Qianlong's Southern Tour Spot

1 hr from Shanghai❗|||Nanhu Lake is a landmark of Jiaxing. If you visit Jiaxing for the first time, you must take a walk around Nanhu Lake. It is one of the three famous lakes in Zhejiang and a sacred place. To our surprise, compared with the bustling atmosphere of West Lake, there are far fewer people around Nanhu Lake. Sometimes, you can't even see anyone in front of or behind you. It's a paradise for introverts! 🎫Ticket: 🆓 🕰️Opening hours: All day (some attractions 8:00–17:00) ⏱️Tour time: 3–4 hours 🔁Route length: 5.5 km 🚌Transportation 🚘Self-driving: Navigate to the underground parking lot at 2 Nanhu Road, Nanhu Tiandi (free for the first 2 hours, CNY 5/hour thereafter) 🚃Bus: Tram Line 1, Fangong Road Jinghu Road Station 🗺️Route Nanhu Tiandi ➡️ Huijing Garden ➡️ Huxin Island ➡️ Huijing Garden ➡️ Shao Garden ➡️ Chenggong Dike ➡️ Haogu Tower ➡️ Xiaoyingzhou ➡️ Nanhu Tiandi 1️⃣Nanhu Tiandi An open commercial street by Nanhu Lake with many coffee, drink, and food shops. Have lunch here before setting off, and after walking around the lake, come back here for dinner. 2️⃣Huijing Garden Surrounded by water on three sides, it is a great place to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Nanhu Lake. There is Zuixian Tower with an inscription by Jin Yong, and an artificial waterfall made of more than 2,000 tons of yellow stones. 3️⃣Huxin Island A small island on Nanhu Lake, which can be reached by boat from the Huijing Garden Wharf (CNY 20/person). The main attractions are Yanyu Tower and the Red Boat. Yanyu Tower is one of the nine famous towers, and its name comes from the poem "Four hundred and eighty temples of the Southern Dynasties, how many towers and pavilions are in the mist and rain." Qianlong visited Yanyu Tower eight times and wrote more than 20 poems praising it. The garden here is small but exquisite, with strange doors and windows, similar to He Garden in Yangzhou. 4️⃣Shao Garden A small Jiangnan garden with stone bridges, flowing water, rockeries, and pavilions. In spring, you can enjoy flowers such as tulips, cherry blossoms, and crabapples, and in winter, you can enjoy plum blossoms. 5️⃣Chenggong Dike A long and narrow dike with willow trees on the shore. The lake breeze blows, the willow branches sway, and the insects and birds chirp. It's very pleasant! 6️⃣Haogu Tower The tower is seven stories high, and you can climb it for free to overlook the panoramic view of Nanhu Lake. Next to it is Wuxiang Temple. The traditional Dragon Boat Festival in Jiaxing is to commemorate Wu Zixu. 7️⃣Xiaoyingzhou Another small island on Nanhu Lake, known as the Little Yanyu Tower, connected to the north bank by a zigzag bridge.