From Shanghai to Hangzhou

Echoing people's question about how to get to Hangzhou from Shanghai, here are some suggestions I gave before:

Besides that, here is more general guidelines. Take it as strategy while others as tactics.

You should plan 2 days in Hangzhou - at least one night is Hangzhou if it is not a business trip.
Don't worry about rain. When it rains, the West Lake looks better. It looks like great even in a storm (like last Saturday night).
Staying in a hotel near the West Lake is important. Shangri-la is a good choice, but it is just too expensive - around 1000 RMB, which is about double the price of many other hotels. On average, hotel expense in Hangzhou is higher than other cities - even comparable with Shanghai.
Drive there is a good option. Rent a car in Hangzhou may be better - it is just great to drive in the city than walk.
Train is great, but do book round trip tickets so to save some time - the West Lake is near the train station, so it is better to wait at the lake side instead of the crowded railway station

Posted by Jian Shuo Wang at August 1, 2005 11:52 PM
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Comments

JS, please post some pictures you took in Hangzhou if you have. As a person grew up in Hangzhou I always like to see it's latest scene from any sources though it was not far from my last returning trip there :)

Posted by: Shane on August 2, 2005 3:34 AM

When I first came to China the ticketing agent accidentally booked me to Hangzhou instead of Guangzhou. I can read the characters now! Imagine my surprise when I ended up spending the night there.
I finally got to Guangzhou, married a wonderful Chinese woman and decided to return and stay as a professsor. work at a great school and maintain a blog of my experiences. Stop by!

Posted by: Lonnie Hodge (external link) on August 2, 2005 10:44 PM

wow, check the BBS,

"HACKED By KavaLye TURKISH"

Posted by: joel on August 3, 2005 2:15 PM

Ops. It is bad news. I didn't have time to maintain it and I believe a lot of data got lost. I may need to pay to get the back up rolling back.

Posted by: Jian Shuo Wang (external link) on August 3, 2005 11:31 PM

Hi,
I plan to go to Hangzhou by train from Shanghai. I will be staying in a hotel near the West Lake. Can you give more travels tips about Hangzhou like
1) Where can I get the train ticket in Shanghai?
2) Which train station should I depart from Shanghai and get off in Hangzhou? I realised there are so many train stations in the city?
3) And any good recommendation places for food and shopping?

Hope to hear from you soon.

Thanks a lot.

Posted by: DC on June 10, 2006 4:38 PM

DC, you can buy ticket at the train station. There are many trains and many seats, so I never have a problem to buy tickets there, even no problem if I buy it at last minutes. (I mean those none rush hours) Rush hours may be Friday night, or Sunday night.

You need to go to the Shanghai South Station - you can get there by Metro. On Metro line #1, there are two stations: Shanghai Railway Station and Shanghai South Railway Station. Use the one near Xinzhuang.

I always have hard time to recommend places for food and shopping. But for sightseeing, in Hangzhou, the number 1 rule is, stay near the West Lake, spend time on the West Lake, and the nearer the place to the West lake, the better.

Posted by: Jian Shuo Wang (external link) on June 10, 2006 4:58 PM

May I know what is the easiest way to get from Hangzhou to Shanghai Pudong airport?

Posted by: Po on September 3, 2006 5:57 AM

I am planning travel in shanghai, then take a train from Shanghai to Hangzhou at Christmas time, any problem to get a train ticket?

Posted by: LL on September 12, 2006 11:40 AM

hello, im planning to go shanghai and hangzhou next december.. the only problem is that i couldnt speak chinese and i am a muslim. im only english literate. can i survive there especially with the food???

thank you

Posted by: aki on September 20, 2006 12:56 PM

Hi. If going to Hangzhou from Shanghai for vacation, is it a good idea to get a package tour? Or is Hangzhou easy to go around that we should just go ourselves? How much would a tour to Hangzhou (from Shanghai) usually cost?

Hope someone can help.

Thank you.

Posted by: Michael on May 17, 2008 1:13 PM