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City guideReviewed August 20, 2026

Hangzhou: West Lake, Lingyin and the Longjing tea villages, over two nights

Be on the Su Causeway early, while mist still hangs over the water and willows trail into it. Take a boat out to the three little stone pagodas pictured on the back of the one-yuan note. Give a morning to Lingyin, where a clear stream runs beneath a cliff full of carved Buddhas, then stop in the Longjing villages for tea grown on the slopes around you. A day trip from Shanghai can't hold all that; two nights give you the lake at dusk and dawn as well.

By EvanFacts reviewed

Small boats crossing West Lake in Hangzhou beneath wooded hills and mist.
Small boats cross West Lake beneath low, wooded hills. When the shore gets busy, head west to the foot of the hills, where the crowds thin out among backwaters and woods.

Must-See Sights

What to see in Hangzhou

Open one for why it is worth the trip and how to visit; the four decisions below show how to fit them into your days.

Photo (cropped and resized): Liangzhu Ancient City (Siyuwj, CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Four city decisions

Understand the city, then plan the details.

How many nights, which area to stay in, how to arrive and leave, where to go next. How to book each part is in Travel Advice.

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Time

Two nights give you the lake at dusk and dawn, plus the western hills.

A day trip from Shanghai fits one stretch of the lake, one more stop and the train back. Two nights let you walk the shore in the evening and again early next morning, with time left for Lingyin or the Longjing tea villages. Add a third night only if Liangzhu or the Grand Canal is why you came.

Stay base

First time? Stay on the east shore of West Lake, around Hubin.

This is where the city meets the lake, so hotels, shops and dinner are close and the shore is right there for an evening stroll. It is also the busiest side, and lake-view rooms are often poor value. For quiet, look at the Lingyin and Longjing side, but expect fewer metro links and busy hill roads.

Gateways

Check the station on your ticket; Hangzhou West is not by the lake.

Hangzhou has Xiaoshan Airport (HGH) and four main railway stations: Hangzhou, East, West and South. East often has the most trains, many of them to Shanghai, but from there it is a ride across town to the lake. On a day trip from Shanghai, choose your train back before you book the one out.

Next place

Shanghai is the natural partner; go to Suzhou for gardens and canals.

Fast trains link the two cities, and Shanghai is where many trips to this part of China begin and end. Suzhou is a separate city, worth its own stop for gardens and canals. Flying home from Shanghai? Check whether it is Pudong or Hongqiao, because the journey from Hangzhou is different for each.

Around West Lake, and two places further north

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  1. Hubin · east shoreHotels, dinner and evening walks by the lake
  2. Beishan · north shoreBai Causeway, Broken Bridge and Gushan
  3. South shore · Leifeng PagodaClimb the pagoda for the whole lake below
  4. Lingyin · LongjingCarved Buddhas, incense and tea villages
  5. Grand CanalA working waterway in the city's north
  6. LiangzhuA 5,000-year-old city among rice fields
  7. HGH airportIn Xiaoshan, outside central Hangzhou
  8. Hangzhou EastOften the most trains, many to Shanghai
  • Lakeside city centre
  • Half a day or more
  • A whole day
  • Airport and station

Not to scale. Take the lake one side at a time; Liangzhu, about 25 km north-west, needs a whole day of its own.

Why Hangzhou deserves more than a day from Shanghai

In Hangzhou the city runs right down to the water. West Lake has no ticket and no gate, and its whole shore, about 15 kilometres round, is open day and night. The poet Su Dongpo had mud dug from the lake bed and piled into the causeway of willows and peach trees that bears his name. The hills are low and the scenery gentle, and that calm is the point. Head west into those hills and incense drifts over Lingyin's courtyards, while tea grows on the slopes around Longjing.

The fast train from Shanghai makes Hangzhou look like an easy day out. Yet the ride is only part of the day, because you still have to get from the station to the lake, and back in time for your train. If West Lake is all you want, a day will do. Stay, and you can walk the shore in the evening and again early next morning. And if a flight from Hangzhou's own airport suits your route, you need not go back to Shanghai at all.

Deeper answers

From where to stay to getting in and out of the city, one guide for each question.

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