Wuzhen Scenic Area is located in Tongxiang City, Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province. It is a national 5A-level tourist attraction, known as "the last water town in China" and famous for its well-preserved ancient water town style in the Jiangnan region. The core area of the scenic spot includes Dongzha, Xizha and other parts. Among them, Dongzha covers an area of about 0.9 square kilometers, Xizha covers an area of about 4.92 square kilometers, and the whole town covers an area of about 110.93 square kilometers. The ancient town takes the river as the street, with bridges and streets connected. It preserves a large number of Jiangnan folk houses from the Ming and Qing dynasties, including characteristic architectural forms such as water pavilions, corridors, and arcade buildings. There are dozens of existing ancient bridges of various types, which completely continue the traditional water town pattern of "small bridges, flowing water, and houses", and is a typical representative of Jiangnan water town culture.
History and Culture
Wuzhen has a history of more than 7,000 years of civilization and more than 1,300 years of town construction. During the Spring and Autumn Period, this place was a garrison of the Wu Kingdom, called "Wushu"; during the Qin Dynasty, it was divided into Wudun (west) and Qingdun (east), belonging to different counties; during the Song and Yuan Dynasties, Wuzhen belonged to Wucheng County of Huzhou Prefecture, and Qingzhen belonged to Chongde County of Jiaxing Prefecture. This divided governance pattern continued until the Ming and Qing Dynasties; in 1950, Wuzhen and Qingzhen merged into "Wuzhen", belonging to Tongxiang County.
The name of the ancient town evolved from "Wudun" and "Qingdun". There are many theories about the origin of the character "Wu": one is that it was named after the Yue prince Wuyushi who was enfeoffed here; the second is to commemorate General Wu who quelled the rebellion in the Tang Dynasty; there is also a view that it is related to the local Wutuo historical sites or the color of the soil. As an important node of Jiangnan culture, Wuzhen has produced many talented people in history. The modern literary giant Mao Dun was born here. The ancient town still retains folk cultures such as sericulture customs and water town wedding customs, and has also bred traditional techniques such as Sanbai wine brewing and Gusao cake making.
Main Attractions
Dongzha Scenic Area
Dongzha Scenic Area starts from Yingjia Bridge in the west and ends at Fengyuan Double Bridge in the east, with a total length of 1,300 meters and an area of 0.9 square kilometers. It is the most complete original ecological ancient town area preserved in Wuzhen. The scenic area includes Dongshi River, ancient streets of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, 11 ancient bridges and many historical buildings, such as Mao Dun's Former Residence, Jiangnan Hundred Beds Museum, Hongyuantai Dyeing Workshop, etc. Tourists can experience traditional workshops (such as Sanbai Winery, Blue Calico Workshop), watch shadow puppet shows, and feel the original water town life scene here.
Xizha Scenic Area
Xizha Scenic Area covers an area of about 4.92 square kilometers. After unified planning and development, it not only retains the water town style, but also integrates modern leisure elements. There are attractions such as Bailian Tower, Zhaoming Academy, Xuchang Sauce Garden, and Water Market in the scenic area. The lights are bright at night, which is the core area to enjoy the night view of Wuzhen. In addition, Xizha's homestays, cafes and other facilities are complete, suitable for tourists to experience the slow life of the water town in depth.
Mao Dun's Former Residence
Located at No. 17 Guanqian Street, Dongzha Scenic Area, it is the old house where Mao Dun (Shen Yanbing)'s ancestors lived. It was built in the mid-19th century, with a construction area of 650 square meters, and is a typical Jiangnan folk house in the Qing Dynasty. The former residence preserves traces of Mao Dun's childhood life and related documents. It was listed as a national key cultural relics protection unit in January 1988 and is an important place to understand Mao Dun's life and literary achievements.
Mu Xin Art Museum
Located near the entrance of Xizha Scenic Area, it was designed by a disciple of the architect I.M. Pei. The museum building is built along the water, with an appearance like a corridor with undulating piano keys. The museum displays Mu Xin's paintings, manuscripts, letters and other works, fully presenting his artistic career. The museum ticket is 20 yuan per person, and it is closed every Monday (except legal holidays).
Jiangnan Hundred Beds Museum
Located on East Street of Dongzha Scenic Area, formerly known as Zhao Family Hall, it is the first museum in China specializing in collecting ancient beds. The museum displays dozens of ancient beds from the Ming and Qing Dynasties to the modern era, including different types such as Babu beds and shelf beds. The bed bodies are exquisitely carved, with themes covering flowers and birds, figures, and myths, reflecting the furniture culture and living customs in the Jiangnan region.
Cuisine
Sanbai Wine
Wuzhen's traditional famous wine is brewed with white rice, white flour and white water using ancient methods. The alcohol content is about 55 degrees, and the taste is mellow and soft. You can visit the brewing process at the Sanbai Winery in Dongzha Scenic Area. Tourists can taste it for free. The price of bottled wine ranges from tens of yuan to hundreds of yuan, which is a local characteristic souvenir.
Gusao Cake
Wuzhen's traditional pastry is said to be named after the cooperation between a aunt and her sister-in-law. It is made of flour, sesame, sugar and other raw materials through multiple processes. It tastes crispy, moderately sweet and salty, with a sesame aroma. It is sold in many shops in the scenic area, with a price of about 20-30 yuan per box.
Dingsheng Cake
A traditional Jiangnan pastry, often used in festivals or weddings in Wuzhen. It is made of glutinous rice flour and japonica rice flour, added with brown sugar or red bean paste filling, and steamed. It is rhombus-shaped with the word "Dingsheng" printed on the surface. It tastes soft, glutinous and sweet, implying auspiciousness, and the unit price is about 3-5 yuan per piece.
Baishui Fish
It is a freshwater fish specialty in the waters of Wuzhen, with a slender body and tender meat. The local cooking method is mainly steaming, which retains the freshness to the greatest extent. It is seasoned with green onions and ginger to enhance the aroma. It is a common dish in restaurants within the scenic area, with a price of about 60-100 yuan per serving, depending on the size of the fish.
Surrounding Cuisine
In addition to the characteristic foods in the ancient town, there are many local snacks in Tongxiang City and surrounding areas. For example, Tongxiang Bao (a casserole stewed with chicken feet, prawns, tofu and other ingredients), Chongfu Trotter (braised pork knuckle, tender and flavorful), mutton noodles around Puyuan Woolen Market (a characteristic in autumn and winter, with tender mutton and rich soup), etc. Tourists can taste them on the way to and from Wuzhen.
Tickets
The ticket for Dongzha Scenic Area is 110 yuan per person, the ticket for Xizha Scenic Area is 150 yuan per person, and the combined ticket for Dongzha and Xizha is 190 yuan per person.
You can search for the official public account "乌镇景区" on WeChat to get the latest news or buy tickets online.
Opening Hours
Opening hours of Dongzha Scenic Area: summer time (April 1 - October 31) 7:00 - 18:00; winter time (November 1 - March 31) 7:00 - 17:30.
Opening hours of Xizha Scenic Area: 9:00 - 22:00 (the night tour area is closed after 22:00).
Opening hours of Mu Xin Art Museum: 9:00 - 17:30 (admission stops at 17:00), closed every Monday (except legal holidays).
The opening hours of some attractions in the scenic area (such as Mao Dun's Former Residence and Jiangnan Hundred Beds Museum) are the same as those of the scenic area where they are located. Please refer to the on-site notice for details.
Tour Routes
One-day tour route (recommended for combined tickets): Arrive at Dongzha before 8:00 a.m., visit Mao Dun's Former Residence, Jiangnan Hundred Beds Museum, Hongyuantai Dyeing Workshop, and watch the high pole boat performance around 10:00; taste local snacks (such as Dingsheng Cake, Baishui Fish) in Dongzha at 12:00; go to Xizha at 13:30 p.m., visit Xuchang Sauce Garden, Zhaoming Academy, Water Market in turn, and go to Mu Xin Art Museum after 16:00; take a rowing boat (60 yuan per person, shared boat) in Xizha in the evening to enjoy the water town scenery under the sunset; visit the night view of Xizha at night and return after 21:00.
Two-day tour route: On the first day, arrive in the morning and first visit Xizha, stay in Xizha homestay, visit Mu Xin Art Museum and Bailian Tower in the afternoon, and visit the Water Market in the evening; on the next morning, go to Dongzha to experience traditional workshops and folk customs in depth, leave Dongzha at noon, and before returning, you can go to Nanzhan Old Street (free, retaining the original ecological style) to buy handicrafts.
Transportation
- Plane: The nearest airports to Wuzhen are Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport (about 80 kilometers) and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport (about 130 kilometers). There are direct airport buses from Xiaoshan Airport to Wuzhen, 6 times a day (departure time 9:00 - 18:00, once every 2 hours), with a journey of about 1.5 hours and a fare of 65 yuan per person; from Hongqiao Airport, you need to take the subway to Shanghai South Railway Station first, then transfer to a long-distance bus to Wuzhen.
- High-speed rail: The nearest high-speed rail station is Tongxiang Station (about 25 kilometers from Wuzhen). From Tongxiang Station, you can take K282 bus directly to Wuzhen Bus Station (about 1 hour, fare 5 yuan), then transfer to K350 bus (8 minutes, fare 2 yuan) to Dongzha or Xizha Scenic Area; you can also take a taxi, which costs about 50-80 yuan and takes 30 minutes.
- Long-distance bus: Wuzhen Bus Station has buses to Hangzhou, Shanghai, Suzhou and other cities. Buses from Hangzhou East Bus Station to Wuzhen run every 30 minutes from 7:00 to 18:00 every day, with a journey of about 1.5 hours and a fare of 38 yuan per person; buses from Shanghai South Bus Station to Wuzhen run every 40 minutes from 7:15 to 18:30 every day, with a journey of about 2 hours and a fare of 56 yuan per person.
- Self-driving: Starting from Hangzhou, take Shanghai-Kunming Expressway and transfer to Shenjiahu Expressway, get off at Wuzhen Exit, the whole journey is about 1 hour; starting from Shanghai, take Shanghai-Kunming Expressway and transfer to Shenjiahu Expressway, the whole journey is about 2.5 hours; starting from Suzhou, take Changtai Expressway and transfer to Shenjiahu Expressway, the whole journey is about 1.5 hours. There are parking lots in Dongzha and Xizha in the scenic area, with a charge of 5 yuan per hour and a daily maximum of 50 yuan.
Must-visit Attractions
- Xizha Night View: The night lights of Xizha are laid along the river and buildings, outlining the soft outline of the water town. When taking a boat tour at night, you can enjoy the scene of lanterns reflecting on the water on both sides, which is one of the iconic experiences of Wuzhen.
- Mao Dun's Former Residence: As a national key cultural relics protection unit, it completely preserves Mao Dun's growth environment. The exhibits in the museum show his literary achievements and life, and it is an important window to understand modern Chinese literature.
- Mu Xin Art Museum: The architectural design and exhibition layout complement each other. You can not only appreciate Mu Xin's art works, but also overlook the water scenery of Xizha through the window seats, which is suitable for literary and art lovers.
- Dongzha Original Ecological Street Area: Compared with Xizha, it has a more lively atmosphere. You can see residents doing laundry by the river and traditional workshops in operation, and feel the original water town flavor that has not been over-commercialized.
Tour Suggestions
- Best visiting season: Spring (March - May, misty rain) and autumn (September - November, cool climate). Take precautions against heatstroke in summer. In winter, you can experience the quiet atmosphere of the ancient town with few people.
- Accommodation options: The homestays in Xizha are uniformly managed by the scenic area, mostly water-front houses, where you can experience the water town life with a view of the river when you open the window, with a price of about 300-800 yuan per night; accommodation outside Dongzha or in Wuzhen Town is more affordable, with a price of about 150-400 yuan per night, suitable for tourists with limited budget.
- Experience projects: Xizha's rowing boat (60 yuan per person, shared boat), Dongzha's blue calico making experience (about 30 yuan per piece), Pingtan performance in Guole Theater (free, need to occupy a seat in advance), etc., can enrich the itinerary.
- Avoid peak hours: There are many tourists on holidays and weekends. It is recommended to go on weekdays; there are few people when Xizha just opens at 9:00 a.m., which is suitable for taking photos.
Precautions
- Ticket validity: Tickets for Dongzha and Xizha are valid on the day of purchase. You cannot re-enter after leaving the park. You need to reasonably plan the time for a single visit.
- Traffic safety: Motor vehicles are prohibited in the ancient town, and the tour is mainly on foot; Xizha covers a large area, and you can take the free sightseeing bus in the scenic area (shuttle between stations).
- Property custody: There are many tourists in the scenic area. You need to take good care of mobile phones, wallets and other personal belongings, especially in crowded corridors or when taking boats.
- Environmental protection: The water system of the ancient town is domestic water. It is forbidden to throw garbage into the river; taking photos is prohibited in some areas (such as Mu Xin Art Museum), so please follow the signs.
- Special circumstances: In case of extreme weather such as heavy rain and typhoon, the scenic area may temporarily close some areas or adjust the cruise ship schedule.