Nanhu · Green Expo Garden is located in Wuqing District, Tianjin. It is a national 4A-level tourist attraction and a large comprehensive park integrating ecological construction, popular science education, and leisure and entertainment. With the theme of "Greenness Integrates Humans and Nature", the scenic spot is characterized by integrating the essence of garden art from all over the country with Tianjin's local ecological culture. The park has 53 domestic exhibition gardens, 6 international exhibition gardens and 3 creative exhibition gardens, with a total construction area of about 150,000 square meters. The total area of the scenic spot is 380 hectares, of which the water area is about 140 hectares, and the green area accounts for more than 70%, forming a landscape pattern of "one lake, three embankments, nine bridges and eighteen scenic spots".
History and Culture
The construction of Tianjin Nanhu · Green Expo Garden is closely linked to the China Northern Greening Seedling Expo held in 2015. Developed from the expo, the garden undertakes the mission of showcasing national greening achievements and promoting exchanges in garden culture. Its location, Wuqing District, has a long history. The construction of the Green Expo Garden has also incorporated local elements such as canal transportation culture and canal culture. The design of some exhibition gardens draws on Tianjin's traditional architectural styles, such as gray bricks with gray tiles and carved doors and windows, reflecting regional cultural characteristics.
Many exhibition gardens in the park display the history and culture of different regions through buildings, sculptures, plants and other carriers. For example, the Beijing Garden highlights the solemnity and elegance of royal gardens and reproduces the essence of traditional buildings such as quadrangles; the Suzhou Garden reflects the delicacy and grace of Jiangnan gardens and inherits the millennium-old gardening techniques, making the Green Expo Garden a condensed "Museum of Chinese Garden Culture".
Main Attractions
Main Exhibition Hall
The main exhibition hall is one of the core buildings of the Green Expo Garden, with a construction area of about 28,000 square meters. Its appearance adopts a modern style design, inspired by "green leaves", symbolizing the concept of green ecology. There are several exhibition halls in the museum, which were used to hold greening seedling exhibitions, garden art exhibitions and other activities. Now it mainly displays the greening achievements, ecological protection technologies and the development history of garden culture in various regions of the country, and is an important place to understand the theme connotation of the Green Expo Garden.
Tianjin Garden
Tianjin Garden covers an area of about 12,000 square meters, with the theme of "Impression of Jingu", focusing on displaying Tianjin's regional culture and garden characteristics. Some landscapes in the garden are built in the style of Tianjin's famous Ancient Culture Street and Tianhou Palace, and elements such as the Haihe River and canal transportation are also integrated. In addition, the "Hometown of Jinmen" sculpture group in the garden vividly reproduces Tianjin's folk customs, and the local tree species such as ash and fluffy ash planted also highlight Tianjin's local characteristics.
Beijing Garden
Beijing Garden covers an area of about 8,000 square meters, with the theme of "Elegance of Jinghua", showing the essence of Beijing's royal gardens and quadrangle culture. There are pavilions and pavilions modeled after the style of the corner towers of the Forbidden City in the garden, with symmetrical layout and exquisite paintings, showing the grandeur of royal gardens. At the same time, the quadrangle landscape in the garden reflects the residential culture of old Beijing through elements such as screen walls and vertical flower gates, allowing visitors to feel a strong Beijing-style cultural atmosphere.
Jiangnan Garden
Jiangnan Garden covers an area of about 6,000 square meters, gathering the garden characteristics of Suzhou, Hangzhou and other regions in the south of the Yangtze River. The garden centers on water features, with winding corridors surrounding the pool, exquisite stone arch bridges spanning the water surface, and rockeries, strange stones and various characteristic plants of the south of the Yangtze River such as willows and lotus flowers dotted on the bank. The architectural style is graceful and beautiful, with pink walls and gray tiles reflecting the clear water, creating a Jiangnan artistic conception of "small bridges, flowing water and people's homes".
Nanhu Lake
Nanhu Lake is the core water landscape of the Green Expo Garden, with an area of about 140 hectares. The lake water is clear, surrounded by several exhibition gardens and green spaces. Nine bridges of various shapes are built on the lake, connecting different areas, among which the longest bridge has a span of 60 meters. Visitors can take a cruise to visit Nanhu Lake and enjoy the garden landscape on both sides. The total length of the cruise route is about 5 kilometers, and the whole tour takes about 1 hour, allowing visitors to feel the beauty of the Green Expo Garden from a water perspective.
International Exhibition Area
The international exhibition area covers a total area of about 35,000 square meters, including 6 national exhibition gardens such as the United States, Japan and France. Each exhibition garden shows the garden characteristics and cultural customs of the country. For example, the Japanese garden takes dry landscape and cherry trees as the main elements, reflecting the simplicity and Zen of Japanese gardens; the French garden features geometric flower beds and fountains, showing the romance and regularity of European gardens, providing visitors with the opportunity to appreciate exotic garden customs without going abroad.
Food
Goubuli Baozi
Authentic Goubuli Baozi can be tasted in the catering area around Tianjin Nanhu · Green Expo Garden. It is a characteristic snack of Tianjin with a history of more than 160 years. It uses flour and pork as the main raw materials. The folds of the buns are even, with no less than 15 folds per bun. It has a soft taste and the filling is fresh and juicy. Each bun weighs about 50 grams, which is one of the must-try foods for visitors to experience Tianjin's cuisine.
Erduoyan Fried Cake
Erduoyan Fried Cake is a traditional snack in Tianjin, available in time-honored restaurants near the Green Expo Garden. It uses glutinous rice flour as the skin and red bean paste as the filling. After frying, the outer skin is golden and crispy, and the inner part is soft and sweet. Each fried cake has a diameter of about 5 centimeters and weighs about 60 grams. It has a history of more than 100 years and is named after its origin in Erduoyan Hutong, Tianjin, which is deeply loved by tourists.
Wuqing Tofu Shreds
Wuqing Tofu Shreds is a characteristic food of Wuqing District where the Green Expo Garden is located, and is sold in farm restaurants and specialty stores around. It is made from high-quality soybeans through multiple processes such as grinding, boiling, curdling, shredding and marinating. It has a golden color, a tough taste and a salty and delicious flavor. Wuqing Tofu Shreds has a history of more than 300 years. It can be eaten directly, or cold or stir-fried, and is a very representative food of the local area.
Tickets
The ticket price is 35 yuan per person.
You can search for the official public account "天津市南湖绿博园" on WeChat to get the latest news or buy tickets online. As of July 26, 2025, the online ticket purchasing function of this official WeChat public account is not working properly.
Opening Hours
The opening hours are adjusted according to the season. From April 1 to October 31 every year is the peak season, and the opening hours are from 8:30 to 17:30, and entry is stopped at 17:00; from November 1 to March 31 of the next year is the off-season, and the opening hours are from 9:00 to 17:00, and entry is stopped at 16:30. The opening hours of the scenic spot may be extended during legal holidays, and the specific hours are subject to the announcement on that day.
Tour Route
Here is a recommended classic one-day tour route: after entering from the main gate of the scenic spot, first visit the main exhibition hall (about 1 hour) to understand the overall situation of the Green Expo Garden; then go to Tianjin Garden (about 40 minutes) to feel the local culture; then visit the northern exhibition gardens such as Beijing Garden and Hebei Garden in turn (total visiting time about 2 hours); have lunch in the catering area of the park (about 1 hour); in the afternoon, go to the southern exhibition gardens such as Jiangnan Garden and Suzhou Garden (about 1.5 hours), then to the international exhibition area (about 1 hour); finally, take a cruise to visit Nanhu Lake (about 1 hour) to enjoy the panoramic view of the park from the water. The total tour time is about 7-8 hours, and the journey is about 8 kilometers.
Transportation
- Bus: You can take Tianjin Bus No. 749, 752, 564 and other routes to Nanhu · Green Expo Garden Station directly. After getting off, walk about 500 meters to reach the main gate of the scenic spot. The bus interval is about 15-20 minutes, and the fare is 2-3 yuan.
- Self-driving: Starting from downtown Tianjin, you can transfer to Beijing-Tianjin Expressway via Jingjintang Expressway and Jinghu Expressway, exit from Wuqing North Exit, drive along Cuiheng Road and Nanhu Road for about 5 kilometers to reach. The parking lot of the scenic spot covers an area of about 50,000 square meters, which can accommodate about 1,000 motor vehicles, and the parking fee is 5 yuan per hour.
- Subway: At present, the nearest subway station to the Green Expo Garden is Beichen Science and Technology Park North Station of Tianjin Metro Line 5. After getting off, you need to transfer to Bus No. 752. The whole journey is about 30 kilometers, and the subway fare is 5 yuan.
Must-visit Attractions
- Nanhu Lake: with a water area of 140 hectares, you can take a cruise to visit. The cruise route is 5 kilometers long, allowing you to enjoy the beauty of 53 exhibition gardens on both sides from the water perspective, and feel the artistic conception of "the boat swims in the water, and people sit in the painting".
- Tianjin Garden: covering an area of 12,000 square meters, it displays Tianjin's canal transportation culture and folk customs. The antique buildings and "Hometown of Jinmen" sculpture group in the garden are very distinctive, and it is an excellent place to understand Tianjin's regional culture.
- Jiangnan Garden: covering an area of 6,000 square meters, it reproduces the essence of Jiangnan gardens. The layout of small bridges, flowing water, pavilions and pavilions is exquisite, reflecting the gardening art of "one scene at a step", which is suitable for taking photos as a souvenir.
- Main Exhibition Hall: with a construction area of 28,000 square meters, it displays national greening achievements and garden culture through exhibitions. It is the core attraction to understand the theme of the Green Expo Garden, with rich interactive experience projects in the hall.
Tour Suggestions
- It is recommended to spend 1 day for the tour. The park is large, so you can wear comfortable sports shoes. The walking distance is about 8 kilometers. You can also rent bicycles in the scenic spot, with a single bike costing 20 yuan per hour and a double bike 30 yuan per hour.
- There are many tourists in the peak season (April-October). It is recommended to enter at 8:30 am when the park opens to avoid the peak flow of people. At the same time, you need to do a good job of sun protection in summer, bring a sunshade and sunscreen. The shade coverage in the park is high, but it is still hot at noon.
- The catering areas in the park are mainly distributed near the main exhibition hall and the bank of Nanhu Lake, mainly featuring Tianjin characteristic snacks and home-cooked dishes, with an average consumption of about 30-50 yuan per person. You can also bring your own food to eat in the designated picnic area.
- If you want to take a cruise, it is recommended to choose before 3 pm, when the light is suitable for taking photos. The cruise departs every 30 minutes, with a ticket price of 40 yuan per person, and the whole journey takes about 1 hour.
Matters Needing Attention
- Smoking is prohibited in the scenic spot. There are special smoking areas. Violators will be fined 50-200 yuan. Visitors must abide by the relevant regulations.
- Take good care of the plants and facilities in the garden. Picking flowers and plants and damaging buildings will face compensation. The compensation amount depends on the degree of damage, up to 1,000 yuan.
- Passengers must get on and off the cruise at the designated piers, wear life jackets, and children must be accompanied by adults. It is forbidden to get off the ship at non-stop points to ensure the safety of the tour.
- In the off-season (November-March of the next year), the lake surface may be frozen, and cruise ships will be suspended.
- The park is large, so it is recommended to bring a power bank. There are several tourist service centers in the scenic spot, which can provide consultation, rest, medical assistance and other services, distributed at intervals of about 1 kilometer.