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Golden Week Escape to Tonglu, in Zhejiang Province

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Golden Week escape to Tonglu

The week of the Chinese national holiday is called 黄金周, or Golden Week: in China, on the first of October they celebrate the anniversary of the birth of the Chinese People’s Republic of China, which is followed by an entire vacation week where schools and offices close and only restaurants and hotels work hard during these days which I would define more like “fire” than “gold”.

On my third Golden Week here in China I already know that it’s best to avoid the most touristy areas and the big cities, as well as train stations and airports: a simple trip outside your door could become a real ordeal.

It seems that all the Chinese take advantage of this vacation week to take a trip with their families or return home to see their parents or relatives: and so it was that I regretted having used this week off of university classes during my first year in China to go to Beijing, travelling for nearly 30 hours on a dirty overcrowded train without even a place to sit only to arrive in Beijing without even being able to visit the Forbidden City because the daily allottment of tickets was already sold out by 9 in the morning.

Moving along in procession in a Tienanmen full of Chinese tourists armed with smartphones and cameras, I promised that I would never again travel during Chinese holidays at the risk of staying shut inside my university dorm. [Read more…]

Traveling to Shaoxing: a Visit to the City of Lu Xun

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Traveling to Shaoxing

Shaoxing is located in the northern part of the Zhejiang region, very close to famous Hangzhou and about an hour and a half by train from Shanghai.

The city is considered one of the water towns found in the region south of the Yangtze River, like the more famous Suzhou and Wuzhen, by way of the numerous waterways that cross and surround them.

Shaoxing is not considered a tourist destination by many simply for the fact that it is unfortunately surrounded by some of the more important and famous Chinese cities that attract the majority of tourists. However since the last century its fame has increased, besides being the birthplace of Lu Xun, the most famous Chinese writer of the twentieth century, as well as one of the most important Chinese politicians in the last century: Zhou Enlai.

How to get to Shaoxing

For visiting Shaoxing one day is enough, and a visit to the city is a good option if you live in the area of Shanghai or Hangzhou to escape the chaos of the metropolis and take refuge in a small city without many tourists.

Getting to Shaoxing is very easy, the high speed train station is North Shaoxing Railway Station (绍兴北站), from Shanghai the fast train takes an hour and a half and a ticket costs between 70 and 90 Yuan; from Hangzhou it takes half an hour and costs 15 Yuan.

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Travel to Hangzhou: The complete guide to the water city

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Hangzhou's West LakeHangzhou’s West Lake

Close to Shanghai and the sea, headquarters of the Zhejiang region, Hangzhou is a special city for its physiognomy, nature and history. The first time I stepped foot here, even the gentle ways of the inhabitants won me over .

It would seem that, despite the size and proximity to major centers, the fevered rhythms of Shanghai and the exuberance of Nanjing they don’t belong to this city, which has lived for millenniums along the shores of its lakes and is surrounded by temples and hills.

Today it is most famous because it is the home of the giant Alibaba (as if it were the Mountain View of China), of which Mr. Jack Ma continues to be in the top fifty of the world’s billionaires; or, because in 2016 it is here that the G20 took place, the last important such appointment between Obama and Xi Jinping, before his departure from the White House.

But much earlier than them, Hangzhou was one of Mao’s favorite places, and even Marco Polo was rather struck by it. Moreover, you have to know that i imagining the typical, almost stereotypical Chinese landscape with a little lake, sweet hills that embrace the water and pagodas that dominate the horizon, you may not know it, but its most likely that you’re thinking of Hangzhou’s West Lake (西湖). Even if you’ve never been there. [Read more…]

Bungee Jumping in Ningbo

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bungee jumping in ningbo

Among my family and friends, I’m known as the adventurous one, and I usually tell my mother my crazy stories without her prior knowledge to save her from a heart attack. This was one of those times – when I went bungee jumping in China.

Adrenaline Junkies

Last June, my best friend and I were excited about summer in Shanghai. We were working as English teachers, and although we worked through the summer, we were looking forward to spending some weekends exploring nearby towns and hiking spots outside of Shanghai. There are a lot of tourism and adventure tourism companies that take trips on the weekends, everything from hiking in the desert to picking tea in Anhui.

There are a lot of tourism groups on WeChat, China’s most popular app for communicating, where they post monthly trips they were advertising. As I scrolled through official accounts I follow I saw an offer for bungee jumping in Ningbo with a company called Wanna Travel, amongst the usual hiking and camping trips. I was immediately intrigued and read the description.

The group was doing a day trip to Ningbo, a city south of Shanghai driving for three hours, with a bungee jump in the morning and a barbeque on the beach in the afternoon. This was just the thing I needed to unwind from a long week and I texted my best friend immediately to see if she wanted to go. She said yes, and the next day we made the deposit securing our spots on the trip.

The day trip cost 800 Yuan, including transportation, the entrance to the park/bungee, barbeque and alcohol.
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The Best Hotels in Hangzhou, the City of the West Lake

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Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province, is a quite big city and finding quality hotels isn’t always easy. Here you’ll find a selection of the best hotels in town covering a wide range of prices, you only have to choose the most suitable for you.

If you want to know more about the best way of booking hotels in China, you can click here to read our tips.

Reviews of Luxury Hotels (5 Star) in Hangzhou

Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake


The Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake is 4 km from the city center providing easy access to the major attractions of the City. There is Wi-Fi in every room as well as public areas. The front desk is open 24 hours and is happy to arrange tours as well as airport transfers. Room service is also available at all times. Guests can enjoy their private pool and whirlpool bath for relaxation or perhaps stroll in the garden. The fitness center as well as sauna, spa and indoor pool are other features ensuring a comfortable stay. There is a club for kids and business guests have a center and meeting room alternatives. The hotel has a bar, restaurant and BBQ facilities. This hotel is one of the most luxurious of the city and you may find it is not orientated towards Western guests.

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