Holy Buddhist Island & The City of Heaven
Traveling the spiritual Putuoshan with romantic Hangzhou in the same trip to make the best of your time and enjoy various cultures and landscapes. Starting from Shanghai, China’s best gateway, then transfer by a private car to Putuoshan to discover the ancient holy Buddhist temples, sacred sites related to the Goddess of Mercy in Buddhism, also enjoy the beautiful island and sea views. Then extend your vacation to Hangzhou, the City of Heaven (declared by Marco Polo in his travel journal). Spend 2 days in this most romantic city of China to explore its ancient streets, gorgeous lakes, unique tea culture, etc. It’s a close-knit itinerary with dozens of things to do.
Highlights of this tour
In the early morning to today, your local guide and driver will pick you up at your hotel lobby, and set off on the trip to Putuoshan which is about 3.5 hours' driving away from Shanghai downtown. After arrival at Zhu Sha Jian of Zhoushan City, embark a ferry to Putuoshan, which will take about 15 minutes to get to Putuoshan Dock. Disembark the ferry to check in your hotel.
After a short rest in your hotel, start your visit with a short walk from the dock to Puji Temple. Built in 916, this magnificent temple is the oldest as well as the largest temple on Putuoshan Mountain. Every big Buddhist event or ceremony is usually held in the temple. In front of the temple is a beautiful pond for lotus. The Duobao Pagoda near the Puji Temple, built to store Buddhist sculptures, is one of the "Three Great Precious of Putuoshan", and still remains the original face as in Yuan Dynasty(1271~1368).
Then take a sightseeing bus to One Thousand-Step Beach on the eastern side of Putuoshan Island. Walk leisurely on this over 2000-meter long white beach, let the waves kiss your toes and enjoy the clean sky and sea sceneries. Next, transfer by sightseeing bus to next attraction - Unwilling-to-leave Temple. In the year 858, the Japanese Buddhist Hui'e received a precious statue of Avalokitesvara. While on his way back to Japan, he was detained by a storm, which was seen by Hui'e as a sign that the Avalokitesvara was unwilling to leave. Then Hui'e decided to leave the statue on Putuoshan, and built a temple to place the statue which was named Unwilling-to-leave Temple. Near the temple locates the famous Purple Bamboo Forest which is believed to the original ashram of Avalokitesvara (the Goddess of Mercy). Walk several minutes down the bamboo forest, you will reach the landmark site of Putuoshan - the Goddess of Mercy Statue which is 33 meters (108 feet) tall and made of copper.
Lastly, get back to your hotel. The rest time of today is free for you to have dinner and walk around.
Optional Evening Show: watch the large-scale live show of Impression Putuo which is performed by professional actors and actress, and presents sacred Buddhist art with well-arranged light, shadow and sound, as a great inspiration of life.
After breakfast, take a park bus to Fayu Temple, 2.8km from Puji Temple. The Nine-dragon Caisson on the ceiling of the Nine Dragons Hall, together with some glazed tiles used on the temple, was relocated from the imperial palaces of Ming Empire in Nanjing in Qing Dynasty(1636~1912). There is also a Nine-dragon Screen which is aged, giant and tall but can see any crevice though it was jointed by flagstones. Apart from the grandiose halls, the temple is also full of huge, rare and old trees scattering in the yards or along the yellow-walled paths, which make it easy for people to find the peace in mind.
After visiting Fayu Temple, you will hike about 1.5 hours, with 2088 stone steps, up to Huiji Temple on the top of Buddha Peak Mountain. If you want to save your energy and time, continue your park bus transfer to Haicheng Temple to take the fast cableway which will takes only several minutes to the Huiji Temple. The temple is covered by colorful glazed tiles. Its halls and yards were constructed in traditional Garden-Architecture Style in Zhejiang and Jiangsu. Not so far away from the temple is the Sky Lamp Stage where you can get a clear panoramic view of Putuoshan, white beaches and blue seas in the far distance. (Note: the cableway charges ￥70 for a round trip, and ￥40 for a single trip, which is on your personal expense)
Walk or take the cableway down the Huiji Temple, and take park bus to the dock to catch a ferry to Zhu Jia Jian, then drive about 4 hours to Hangzhou, the City of Heaven, according to Marco Polo's travel journal.
After breakfast today, your guide and driver will meet you at your hotel and escort you to start today’s Hangzhou exploration!
First, make the symbolic visit to the picturesque West Lake, which is the iconic site of Hangzhou and a pretty UNESCO World Heritage. Just as the famous traveler Marco Polo did and wrote: “A voyage on this lake offers more refreshment and pleasure than any other experience on earth”, you will start with a 45-minute leisure cruise to enjoy the tranquil lake views as well as the ancient pagodas, traditional arched bridges, tree-lined walkways, beautiful hills, green islands and lush gardens including visit to the beautiful Three Ponds Mirroring the Moon. After the cruise, stroll or take a sightseeing vehicle leisurely around to pass the famous Su Causeway, Bai Causeway, Broken Bridge, Gushan Hill, parks of Fish Viewing at the Flower Pond, Lotus Swaying in the Breeze, Orioles Singing in the Willows, etc. (As the lake is too large, you can take the sightseeing vehicle at any place on the route to save energy. The fee is included.)
Next, go to Feilai Peak (Peak Flying from Afar), which flew to China to spread Buddhism from India according to the legend. It features in over 300 Buddhist carvings lining the riverbanks and hillsides and tucked away inside grottoes. With over 1,000 years, it is the precious fresco treasure in the whole regions south of Yangtze River. Continue to the adjacent Lingyin Temple of nearly 1,700 year, which is the oldest and one of the most popular temples in Hangzhou. Hidden in the luxurious forest, it offers charming and peaceful landscape mixed with the strong Buddhist atmosphere among the large scaled of magnificent and antique temple clusters.
Then, drive uphill to Meijiawu Tea Village, a refreshing wonderland surrounded by mountains with a large area of emerald Dragon Well tea plantations in neat lines and curves. Walk among the tea plantations with fun and take beautiful photos (Optional activity: you can pay a visit to the local tea grower’s family and experience picking tea leaves, watching stir-drying tea leaves, enjoying tea ceremony, tasting Dragon Well tea, etc., which needs extra payment.). After that, go to China National Tea Museum to learn systematically about Chinese tea culture including the history, procession, customs and classification of tea, and admire diverse kinds of tea wares, machines, displays, etc.
After today’s visiting, be escorted back to your hotel in Hangzhou downtown. Have a good sleep!
Evening Ideas: 1) watch a magnificent night show - Enduring Memories of Hangzhou, a live performance by Yimou Zhang with changing lights, music and dancing on the West Lake, which usually starts at 7pm, needs extra payment; 2) feast your eyes with an amazing Music Fountain Show at Third Park, near the eastern lakeside of West Lake, free charged.
Good morning! After breakfast, your guide and driver will meet at your hotel and then escort you to enjoy a nice historical walk at Hefang Street, a unique pedestrian street to see the typical old and prosperous Hangzhou in South Song era. Stroll to admire the ornate old styled Chinese architectures, interesting local handicrafts, delicious snacks, etc. Then, walk to the century-old Chinese pharmacy on the street - Hu Qing Yu Tang, which is also known as Traditional Chinese Medicine Museum and was built by Xueyan Hu, a famous merchant in late Qing dynasty. Many locals still visit senior doctors there for treatment today. Marvel at the magic of traditional Chinese medicine by looking at the countless traditional Chinese medicines and herbs, various traditional tools and watch the live processing of medicines.
Later, go to Wulinmen to take the 0.5 hour’s sightseeing cruise on Beijing Hangzhou Grand Canal. That great canal dug from Spring and Autumn period is over 2,500 years old, which is one of the three greatest projects in China and a World Cultural Heritage. Appreciate the view of the modern and old houses on banks passing by and see the vibrant scene of different cargo ships and passenger ships coming and going just like that in the past centuries.
Disembark at Gongchen Bridge and have an interesting cultural visit to Qiaoxi Conservation Area which was called “Little Shanghai” for its prosperity in Ming and Qing era due to the convenient linking by the Grand Canal. Now, this cultural street block preserves lots of old folk dwellings and industrial sites and has a series of themed museums and exhibitions to introduce the culture and history of the Grand Canal, Hangzhou and China. Go to China Museum of Knives, Scissors & Swords to admire various scissors used in daily life and learn the developing story of Zhang Xiao Quan. It is a nationally renowned brand of knives and scissors of nearly 400 years old and still favored by lots of domestic consumers. Besides, have a great look at plentiful of swords for military defense and knives from ancient to now! Walk to the adjacent China Umbrella Museum. You will know how the world first umbrella was inspired from lotus leaves, their special status in Chinese literature, irreplaceable meanings in the wedding and marriage in China, detailed processing, etc. with displays of rich types and colors of umbrellas of different materials in China and the world. Then, go to the nearby Workmanship Demonstration Pavilion to watch the live demonstration of painting on oiled paper umbrellas and various handicrafts, such as making potteries, embroideries, bamboo weaving, etc. (Optional activities: You can experience one of the handcrafting activities if you are interested and time permits, which needs extra payment.)
After the visiting, your guide and driver will escort you to Hangzhou airport / train station to catch your flight / train to your next destination or home! Tour ends!
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Shanghai / Putuoshan / Shanghai
Shanghai / Hangzhou / Wuzhen / Suzhou / Shanghai
Shanghai / Hangzhou / Shanghai
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“WONDERFUL 25 DAYS IN CHINA - PRIVATE TOUR”
“Awesome China tour from northeast to southwest”
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