Xixi National Wetland Park 西溪国家湿地公园

Welcome, everyone, to Xixi National Wetland Park. We're starting today's tour at Zhoujiacun Entrance.

Zhoujiacun is one of the most classic entry points to Xixi Wetland, located on Tianmushan Road and easy to reach from the city. Right where you're standing is the visitor centre — you'll find the ticket desk, tour guide services, and the boat dock here. Many visitors choose to begin their journey at Zhoujiacun Pier, as this is the traditional starting point for Xixi's water route.

The moment you step inside from Zhoujiacun, you'll feel an immediate shift from city life. No high-rises here — just crisscrossing waterways, dense beds of reeds, time-worn village houses, and unhurried waterfowl. Xixi Wetland is often called "a wetland in the heart of a city," and it truly earns that name: though just a short distance from central Hangzhou, it has preserved a remarkably intact natural ecosystem.

A few things to keep in mind before we head in. First, the park is very large — trying to cover every trail on foot will be exhausting. A boat ride or a rental bike is strongly recommended. Second, mosquitoes can be plentiful in the wetland, so bring insect repellent if you're visiting in summer. Third, please watch your step near the water — the banks can be slippery.

Alright, let's head into the park. Our first stop is Yanshui Yuzhuang — the Misty Waters Fishing Village.

Welcome to Yanshui Yuzhuang — one of Xixi Wetland's key sites for experiencing its fishing and farming heritage.

Take a look around. This is what a classic Jiangnan fishing village looked like. Along the riverbank you'll see traditional dwellings, fish ponds, drying nets, and scarecrows, along with scenes recreating the everyday life of the fishermen who once lived here. Long ago, the people of Xixi Wetland made their living catching fish, raising silkworms, and growing rice. They lived in riverside cottages, rising with the sun and resting when it set — a simple, quiet life in rhythm with the water.

The folk performances here are one of the highlights of the village. During peak season, local fishermen demonstrate traditional fishing techniques — casting nets, working lift nets, catching fish by hand. You'll watch craftsmen use tools handed down through generations to pull live, wriggling fish and shrimp straight out of the water. It's a way of life that has almost entirely disappeared from modern cities.

The setting is also beautifully photogenic. Waterways, wooden boats, old houses, and rustling reeds come together like a painted scroll of water-country life. In the early morning or at dusk, a thin mist drifts over the surface, and sunlight filters through the reeds in shifting golden shafts — the whole scene feels like a poem.

Photo tip: Yanshui Yuzhuang is ideal for cultural and lifestyle photography. Try shooting downward from a stone bridge to capture the waterway below, or use a thatched cottage and a fishing boat as your backdrop. If there's a folk performance, look for candid shots of the fishermen at work.

Welcome to Shentankou — one of Xixi Wetland's most celebrated ancient crossings, and one of the filming locations for the hit film "If You Are the One."

Look at the waterway here: it's noticeably wider and deeper than elsewhere in the park — hence the name, which means "Deep Pool Ferry." Tall camphor trees and dense dawn redwoods line both banks, their roots reaching into the water and their branches weaving together overhead, forming a green tunnel above the river. Gliding through by boat, you feel as though you're passing through a primeval forest.

The most famous tree at Shentankou is a century-old camphor. Its massive trunk and dense crown stand as a quiet witness to the long history of Xixi Wetland. Visitors almost always stop here for a photograph — the tree's silhouette is one of the park's most iconic images.

Nearby you'll also find a restored open-air opera stage. In the past, villagers in Xixi Wetland would hire opera troupes to perform here during festivals, and neighbours from surrounding villages would row their boats over to watch. That tradition has faded, but the stage has been preserved as a piece of Xixi's cultural memory.

Photo tip: Shentankou is one of the most photogenic spots in the park. From the boat, shoot the camphor trees and dawn redwoods lining both banks. On the platform in front of the old stage, use the waterway as your backdrop. For portraits, stand on the wooden boardwalk with the green canopy overhead — the result is fresh and striking.

Welcome to Hezhu Street — a re-created Jiangnan water-village commercial street inside the wetland, and one of the liveliest spots in the park.

As you can see, the street runs along the water, with whitewashed walls, grey-tiled rooftops, and flagstone paths lined with shops. You'll find traditional craft stores, Hangzhou street food, teahouses, and folk culture exhibition halls. Take your time strolling through, pick up a souvenir, or sit down with a cup of Longjing tea and let the unhurried atmosphere of an old Jiangnan marketplace wash over you.

The street's most recognizable landmark is the Hezhu Pagoda at the far end. It isn't very tall, but it's the highest point in this part of the park — climb to the top and you'll have a sweeping view over Xixi Wetland. In autumn especially, when endless stretches of silver-white reeds sway in every direction as far as the eye can see, the view is breathtaking.

What makes Hezhu Street special is its feel of everyday life. Compared to other parts of Xixi Wetland, this place has a warmer, more lived-in energy. You might hear a shopkeeper greeting customers in the local Hangzhou dialect, or see an elderly resident sitting by the river in the sun. There's a relaxed, natural rhythm here that's easy to settle into.

Photo tip: Hezhu Street is great for Jiangnan streetscape photography. Try a longer focal length to compress the depth of the lane, or use a shop sign and a red lantern as a foreground element for a shot full of life. The Hezhu Pagoda also makes a strong subject on its own.

Welcome to Fudi Causeway — one of the most important ecological scenic routes in Xixi Wetland, stretching roughly 2.3 kilometres and connecting Zhoujiacun with Hezhu Street and other areas of the park.

Look at the trees and flowers lining both sides of the path. In spring, there are cherry blossoms, peach blossoms, and rapeseed flowers; in summer, lotus and crape myrtle; in autumn, sweet osmanthus and chrysanthemums; and in winter, while the blooms are fewer, the dawn redwoods and reeds take on a beauty of their own. Whenever you visit, Fudi Causeway always has something to offer.

Beyond being a scenic walkway, Fudi is also an ecological corridor for the wetland. It divides the park into different functional zones while giving visitors a path to walk or cycle right through the heart of the ecosystem. On the causeway you'll regularly spot egrets, wild ducks, and common moorhens — and if you're lucky, you might glimpse something rarer.

Along the way you'll pass wooden boardwalks, viewing platforms, and rest pavilions. The best way to enjoy Fudi is to slow down — walk a stretch, stop, look around, listen to the birdsong, and breathe in whatever's in bloom. That unhurried pace is the ideal way to experience Xixi Wetland.

Photo tip: Fudi Causeway is excellent for both landscape and portrait photography. The spring flower banks, the summer lotus ponds, and the autumn reed beds are all compelling subjects. For portraits, position your subject among the flowers or within the tree line and use a wide aperture to blur the background into soft colour.

Welcome to Gaozhuang — also known as Xixi Villa, and one of the most celebrated Qing dynasty garden sites in Xixi Wetland.

The original owner of Gaozhuang was Gao Shiqi, a distinguished writer and official of the Qing dynasty. He once served at the court of the Kangxi Emperor, and after returning to Hangzhou he built this villa here in the wetland. Set right at the water's edge, the estate features pavilions, towers, rockeries, and ornamental ponds arranged with considerable elegance — combining the refinement of a Jiangnan garden with the natural grace of a wetland waterscape.

Look at the way the buildings are laid out. The main hall, study, bedchambers, garden, and pond each have a clear purpose, yet every space flows naturally into the next. Standing in one of the garden's pavilions, you can look straight out over the waterways and reed beds beyond, as though the whole of Xixi Wetland were the villa's own back garden.

What makes Gaozhuang truly distinctive is how completely it integrates with its natural surroundings. Most classical Chinese gardens create their landscapes artificially, but Gaozhuang was designed to work with the natural waterways of Xixi Wetland, weaving built structures and wild scenery into a seamless whole. This sense of "garden inside water, water inside garden" is rare even among Jiangnan gardens.

Photo tip: Gaozhuang's architecture and garden scenery are very photogenic. Focus on the pavilions, rockeries, ornamental ponds, and covered walkways to bring out the layered depth of a Jiangnan garden. Wearing a hanfu or qipao here creates an especially evocative classical atmosphere.

Welcome to Meizhu Villa — a classical garden within Xixi Wetland themed around plum blossoms and bamboo.

The villa's name comes from the groves of plum trees and bamboo that have grown here throughout its long history. Each year in early spring, the plum blossoms burst into colour, releasing a quiet, drifting fragrance that wraps the entire villa in a haze of pink and white. Then summer arrives, and the bamboo groves close in — cool, deep, and stirred by a gentle breeze. Classical scholars had a saying: "Plum blossoms announce spring; bamboo keeps you cool in summer." This garden brings both of those beloved plants together in one place.

In traditional Chinese culture, the plum blossom stands for resilience and integrity, while bamboo represents uprightness and humility — both long-time favourites of scholars and painters. Many classical poets drew inspiration from them: the Song dynasty poet Lin Bu wrote the famous lines, "Sparse shadows slant across the shallows; a hidden fragrance drifts in the dusk moonlight" — a poem written entirely in praise of the plum blossom.

The architecture of Meizhu Villa is quietly elegant, with open halls, pavilions, covered walkways, and little bridges over flowing water. Come and sit with a pot of tea, admire the plum trees, or simply listen to the wind move through the bamboo — a rare taste of the refined, contemplative life prized by classical Chinese scholars.

Photo tip: The plum blossom season is when the villa looks its best. Use a longer focal length to capture close-up details of the blossoms and the layered depth of the branches. For the bamboo groves, look for shots that play with dappled light and shadow — early morning or late afternoon sidelight brings out the texture of the leaves beautifully.

Welcome to Hong Garden — the cultural heart of Xixi Wetland's story of the Hong family of Wuchang, and one of the most important windows into the human history of this place.

The Hong family has lived here in Xixi Wetland since the Ming dynasty, and over the centuries they became one of Hangzhou's most distinguished cultural clans. The family produced officials, scholars, and merchants across many generations. What the Hongs valued most, above all else, was the passing on of good family values. They believed that what sustains a family through the generations is not wealth, but strong moral character and a commitment to education.

Hong Garden is home to the Hong Ancestral Hall and the Qiantang Notable Families Museum. The ancestral hall, where the family honours its ancestors, is a stately and dignified structure; the museum uses photographs, written records, and reconstructed scenes to trace hundreds of years of Hong family history and their deep ties to Xixi Wetland.

Spending time here gives you a feel for the living tradition of Chinese clan culture. Family and lineage run deep in Chinese society, and the exhibition in Hong Garden makes that plain. Through these displays, you'll also discover that Xixi Wetland is far more than a natural landscape — it is a place layered with family memory and cultural story.

Photo tip: Hong Garden's architecture is a fine example of the Jiangnan ancestral hall style — whitewashed walls, dark-tiled rooftops, and intricately carved wooden doors and window panels. Focus on the main gate, the courtyard, and the covered walkways to capture the symmetry and historical weight of the buildings.

Welcome to Xixi Water Street — a leisure district threaded through with waterways, and one of the best examples of how modern tourism and the wetland's ancient culture have come together here.

As you can see, Xixi Water Street has preserved the architectural character of a traditional water village, with waterways running right through the heart of the street and whitewashed, grey-tiled buildings lining both banks. Boats drift slowly through, the boatman working a single oar at the stern while passengers sit and watch the scene unfold — it feels, for a moment, as though you've been transported back to the Jiangnan of centuries past.

But unlike a purely traditional street, Xixi Water Street has woven in contemporary elements. There are distinctive restaurants, cafes, creative shops, and guesthouse experiences. You can sit down to a proper Hangzhou meal, pick up a wetland-inspired piece of design, or spend a night in a waterside guesthouse and fall asleep listening to the water.

What makes Xixi Water Street so compelling is the way it has been brought to life. Rather than simply preserving the old buildings as museum pieces, the street lets them keep serving a purpose — as places where people eat, work, and spend time. This approach protects cultural heritage while giving visitors a genuine experience of water-village life, not just a view of it.

Photo tip: Xixi Water Street is at its best in the evening. As dusk falls, the lights on both banks come on, their reflections shimmering in the water — the atmosphere is magical. During the day, look for shots of boats gliding through the street with the busy shopfronts stretching behind them.

Welcome to Wu Jiawan — the final stop on our Xixi Wetland tour today.

Wu Jiawan sits in the western part of Xixi Wetland and is one of the best-preserved ancient wetland village sites in the park. Compared to Hezhu Street and Xixi Water Street earlier in the tour, Wu Jiawan feels much more raw and unpolished — fewer visitors come this way, and the landscape shows it. An intricate web of waterways, old bridges, aged trees, and scattered traditional dwellings preserves the most authentic face of Xixi's agricultural heritage.

Here at Wu Jiawan you can see traditional Jiangnan farmhouses, grain-drying grounds, vegetable plots, and orchards. Depending on the season, you may also be able to take part in harvesting activities — picking water chestnuts, picking persimmons, or digging lotus roots from the mud. These hands-on experiences give visitors a genuine connection to the land and a taste of the unhurried rhythms of Jiangnan water-country life.

The greatest charm of Wu Jiawan is its stillness. No busy commercial streets, no crowds — just birdsong, the hum of insects, and the sound of wind moving through the reeds. Walking here, you feel time itself slowing down.

That brings us to the end of today's tour of Xixi National Wetland Park. From Zhoujiacun Entrance all the way to Wu Jiawan, we've drifted through a web of waterways by boat, wandered through streets with centuries of character, and climbed the Hezhu Pagoda to look out over the whole wetland. We hope the image of Xixi — "every bend of the stream, a veil of mist" — stays with you, and that you carry away a sense of what it feels like when people and nature live well together. Thank you for joining us today, and safe travels ahead!