81km (50 miles) NW of Shanghai
Suzhou's interlocking canals -- which once earned it the moniker of "Venice of the East" -- its unparalleled collection of classic gardens, and its embroidery and silk factories are the chief surviving elements of a cultural center that dominated China's artistic scene for long periods during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. Rapid modernization in the last decade has robbed the city of much of its mystique, but enough beauty remains, especially in quiet corners of its celebrated gardens, to merit at least a day of your time.
Essentials
Getting There -- Suzhou can easily be visited on your own. There are frequent trains (1 hr.; ¥25/$3) from the Shanghai Train Station, with the most popular trains for day-trippers being Train no. T702 which leaves Shanghai at 7:55am and arrives at 8:42am; and Train no. T706, which departs at 8:37am and arrives at 9:15am. There are many return trains to Shanghai in the afternoon including no. T711 (departs 6:01pm, arrives 6:52pm). There is also a new express direct train from Suzhou to Beijing, Z85, departing at 8pm and arriving at 7:19am. The Suzhou Train Station (Suzhou Zhan; tel. 0512/6753-2831) is in the northern part of town on Chezhan Lu just west of the Renmin Lu intersection. If you miss your train back, Suzhou is also well connected by bus to Shanghai. From Suzhou's North Bus Station (Qiche Bei Zhan; tel. 0512/6753-0686), buses depart for Shanghai (90 min.; ¥26-¥30/$3.25-$3.75) every 20 minutes from 7am to 6:20pm.
If you don't wish to visit on your own, check with your hotel tour desk to book a bus tour of Suzhou. The Jin Jiang Optional Tours Center, Changle Lu 191 (tel. 021/6445-9525), offers a convenient 1-day group bus tour with an English-speaking guide and lunch, departing daily between 8:20am and 9am (from three pick-up points in town) and returning in the late afternoon. At press time, the price was ¥350 ($42) for adults, ¥175 ($21) for children 2 to 7, and free for children under 2, but there are rumblings of imminent price increases. The same tour operator can also arrange a private tour with a guide, air-conditioned car, lunch, and door-to-door service (¥1,400/$168 for one person, ¥800/$96 each for two people, ¥600/$72 each for three or four people).
Suzhou is also linked to Hangzhou to the south by overnight passenger boats on the Grand Canal. Tickets (¥128-¥788/$16-$97 per berth depending on class of service) can be bought at hotel tour desks and at the dock itself, Nanmen Lunchuan Keyun Matou at Renmin Lu 8 (tel. 0512/6520-5720; daily 6:30am-5:30pm) in the southern part of town.
Visitor Information -- China International Travel Service (CITS), at Dajing Xiang 18, off Guanqian Jie (tel. 0512/6515-2401), can provide an English-speaking guide and vehicle for the day at ¥400 ($50) each (lunch and entrance tickets not included) but it's just as easy, and a whole lot cheaper, to see the town on your own via taxi, with trips about town averaging between ¥10 and¥20 ($1.25-$2.50).
