In the north of town, quiet Pearl Pagoda dates from the Qing dynasty and contains a spacious residential complex decorated with Qing-era antiques, an ancestral hall, a garden and an opera stage. It gets its name from a tiny model pagoda draped in pearls.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
25.73 MILES
Oddly overlooked by most visitors, this 400m stretch of 100 (or so) wooden row houses, flanking a narrow canal, is Nanxun's most charming spot. The…
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11.45 MILES
On the eastern side of the city, this canalside road has whitewashed local houses sitting comfortably side by side with teahouses and trendy cafes selling…
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10.64 MILES
This quiet part of Suzhou is lovely, with a section of the city wall straddling the outer moat in the southwest corner of the city. Dating from 1355, the…
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14.57 MILES
In the far northwest of town, Tiger Hill is a major drawcard for Chinese tourists, and the beacon that draws them is the leaning Cloud Rock Pagoda (云岩塔,…
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Garden of the Master of the Nets
10.7 MILES
Off Shiquan Jie, this pocket-sized garden is considered one of Suzhou's best preserved. Laid out in the 12th century, it went to seed and was later…
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12.42 MILES
This stunning museum, one of only two in mainland China designed by IM Pei, is a modern interpretation of Suzhou architecture, with its confluence of…
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12.37 MILES
The largest of Suzhou's gardens, the Humble Administrator’s Garden is often considered to be the most impressive, but its fame draws in constant crowds,…
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12.34 MILES
This small but perfectly formed garden is often overlooked by visitors who are drawn to Suzhou's larger and more famous gardens. Its simple layout makes…
Nearby Jiangsu attractions
0.1 MILES
This exhibition of more than 1200 crystal dendrites (crystals that form in rock fissures) was collected over a period of 30 years by a husband-and-wife…
0.23 MILES
This beautiful 19th-century garden in the east of the old town delightfully translates as the ‘Withdraw and Reflect Garden’, so named because it was the…
0.26 MILES
This elegant Ming-dynasty estate in the west of town has 41 beautifully restored halls that have been redecorated with paintings, calligraphy and…
7.69 MILES
Straddling the Grand Canal southeast of Suzhou, and boasting 53 arches, the lovely Precious Belt Bridge was once a Tang dynasty construction, although the…
8.39 MILES
This mysteriously named optical art museum has a miniature hall of mirrors and a handful of room-size 3D illusions, perfect for interactive group photos.
8.42 MILES
Zhouzhuang's most iconic bridges are this Ming-dynasty pair (双桥, Shuāngqiáo) gracing the intersection of two waterways in the heart of town.
8.45 MILES
To the south of the Twin Bridges, this beautiful 60-room, three-hall structure was built in the Ming era and bought by the Zhang clan in early Qing times…
8.5 MILES
Near Fu’an Bridge, this residence of the Shen clan is a lavish piece of Qing-style architecture boasting three halls and more than 100 rooms. The first…