A short excursion on weekend is surely an interesting and fun experience. When you are visiting Shanghai and want to go outside the city on weekend then Suzhou could be the best option. Suzhou which also can be dubbed as the Venice of the East and has become one famous garden city is located nearby Shanghai. So, what are you waiting for?

From Shanghai to Suzhou Excursion
Train to Suzhou

Suzhou can be reached from Shanghai by train, public long distance bus, and private car. Take the bullet train is the best option for tourists. There are frequent trains (approx. 40 min. with 26RMB-31RMB from the Shanghai Railway Station), with the most popular trains for day-trippers being the D196, which leaves Shanghai at 7:56am and arrives at 8:32am; and the D232, which departs at 8:26am and arrives at 9:02am. There are many return trains to Shanghai in the afternoon, including no. D5435 (departs 5:54pm, arrives 6:38pm).

How to Spend Weekend in Suzhou
Zhouzhuang Water Town

Tourist attractions and historic sites that you can't miss in Suzhou are Humble Administrator's Garden, Lingering Garden and Zhouzhuang Ancient Watertown. Suzhou is known for its Jiangnan-style gardens dating back to as far as the sixth century. The Humble Administrator's Garden is the largest garden in Suzhou. It was built in the Ming Dynasty for a former government worker and poet, Wang Xianchen and covering a total area nearly 52,000 square meters.
Lingering Garden is tagged one of the four best classical gardens in China, together with Humble Administrator's Garden, the Summer Palace in Beijing and the Summer Resort in Chengde. It is one of the masterpieces for the layout of Chinese classical garden. The garden hosts occasional free outdoor opera performances that take place in the garden courtyard during admission hours.

At last but not least, a trip to Zhouzhuang Ancient Watertown. The canals are the specialty of Suzhou and the reason for its being known as "The Venice of the East." The town has a history of over 900 years and most of residencies and houses in the town were built in Ming (1368-1644) or Qing Dynasties (1644-1911). Today, visitors can still rent a boat and wandering the old canal, admiring its architectural layouts of the classical water town. A short trip to Zhouzhuang Watertown can be enjoyed with join our 1 day Shanghai side trip. Leave behind its hustling bustling Shanghai and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of Suzhou.

Speak of Beijing, there is a lot things to see in this capital of China, one of them are those famous historical sites. Apparently beside Great Wall, which attractions are worth it for visit on weekdays in Beijing? Here, we would like to introduce it to you.

1. Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City
Portrait of Chairman Mao on the Gate of Tiananmen Square

Located in the center of the city, Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City are situated close from each other. Tiananmen Square is the largest public square on earth, which at past it was a part of Forbidden City, an ancient imperial palace of Ming and Qing Dynasty. Entering Forbidden City from the square, visitors will see the identical Mao Zedong big portrait on the Tiananmen Gate.
Inside Forbidden City, visitors could roam around the Outer and Inner Court. The Outer Court was used for ceremonial purposes. Meanwhile, the Inner Court was the residence of the Emperor and his family's, and was used for day-to-day affairs of state. Most of the buildings were built with wood, roofed with yellow glazed tiles and built on blue-and-white stone foundations, looking solemn and excellent.

2. Summer Palace
Imperial Garden - Summer Palace

Summer Palace is the largest and most well-preserved royal park in China. It was used as a summer retreat of China's ancient Qing emperors. As soon as Beijing became too hot, the emperor, his empress, concubines and entire retinue all traveled to the Summer Palace located in the northwestern suburbs of Beijing. Covering an area of 290 hectares, the garden consists primarily of the Wanshoushan (Longevity Hill) and Kunming Lake. There houses more 30 classical structures around the lake or scattering on the hill. It is the place where visitors could have a relaxing trip as well as see some historical relics on surroundings.

3. Temple of Heaven
Temple of Heaven

Temple of Heaven was the place where the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshipped heaven and prayed for good harvests. It is one of the sacrificial altars located in Beijing and also become the most popular one. Regarded as one of the greatest architectural structures in the world, Temple of Heaven offers ancient sacred and rich architecture buildings with its representative history behind.

With this 1 day bus tour trip, visitors could have a short organized trip to those 3 historical landmarks. Because of their popularity, visiting those 3 places on weekend will be lots more exhausting. Lots of locals and other group tours will come to those popular tourist attractions. So, if you do have time on weekdays, it is really recommended for everyone to coming by that time. Avoid the crowd on weekend and learn something about history and culture of China.

There may be no place like home for the holidays, but the truth is that December is traditionally one of the best times for a special family vacation. No matter how you celebrate the holidays, there is always something to do and places to go. Celebrate Christmas and New Year's Eve in Beijing could be interesting, lots of historical places to go as well as winter activities that everyone could do. Here some tips about plenty activities to do in Beijing.

1. Go Skiing
Beijing not only boasts lots of historical and cultural relics, it is also an ideal place for visitors spend their winter vacation. Lots of advanced ski resorts located around the city. There are Nanshan Ski Resort, International Huabei Ski Resort, Badaling Ski Resort, etc. Bring your family there for having safe, fun and memorable ski experience during your vacation in Beijing.

2. Great Wall Hiking
No matter how cold it is in Beijing, all the four (Badaling, Mutianyu, Juyongguan and Jinshanling) sections of the Great Wall are open to the public. Hiking Great Wall in winter is a huge treat since on the Wall there less visitors, virtually have the whole section to our selves. But because Great Wall has located in the suburb nearby Beijing then the weather should be colder than downtown. Wear for winter coat with layers and find different side of Great Wall in winter. Willing to see Great Wall covers by snow? There is also a chance in Beijing winter. In fact, winter is a great time to visit Beijing.

Hiking Great Wall

3. Fun Park Activities
Go outside, play and enjoy winter atmosphere in Beijing. When the winter comes, all of the lakes in the parks will freeze over, so there are many fun activities on the lakes, including ice skating. Beijing's many lakes include Houhai Lake offers great ice skating arena during the winter. Visitors can purchase skate rentals or metal skating chairs that can be pushed around with ski poles.

Fun Park Activities on Houhai Lake

4. Excursion to Ice Lantern Festival in Long Qing Gorge
Located not far from Beijing, Long Qing Gorge annually offers its popular Ice Lantern Festival. In winter, Long Qing Gorge is famed for its outdoor gallery of massive blocks of ice carved into animals and figures of all shapes and sizes. The festival starts from mid January till mid of February displays over 400 ice sculptures made by both Chinese and foreign artists.