[Suzhou Free Travel] How to travel in Suzhou for 2 days and 1 night, a comprehensive guide to itinerary planning!
Contents
- Trip Planner
- Suzhou itinerary planning overview
- Suzhou Day 1
- Pingjiang Road Historic District
- Lion Grove
- Humble Administrator's Garden
- Suzhou Museum
- Shantang Street
- Suzhou Day 2
- Tiger Hill Scenic Area
- Lingering Garden
- Hanshan Temple
- Night mooring at Maple Bridge
Show more
[Planning a new trip but don't know where to start? Let Trip.com's AI Itinerary Assistant generate custom itineraries with one click!]
✅ Copy a travel blog link to generate the same itinerary with one click
✅ Featured popular itineraries for the most authentic experience
✅ Import your favorite destinations and automatically arrange the best itinerary
✅ Check opening hours and recommended visit durations at attractions to ensure that every stop meets your expectations

This guide carefully plans a perfect 2-day and 1-night trip in Suzhou for you. Covering local attractions, authentic food and popular shopping areas, you can easily travel around Suzhou and enjoy a worry-free holiday. Whether it is an in-depth exploration of history and culture or a fashionable check-in in a modern metropolis, this guide can meet your needs. Come and start your wonderful trip to Suzhou!
Enjoy the best of gardens in Humble Administrator's Garden, enjoy crab meat soup dumplings in the old buildings on Pingjiang Road Water Lane, stroll through Lion Grove's rockery, take pictures of light and shadow in Suzhou Museum, and listen to Pingtan on Shantang Street.
Admire the Taihu stones in Liuyuan Garden, enjoy vegetarian noodles while ringing the bell at Hanshan Temple, climb Tiger Hill's Leaning Pagoda for a view of Suzhou, then moor at Maple Bridge at night to find Zhang Ji's poem stele.
| date | journey |
| Day 1 | Pingjiang Road Historic District -> Lion Grove -> Humble Administrator's Garden -> Suzhou Museum -> Shantang Street |
| Day 2 | Tiger Hill Scenic Area -> Lingering Garden -> Hanshan Temple -> Night mooring at Maple Bridge |
South of the Humble Administrator's Garden is the Pingjiang Road Historic District. It is an ancient district that has been protected for over 2,500 years. Pingjiang Road, a narrow road that runs alongside the river and is roughly 1.6 kilometers long, is the core of the block. Alleys including Xuanqiao Lane, Daru Lane, Weidao Temple Front, Zhongzhangjia Lane, and Daxinqiao Lane can be found on the east and west sides. With water and land running parallel and rivers and streets next to one another, the east side in particular has many water lanes that have been protected, giving it the appearance of a Jiangnan water city. Walk on the stone road at a slower pace. There are stone barriers by the river, stone tables and benches by the wayside, and thick camphor trees beside you. Here, you may observe the charming and magnificent historic homes with their white walls, gray tiles, and wooden doors and windows.
Address: No. 65, Baita East Road, Gusu District, Suzhou City
Opening hours: 24 hours a day, all year round
evaluate:
| Pingjiang Old Street has the style of Suzhou and has its own characteristics in all seasons. It is constantly being renovated and is always new every time you visit. Especially strolling along the stone road along the river in the early morning is leisurely and relaxing, leaving you with endless aftertaste. |
The "Four Famous Gardens of Suzhou" are the Lion Grove, the Humble Administrator's Garden, the Lingering Garden, and the Canglang Pavilion. During the Yuan Dynasty, the Lion Grove was initially constructed. Prior to being acquired as a private home, it was the rear garden of a Zen temple. During his six travels south of the Yangtze River, Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty would stop by this garden, which he loved very much. Despite the small size of the Lion Grove, the park's rockery groupings are well-known. The rockery is interconnected like a maze, and these odd rocks have the appearance of dancing lions. By counting stone lions and diamond head maze, you can enjoy the excitement of hide-and-seek.
Address: No. 23 Yuanlin Road, Gusu District, Suzhou
Opening hours: 07:30-17:30 (ticket sales stop at 17:00; admission stops at 17:00)
evaluate:
| The Lion Grove is characterized by "rockery, flowers and trees, buildings and flowing water" and is known as a typical representative of rockery art. The famous attractions are Lion Peak and Qinchi. Lion Peak is a stone rockery made up of more than 400 huge stones of strange shapes. It is very interesting to walk through it. Qinchi is a large pond with a winding stone bridge in the water, which is particularly beautiful. Especially on rainy days, it has a special flavor. |
A World Cultural Heritage Site and one of the "Four Famous Gardens of China." The Humble Administrator's Garden is well-known for its exquisite and vast waterscape, which accentuates the Jiangnan water town's character. Nearly no two of the old buildings are comparable, and the majority are constructed in an orderly fashion alongside the lake. The east, middle, and west sections of the garden each have unique features, but the central garden, which is the focal point of the whole, essentially preserves the organic and uncomplicated design of Ming Dynasty gardens.
Address: No. 178, Northeast Street, Gusu District, Suzhou
Opening hours: 07:30-17:30 (ticket sales stop at 17:00; admission stops at 17:00)
evaluate:
| Even if I go there when the park opens at 7:30 in the morning on non-holidays, there are still a lot of people. I dare not imagine what it will be like at other times. The scenery is okay, maybe I am expecting too much from the first of the four major gardens. There are a lot of mosquitoes, so it’s best to wear long sleeves and bring mosquito repellent, otherwise you’ll be covered in mosquitoes. |
The Suzhou Museum is situated in Pingjiang District, the historic city of Suzhou, on the west side of the Humble Administrator's Garden. It is divided into two sections: the old museum, housed in the historic Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Zhongwang Mansion, and the new museum, which opened in 2006. You can think of the entire museum as a tiny garden. Cultural artifacts from antiquity to the present day, including paintings, calligraphy, ceramics, and jade, may be seen at the new museum. The stunning and sophisticated "Su style painting" can also be found in Prince Zhong's mansion.
Address: No. 204, Northeast Street, Gusu District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province
Business hours: Open from 09:00 to 17:00 tomorrow
evaluate:
| Located near the Humble Administrator's Garden in Gusu District, Suzhou, Suzhou Museum is a masterpiece of cultural heritage and architectural design. Designed by world-renowned architect I.M. Pei, the museum seamlessly blends modern aesthetics with traditional Suzhou garden elements—white walls, dark tiled roofs, and elegant courtyards. Opened in 1960 and renovated in 2006, the museum houses more than 40,000 artifacts, including ancient Chinese paintings, ceramics, jades, and Taiping Heavenly Kingdom artifacts. Admission is free and the opening hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. The museum is easily accessible by Suzhou Metro Line 4 (Beita Station). A visit here can be both a cultural journey through Chinese history and a peaceful moment in the harmonious architectural atmosphere. |
The history of Shantang Ancient Street dates back thousands of years. The poet Bai Juyi, who was an official in Suzhou during the Tang Dynasty, oversaw its construction. The Baigong Temple, which was constructed by the locals to honor Bai Juyi, is located at the southern end of the street today. The road parallels the Shantang River, which is crossed by historic bridges. There are many stores and historic homes with black tiles and white walls on either side of the stone roadway. The river reflects the lit red lanterns at night, making it a good place to take pictures. You can also go to a teahouse to sip tea and listen to Pingtan, or you can pay for your own boat ride.
Address: No. 177 Shantang Street, Gusu District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province
Transportation: Take Metro Line 2 and get off at Shantangjie Station.
Opening hours: 24 hours a day, all year round
evaluate:
| Shantang Street is located outside the Changmen Gate in the northwest corner of the ancient city of Suzhou. Because Shantang River and Shantang Street are about seven miles long, it is also called Qili Shantang. Shantang Street has a profound historical heritage. It was first built in 825 and the whole street is arranged in a pattern of rivers and roads running parallel to each other. Shantang Street has the charm of a Jiangnan water town and is a famous historical and cultural street in China. As a heritage site of the Suzhou section of the Grand Canal, it is listed as a World Cultural Heritage Site. Shantang Street is worth a leisurely stroll. |
Tiger Hill is a landmark in Suzhou City with a history spanning over 2,500 years. The majority of the attractions here are historical landmarks with stunning landscapes. Despite being a small hill, Tiger Hill features cliffs and gullies as part of its natural landscape. It has developed numerous cultural attractions as a result of construction over the dynasties. With a beautiful Jiangnan garden design, the park's structures and vegetation blend harmoniously. Stories of the Spring and Autumn Periods, as well as the famous Yunyan Temple Pagoda with its slanted front, are told here.
Address: No. 8, Huqiushanmen, Gusu District, Suzhou
Opening hours: 07:30-18:00 (ticket sales stop at 17:00; admission stops at 17:30)
evaluate:
| We decided to visit this scenic spot when we got to the hotel. It was fine when we went there, but it started to rain a lot soon after we arrived. We walked in the rain with our family for a while. It rained a lot later and we couldn't visit any places without an umbrella. So it was a pity that we were forced to leave without visiting many places. |
One of China's four most renowned gardens is the Liuyuan Garden, which is joined by the Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou, the Summer Palace in Beijing, and the Mountain Resort in Chengde. Together with the greenery around the garden and a pond with clean water, the park's pavilions, towers, odd rocks, and winding passageways make for an incredibly lovely scene. You can enjoy the serene ambiance of the gardens and sceneries here. The Liuyuan Garden was initially constructed as Xu Taishi's private garden in the twenty-first year of the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty (1593 AD). "Dongyuan" was the name given to it at the time. The official Sheng Kang purchased the garden and called it "Liuyuan" during the early years of the Qing Dynasty's Guangxu rule. The entire garden is separated into four sections, each of which offers a diverse landscape: gardens, woodlands, rural areas, mountains, and rivers.
Address: No. 338, Liuyuan Road, Changmenwai, Gusu District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province
Opening hours: 07:30-17:30 (ticket sales stop at 17:00; admission stops at 17:00)
evaluate:
| Suzhou's Liuyuan Garden is worthy of being called the shining pearl of Jiangnan gardens. This classical garden, which was built in the Ming Dynasty, is fascinating with its exquisite spatial layout and poetic and picturesque artistic conception. The winding corridors connect the landscape courtyards, and pavilions with flying eaves and pointed corners can be seen among the flowers and trees. The strange rocks on Guanyun Peak stand tall, the towering ancient trees and the clear water complement each other, and the changing scenery becomes a painting wherever you go. In the cycle of the four seasons, spring peaches, summer lotus, autumn maples and winter snow take turns to interpret the aesthetics of the garden. The Liuyuan Garden not only carries the garden-building wisdom of literati and scholars, but also perfectly integrates architectural art with natural philosophy. Strolling through it, one can feel the pulse of history while finding a quiet place. It can be regarded as the pinnacle of Chinese garden art. |
With a more than 1,400-year history, Hanshan Temple is situated in Suzhou's western suburbs. The catchphrase "The bell of Hanshan Temple outside Gusu City reaches the passenger ship at midnight" from Tang Dynasty poet Zhang Ji's well-known poem "Night Mooring at Maple Bridge" is what made it famous. The Hanshan Temple is a well-known location for prayer. A never-ending flow of believers visit the temple each day to pray for peace, burn incense, and ring the bell.
Address: Fengqiao Road, Gusu District, Suzhou City
Opening hours: 07:30-18:00 (no admission after 17:30)
evaluate:
| The bell of Hanshan Temple outside Gusu City can be heard by the passenger ship at midnight. When visiting Suzhou, how can you not visit Hanshan Temple? Go to the Grand Canal to see the Maple Bridge, then visit the Hanshan Temple, the ancestral temple of Hehe, and then go to the Hanshan Garden to listen to the Buddhist bell and read the poem stele |
Address: Fengqiao Scenic Area, Fengqiao Road, Gusu District, Suzhou
Opening hours: 24 hours a day, all year round
evaluate:
| It is worth a visit. Fengqiao Scenic Area includes Hanshan Temple, all in one scenic area. Fengqiao is a stone arch bridge on a tributary of the canal, separating Hanshan Temple from the scenic area. The whole scenic area is not very large. It is a delta formed by the Grand Canal and a small island surrounded by water. The island is picturesque and has many historical sites. It was here that Zhang Ji moored at night and chanted poems. In addition, you can view the scenery of the modern Grand Canal's golden waterway on this island. The canal tours in Suzhou city are all tours of the ancient canal in the past. The real modern canal is spectacular and busy with transportation, with various large inland shipping vessels shuttling back and forth, so the connotation here is really rich. |
Trending Travelogues
Popular Trip Moments
Popular Attractions
Popular Ranked Lists
Popular Destinations
Recommended Attractions at Popular Destinations
About





of the year 2025
Site Operator: Trip.com Travel Singapore Pte. Ltd.







