visiting the Couple Garden, let's slowly appreciate Pingjiang Road~

My favorite Maokong Bookstore, there are two on Pingjiang Road~

Hand drawn Pingjiang Road~

Pingjiang Road, worth savoring carefully, is half of Suzhou City on one Pingjiang Road!

After visiting Pingjiang Road at 6:00, I returned to Baita East Road and chose the Potsticker in the Old Town God Temple near the hotel. I bought pork, cabbage, dumplings and soybean milk and took them back to my father for dinner. On the third day, I had an early rest for tomorrow's Luzhi Ancient Town~

The fourth day:

At 6 o'clock in the morning, I woke up on time and had a simple breakfast with the bread I bought from my family the day before. At 7 o'clock in the morning, I walked out to Beisita Metro Station and transferred to Line 2 to reach the terminus of Line 2, Sangtiandao Metro Station. After getting off, I took a taxi to Luzhi Ancient Town in Wuzhong District to explore this water town, which is the same age as Suzhou Ancient Town.

The block of Luzhi Ancient Town does not charge admission fees. The adult ticket for small scenic spots in the town is 55 yuan. After entering the tourist service center, the first thing that catches your eye is Luduan. Behind Luduan Square is Luzhi Ancient Town, and the recommended travel time is 3-4 hours. Luzhi Ancient Town is very quiet, without commercialization or the noise of travel groups. Residents wash clothes and vegetables along the river to cool off and chat, just waiting quietly for the people who discover it.

A quiet street~

A small attraction on Shangtang Street - Wansheng Rice Shop

Water town cruise ship~

Jiangnan Cultural Park~

Wang Tao Memorial Hall~

Xiao Zhai; Shen Mansion~

Creative small shops on the street~

The day I went happened to be Tuesday, and there were many art students sketching from life in the town. The quiet ancient town, paired with clear skies for thousands of miles, couldn't help but admire how beautiful it was.

For lunch, I bought the delicious Begonia Cake and Shredded Turnip Cake from the Chou Heung Begonia Cake House. I found a riverside restaurant and ordered a bowl of rice dumpling, a bowl of dragon and phoenix, to sit by my bed and watch the bridge flowing water outside the window.

After lunch, take a taxi back to Sangtian Island subway station and transfer to the subway to visit Panmen Scenic Area.

Adult tickets cost 40 yuan, senior half tickets cost 20 yuan, and it is recommended to travel for 2-3 hours.

The Panmen Scenic Area mainly features the three scenic spots of Panmen, namely the "Panmen" Water and Land City Gate located in the southwest of Suzhou, the "Wumen Bridge" spanning the canal, and the "Ruiguang Temple Pagoda" facing the flowing shadows. The three scenic spots are connected by the surging Grand Canal, becoming the Panmen Scenic Area of the ancient city of Suzhou.

At around 3:30, I left the scenic area and took a taxi back to the hotel. My dad was resting at home, and I continued to go out to search for food.

I still chose Shantang Street and bought the famous Jiangnan crab shell roe, one with scallion oil and one with sesame sugar.

There are also Potsticker at the gate of the hotel, a fresh meat Potsticker and a beef Potsticker.

Today is the last night in the urban area of Suzhou, and tomorrow we will go to the famous ancient town of Suzhou to experience the scenery of the ancient town~

The Fifth Day:

It's another misty and rainy day in Jiangnan. Today, we mainly visit the two ancient towns of Mudu and Tongli. The rain combined with the ancient town can better reflect the charm of Jiangnan's water town. In the morning, I bought a salty Shaobing (Baked cake in griddle), a deep-fried dough sticks, a sugar dumpling, and a hemp ball from the twin tower Wang's Shaobing (Baked cake in griddle) near the hotel and brought it back to the hotel for breakfast. After breakfast, I walked to the Linton Road subway station and took the subway line 1 to Mudu. After leaving the subway station, I took a bus at the Zhonghua Garden Hotel and passed about three stops to Mudu Ancient Town to visit this place that Qianlong had to visit every time when he traveled six times south of the Yangtze River.

The Mudu Ancient Town block can be visited for free. Ctrip has booked adult tickets for scenic spots one day in advance for 62 yuan and half price tickets for the elderly for 36 yuan.

The ticket for the scenic spots in Mudu Ancient Town includes Yan Family Garden, Hongyin Mountain House, Gusong Garden, and Bangyan Mansion

The recommended travel time for Mudu Ancient Town is half a day. At noon, I bought hand rolled Liangpi and fish flavored shredded pork covered rice as lunch in the town.

After lunch, take the bus back to Mudu Subway Station and transfer to the subway to Tongli. Follow the instructions at Tongli Subway Station and take the 725 bus directly to Tongli Ancient Town.

Tongli Ancient Town is already a natural photography studio, where you can easily capture the beautiful scenery. Admission to Tongli Ancient Town between 7:30am and 5:30pm is required. Ctrip offers adult tickets for 80 yuan and elderly tickets for 50 yuan, allowing you to visit small scenic spots in the town. If you are not interested in small scenic spots, you can skip the ticket inspection time and enter the town during non ticket inspector working hours. We booked tickets in advance on Ctrip and booked a hotel in the town for one night. If you want to stay in the town, you need to go to the ticket office to exchange for a paper ticket and inform us of the accommodation in the town. The staff will help with the overnight ticket procedures so that the ticket can only be used the next day. When selecting an inn, I found a fantastic one - the Tongli Lou Family Mumi Women's Inn. The inn is operated by a couple and has two small buildings that are often lent to major production teams for filming. The double room we happened to be staying in was the main room of Tang Yan and Luo Jin when they were filming their love. Before we arrived, the owner called to inform us of the precautions and directions to come. After checking in, she would give us a map of Tongli and plan the tour route according to each person's actual situation and needs. It was fantastic.

The landlady is very kind and will share some interesting stories about the crew when they come to film. I highly recommend everyone to stay in this house when they come to Tongli to play! (Attached is the Ctrip booking link - Tonglilou Jiamu Mi Women's Inn: https://hotels.ctrip.com/hotels/detail?hotelid=824595& ; cityid=14）

After checking in and taking a brief rest, I went out to the town for a stroll. Visited Gengle Hall, Chongben Hall, Ancient Stage, and Tuisiyuan successively.

For dinner, I chose the wine jar, rice barrel, and Tongli main store recommended by the boss's wife. I ordered a white water fish and rice, and each table would come with a bowl of rice wine.

Indeed, it has a high cost performance ratio and is cost-effective. The window position allows you to enjoy the scenery and eat at the same time. I recommend it.

After dinner, night began to fall. Walking on the street, I quietly enjoyed the night view in the rain. It can be said that Tongli Ancient Town has not been fully commercialized, allowing people to truly experience the local life.

Day 6:

I went out to play for five days, and the night in the same room was the most peaceful. I slept until after 7 o'clock, opened my eyes, opened the curtains, and looked out the window. Yesterday's drizzle had already cleared the sky today.

At about nine o'clock, I went out to have breakfast. I wanted to have breakfast at Laijun's Dim sum house on the Ming and Qing streets, but unfortunately the boss didn't open the door when he went back to his hometown to do business. He went to the Lin's shop and bought two freshly baked sock sole crisps, two bags of sock sole crisps and Tongli Tuisi bread, and then went to Tongli's first Dim sum store nearby to buy spring noodles, soup bags and malt cakes for breakfast.

After dinner, I went to visit the Pearl Tower scenic garden that I didn't go to yesterday, and had a detailed experience of the ancient town's charm in the early morning without too many visitors.

After completing the tour, return to the inn to pack your luggage and prepare to check out. Finally, leave a beautiful daytime photo for the beautiful inn~

After checking out, I took a photo at Chuanxin Lane.

Then go out and take the bus to Tongli Bus Station, walk to the dock, and take a boat to the scenic spot of Luo Xingzhou (which is outside the town).

The ferry runs every half hour for a few minutes to reach Luoxingzhou, which is a small island. It takes about ten minutes to walk quickly on the small island, so you can take this ferry to the island, take a half hour tour, take a seat, and then return to the dock.

Walk back to Tongli Bus Station from the dock and take bus No. 758. After an hour's drive, get off at Xinta Bus Station (Jiangze), next to Zhouzhuang Ancient Town.

Zhouzhuang Ancient Town: enjoys the reputation of being the first water town in China. The adult ticket for Zhouzhuang Ancient Town is 100 yuan, and the half price ticket for the elderly is 50 yuan. Residents in the town need to complete overnight procedures at the ticket office to extend the validity period of the ticket. Now there are many tourist annual cards in Kunshan, including Zhouzhuang, Jinxi, Qiandeng, and many others. As we happen to be going to Jinxi and Qiandeng, we have booked the Kunshan annual card on Ctrip. The adult annual card is 128 yuan, and the half price for the elderly is 64 yuan. After booking, customer service will contact us to help us apply for electronic activation, which is valid for one year from the activation date. The attractions on the annual card can be visited and visited unlimited times, which is very convenient.

This time, the ancient town of Zhouzhuang also chose to live in the scenic area. In order to experience the night and morning of Zhouzhuang, a comprehensive selection was made for the Zhouzhuang Old Residence · Xiaozhu Homestay. It is close to the ticket gate of Tongxiu Bridge, and the block to the left of the exit is the center of the scenic area. Shen Ting Zhang Ting and some famous food shops are also located on the streets around the homestay.

The booking link for Zhouzhuang Homestay and Xiaozhu Homestay is as follows: https://hotels.ctrip.com/hotels/1359356.html#ctm_ref=ctr_hp_sb_lst ）

After putting down your luggage and taking a break, let's go explore the ancient town and enjoy the street view~

The number one water town in China, with small bridges, flowing water, and homes, the beautiful scenery of the ancient town during the day~

Shen Ting~

South Lake Autumn Moon~

Zhang Ting~

Ancient Stage~

Zhouzhuang Museum~

For dinner, we chose the famous Kunshan Aozao Noodles, ordered double boiled snow vegetables and big ribs, and bought the famous Wansanchu and Shen Grandma Stinky tofu.

After dinner, it's the night of Zhouzhuang, the ancient archway of Zhouzhuang at night~

The Ancient Street at Night~

The Twin Bridges at Night~

At night in Zhouzhuang, there will be some professional performance teams moving around the streets, which is very beautiful~

The little dog in front of the store~

Xiaomilou Restaurant~

After strolling around for a long time, I enjoyed the night of Zhouzhuang and returned to the beautiful homestay to rest~

Day 7:

At about eight o'clock, I went out to eat breakfast at Zhangji Tofu Shop. I chose soybean milk deep-fried dough sticks, tea eggs, and two jujube cakes.

Take the time to experience the early morning of Zhouzhuang Ancient Town without a tour group before there are too many tourists.

In the early morning, Zhouzhuang has not yet been disturbed by the noise~

Shuangqiao in the morning, accompanied by blue sky and white clouds, and a rowing boat on its way~

Take a random photo of the scenery at the entrance of a creative homestay~

Mysterious Tower Scenery~

Check out at around 10 o'clock and take a taxi outside the scenic area to Jinxi Ancient Town.

The two ancient towns are very close, and it takes over 20 minutes to reach Jinxi Ancient Town. There is no need for admission to Jinxi Ancient Town, and some small scenic spots in the town require joint tickets. We still use the Kunshan New Year Card, and Jinxi is known as the "hometown of Chinese folk museums". Small scenic spots are still worth visiting and understanding.

But the most essence of Jinxi Ancient Town is the ancient lotus bridge with one entrance and the water tomb of Concubine Chen, which can only be seen across the river.

Jinxi Ancient Town is not very large, and basically two hours of sightseeing time is enough. You can also sit quietly by the riverbank to experience the charm of the ancient town.

At noon, I bought the bean paste cake from the Xiaomao Cake shop, a crispy chicken from the crispy chicken snack shop, and a double Aozao Noodle set meal from the Olympic Noodle Restaurant. The set meal includes a fried fish noodle and a stewed meat noodle. The Noodles in soup in the Jiangnan area is very appetizing to me, and I never tire of eating it.

At around 2 o'clock, I returned to the tourist center to pick up my luggage and took the bus to the nearby Jinxi Bus Station to prepare for the final stop of this journey, Qiandeng (taking Kunshan 136 bus towards Huaqiao at Jinxi Bus Station, getting off at Puyuan Station and transferring to 112 bus at Qiandeng Station). The 136 bus took about an hour and a half. As I didn't catch the bus departing at 2 o'clock, I waited for about 40 minutes. I got on the bus at around 3 o'clock and arrived in Qiandeng Town near 5 o'clock. I chose Kunshan Express Travel Express Hotel for my accommodation. (Attached is the Ctrip booking link for Kunshan Express Hotel: https://hotels.ctrip.com/hotels/detail?hotelid=1829707& ; cityid=83）

The hotel is conveniently located a few hundred meters away from the scenic area of Qiandeng Ancient Town. Qiandeng Town is bustling with many restaurants on both sides of the street. There is also a large vegetable market next to the hotel. After checking in and packing up, I found a yellow braised chicken rice restaurant next to it for dinner.

After dinner, I went straight back to the hotel to rest. Tomorrow is the last day of the journey, with a hint of reluctance. But I have to rush to Pudong Airport tomorrow afternoon to catch a plane, so I still went to bed early.

Day 8:

On the last day of this trip, because Ctrip booked the flight of China Eastern Airlines from Pudong Airport to Tianjin at 7:40 p.m., we got up early today, went out at 7:00 and had breakfast at a small shop near the hotel, and finally tasted the delicious food of Jiangnan, Xiaolongbao, black rice porridge, and small Wonton.

At 8 o'clock, the journey to Qiandeng Ancient Town will begin. The last scenic spot to visit is Qiandeng Ancient Town. The adult ticket is reserved for 30 yuan by Ctrip. Qiandeng Ancient Town is the birthplace of Kunqu Opera. At the same time, it is also the hometown of patriot Gu Yanwu, and the idea that "the rise and fall of the world is the responsibility of every man" was first proposed by Gu Yanwu. Coupled tickets allow visitors to visit small scenic spots in the town.

At the entrance of Qiandeng Ancient Town~

Yu's Pawn: Pawnshop~

Gu Yanwu's Former Residence~

Gu Jian Memorial Hall~

Ancient Stage~

Qiandengguan~

Qiandeng Ancient Town does not have a thousand lamps in the town, but a thousand pillars.

I purchased some specialties at the Kexin Qingsong Cake Shop in the town, and at the Qiandeng Famous Shop, I bought a meat zongzi and a bean paste zongzi for lunch. Then I went back to the hotel to pack my luggage and check out.

I bought bread, cookies, and intestines at the small supermarket after 11 o'clock and brought them to the airport for dinner. It is very convenient to travel from Kunshan in Qiandeng to Pudong Airport. There is a subway to Shanghai. First, we take a bus from Qiandeng to Huaqiao Station, where we transfer from Line 11 to Line 2 to reach Pudong Airport. The entire journey takes about 3.5-4 hours. Basically, we arrived at Pudong Airport at three o'clock. There was a food street and chairs for rest in the passage from the subway station to the terminal. We ate the Zongzi brought from Qiandeng first and then went through the security check to the terminal to check in our luggage. We finished the formalities at about four o'clock and waited at the boarding gate for boarding.

After waiting for almost three hours, we finally embarked on our journey home. Flight MU5227 of China Eastern Airlines took off from Shanghai Pudong International Airport at 19:40 and landed at Tianjin Binhai International Airport at 21:35.

Ctrip made an early reservation for airport pick-up service, which was fantastic and delivered directly to the entrance of the community.

The eight day free trip to Jiangnan with my father has come to a successful end!

[Postscript]

The first long-distance trip after the epidemic happened to be my father's retirement for half a year. On the advice of my superiors, I chose to go on a trip in May, which was neither hot nor cold. Although there were many scenic spots, there was still enough time to walk and stop. When I was tired, I could stop and rest. Sitting there and enjoying the scenery was also a good experience. In eight days, all the classic scenic spots in Suzhou city and the six ancient towns in Gusu have been successfully checked in, and all the delicious food you want to eat has been eaten. It is also a deep tour, with no more or less costs, just right. It is not a poverty alleviation tour, but it is also a relatively cost-effective way to play. It is still necessary to make time to plan ahead, so as not to travel too tiredly and to save money by playing and eating everything you want. Looking forward to the next journey with my parents and family of three together. Finally, I wish all friends who love traveling a pleasant journey!

Finally: As usual, please allow me to promote my previous five Ctrip travelogues, hehe.

① Take your mom on a 10 day free trip to Jiangnan Hangzhou (Wuzhen, Xitang, Nanxun): http://you.ctrip.com/travels/hangzhou14/3401061.html

② Jinan Rampage Day Tour: http://you.ctrip.com/travels/jinan128/3529090.html

③ Bravely heading straight to "Guizhou", the two best friends ventured through Guizhou for eight days (Qingyan, Anshun Huangguoshu, Libo Xiaoqikong, Xijiang Qianhu Miao Village, Zhaoxing Dong Village, Zhenyuan): http://you.ctrip.com/travels/guiyang33/3648969.html

④ Three day visit to the ancient capital of the Six Dynasties in Nanjing: https://you.ctrip.com/travels/nanjing9/3907623.html

⑤ May Day to catch up with the "crowd" - a four-day tour of Changzhou, Jiangsu: https://you.ctrip.com/travels/changzhou206/4010634.html?isAuthor=true