Ask a QuestionSuzhou is always a great choice for those who travel in Shanghai, as it’s so closed to Shanghai. Except for classic gardens, there are still lots of fun things to do in Suzhou. Do you know what not to do in Suzhou? For a more enjoyable Suzhou trip, just read on to know the 8 things not to do in Suzhou, or you can contact us if you need more help.
Usually Spring and Autumn are best seasons for visiting Suzhou gardens. Winter in Suzhou will be cold and damp, and for summer, it’s a bit hot, you will meet lots of Chinese students during that time. Some people think that sceneries of Suzhou gardens in winter are not so beautiful as spring and autumn, but it’s the right season for wintersweet and plum blossom.
If you want to have a better experience, we suggest you arrive there earlier, so that you can avoid the tour groups. Because some gardens are flooded with Chinese tourists if the tour groups arrive before you finish, especially when you’re in the Humble Administrator’s Garden or Lingering Garden.
Lingering Garden
Suzhou is regarded as garden city in China, as it owns the largest number of classic gardens in China. There are almost 100 gardens in Suzhou, but only some of the gardens are opened to tourists. Most tourists prefer to visit those popular gardens like Humble Administrator Garden, Tiger Hill, Lion Grove Garden, Lingering Garden, Master of Nets Garden, Surging Waves Pavilion and Couple's Retreat Garden.
To be honest, you don’t have to go to all the gardens, instead, it’s better to just choose one or two representative gardens for a visit. Most gardens are well-preserved, with a fine combination of plants, water, sculptures and traditional architectures. Please feel free to ask us advice on which garden to visit.
Humble Administrator’s Garden
Suzhou has a profound history of about 2,500 years. For those who love Chinese history and culture, Suzhou is quite suitable for you. To know more about history, you can go to Suzhou Museum, where more than 40,000 cultural relics are exhibited. The design of Suzhou Museum itself is an extraordinary art, which combines both modern features and ancient architectural style of classic gardens.
Silk culture doesn’t exist in Hangzhou only. Suzhou is considered as the hometown of silk, here in Suzhou Silk Factory, you may have the chance to know the whole procedure of how silk formed from cocoons of silk worm and finally made into silk products.
Suzhou Silk Factory
Don’t just stay in the downtown area, there are still more to explore around Suzhou city. Suzhou is not all about classic gardens, ancient water towns near Suzhou give you another reason for a cultural tour in Suzhou.
Reputed as Venice of the East, Suzhou is a great option for you to start your exploration of water towns. Famous water towns are Zhouzhuang Water Town, Tongli Water Town and Luzhi Water Town, you can choose one according to your schedule. You will love the poetic picture of ancient buildings and bridges with beautiful water views.
Tongli Water Town
Unlike Shanghai, pace of life in Suzhou is much slower. You can slow down you pace and take a stroll along the canals, take you time and enjoy the calm life in Suzhou. If your purpose of this Suzhou trip isn’t for checking all the attractions on the list, it’s unnecessary to rush to each place. With so many classic gardens and traditional architectures, Suzhou is a place where you can put away your stress and relax yourself.
Want to follow your own pace? The best way is to have a customized tour, so that you don’t have to wait for the group or rush to anywhere, in order to go through the whole schedule. You can just keep your own pace and enjoy every minute in Suzhou.
Dining in the restaurants in Suzhou will be great, Suzhou cuisine is mild and sweet, which is suitable for most people. De Yue Lou Restaurant and Song He Lou Restaurant are popular among both locals and tourists, so you can choose either of them and order multi-courses to enjoy delicious Suzhou cuisine.
Don’t be afraid of street food in Suzhou, there are plenty of palatable snacks along the street. Food safety won’t be a problem if the food are well-cooked. Some snacks look attractive and smell good, usually taste better. Don’t be too surprised when you find something you think inedible, maybe you love it after trying.
Never worry too much about your budget when traveling in Suzhou. On the one hand, things in Suzhou won’t be as expensive as in Shanghai and Beijing. On the other hand, there are so many delicious food to eat and interesting things to buy in Suzhou. You deserve a wonderful Suzhou trip with no regrets.
Once you’re in Suzhou, don’t get stingy with your pockets. Just try what you like to eat and buy stuff you love. It will be great experience to walk around Pingjiang Road and Shantang Street, as you can seek for something good to eat and buy, meanwhile, you can closely appreciate traditional architectures alongside.
Pingjiang Road
It’s only 30 minutes to Shanghai if you take high speed train from Suzhou, don’t hesitate to connect your Suzhou tour with Shanghai. It’s great that you can have 144-hour visa-free transit for Shanghai, Hangzhou and Suzhou, 6 days will be enough for the three cities.
There are water towns around Shanghai and Hangzhou as well. Thus, if you are planning to choose one for a visit, just pick one or two according to your schedule, instead of visiting a water town in every city. In addition, you’d better get ready for your travel plan ahead of time, so that you won’t get frustrated during your trip.
After knowing the top things not to do in Suzhou, we guess you may have some good ideas in mind for your upcoming Suzhou tour. Please feel free to share your ideas with us, we’re happy to help you with the travel plan. See our sample tours for Suzhou below and easily start your planning.
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