Xitang Water Town

Introducing Xitang Water Town
Xitang Water Town is in Jiashan County, Zhejiang Province. As early as the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods (770-221B.C.), it was a place of strategic importance on the boundary between Wu and Yue States, and it was thus known as the Bottom of Wu and the Corner of Yue. During the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), it developed into a prosperous town, and during the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368-1911), it was known as an important town for commerce and handicrafts in South China. Today, Xitang Water Town is like an ancient piece of jade, glittering and translucent. With the reputation of simply elegance and tranquility, it is regarded as a “Living Thousand-year Old Town “the town still preserves its traditional ancient residences along the river canals and stone bridges.

Xitang Water Town Fast Facts
• Chinese Name: Xitang Guzhen 西塘古镇
• Best Time to Visit: April to November
• Recommended Visiting Hours: About 1 to 2 days
• Things to Do: Photography, Chinese History and Culture, Cruise, Exhibition
• Opening Hours: Town: all day; Attractions: 08:00-17:00 (summer)/08:00-16:30 (winter)
• Entrance Fee: ¥95 (including 11 attractions and Five Girls Theme Park); ¥50 for night entrance
• Address: No.258 Nanyuan Road, Jiashan County, Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province

What to expect at Xitang Water Town

Xitang Water Town has a flat terrain, and the nine rivers that run through the town divide it into eight parts. Xitang Water Town is known for its bridges, lanes, and ceilinged corridors. There are 104 bridges of varied structure, all from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, some looking like rainbows over the river, and others like long flutes. Standing on one of these bridges and watching the boats through a round opening, one feels drawn into deep meditation on the past.

Many of the shops and houses in Xitang Water Town are built on the riversides. There are a total of 122 lanes, long and short, wide and narrow. The lanes are paved with stone planks, polished by the feet of pedestrians as well as hundreds of years of weathering. Together with the black-tiled houses along the roads, the polished stone planks bear witness to the Xitang Water Town’s long history.

Because of the rainy climate, local residents have invented their own style of ceilinged corridor. Each family puts a ceiling over the stone-plank road in front of its own house, and the ceilings connect with one another to form corridors, the longest being 1,300 meters. Nowadays, the ceilinged corridors are the main places for outdoor activities and attract countless tourists.

Xitang Water Town is also attractive because of the easygoing lifestyle that local residents have followed for thousands of years. Unlike the towns of Zhouzhuang and Wuzhen, Xitang is not a bustling place (see China Pictorial November 2001 and February 2002). People in Xitang Water Town live ordinary, peaceful lives. The elderly play with their grandchildren on bridges and in lanes, and women wash vegetables and clothes in the rivers running beside their houses. The simple lifestyle and peaceful atmosphere may have died out in those now commercialized ancient towns, but they fill every lane in Xitang. For tourists from modern metropolises, Xitang Water Town is a place to experience a feeling of simplicity and leisure.

Visitors can also follow the footprints of Tom Cruise in the film “Mission impossible III”. Immerse yourself in the chanting local culture and township scenery.

How to get to Xitang Water Town

From Jiashan
• Take bus No. K215 or K216, K22 to Xitang.

From Jiaxing
• Take bus No. K152 from Jiaxing North Bus station to Xitang.

From Hangzhou
• Take a long distance bus from Hangzhou Jiubao Passenger Transport Center to Xitang.

From Shanghai
• Take a long distance bus from Shanghai South Long-distance Bus Station, Shanghai Tourist Center or Intercity Bus Terminal to Xitang.

Additional travel advice on Xitang Water Town
• Please buy the entrance tickets from official channels. Each attraction in the scenic area has a check-in gate. If someone tells that he/she can lead you to enter from lanes by giving him/her less money than the entrance fee, please do not believe him/her.
• Each year, large fairs and activities are held in Xitang to celebtrate Chinese New year, Middle Autumn Festival as well as Qilaoye Temple Fair (Lunar April 3rd).