Hangzhou: Seriously Shrinks Your Travel Joy 😢 (A 'Don't Do It' Post)

[Kelley Balistreri]

Hello everyone! I spent a full 8 days and 7 nights in Hangzhou, covering most of the famous sites. Let me share my overall impressions with you.

• Regarding the scenery:

  • If you’re coming from North China, or places like Xinjiang or Tibet where they are more vast and dry, Hangzhou will definitely wow you! You’ll experience a totally different Southern water town vibe. The “painted with light touch or heavy makeup still charming” (a poem describing how beautiful West Lake looks, like a beauty being properly made up, it looks beautiful either way) will feel special!
  • ‍️ But if you’re from other parts of Southern China, like Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Fujian or even the beautiful Yunnan-Guizhou-Sichuan area (most of these regions lie south of the Qin-Ling-Huai River geographic boundary with a similar climate and vegetation to Hangzhou), there might be a slight disappointment ! The scenery here is good but won’t make you shout “wow” outright. It may not beat some lesser-known mountains and streams near your hometown. It’s a calm beauty, more suitable for locals who take weekend strolls around the park, rather than dedicated visitors just coming for stunning views.

• Speaking of cultural experience:

  • For friends from Northern China, you will find that people in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong areas are very enthusiastic about building and visiting temples, Daoist shrines, and other religious sites. In fact, the incense smoke here is quite thick. Friends from other parts of South China might feel quite familiar with this atmosphere.
  • 🤭 People from the North might sense a more reserved nature in people from the South, unlike their own flamboyance. But they might discover something familiar. For instance, people in Sichuan notice the ladies in Hangzhou (“Auntie,” pronounced kind of like Niang Niang) who seem idle but have refined and exquisite manners. While people in Hangzhou are different from Northern ladies who are enthusiastic strangers as soon as they meet, they are indeed friendly. 🥰🥰

• In terms of food, oh boy, hard to put into words:

  • ️友情提示：小心“甜蜜”的杭帮菜！️
    • I genuinely did not expect that Hangzhou local dishes (Hangbang cuisine) could include sweet noodles in them! Sure, there are non-sweet dishes, but frankly, they’re not that tasty either!
    • I guess friends from Shanghai and the Jiangsu region may think it tastes nice and can still be acceptable. Perhaps Northeastern friend might even enjoy certain dishes.
    • ‍️ However, for others, Hangzhou is a “desert” filled with few foods worth savoring (meaning there aren’t many delicious things to eat).
    • 🤯 I originally didn’t believe this statement until by the third day in Hangzhou, my mind was all about KFC or McDonalds . No joke, if you want an experience where you greatly miss Chinese food even after leaving China, come here! The taste of this cuisine is particularly disappointing for friends from Yunnan-Guizhou-Sichuan, Hunan-Hubei, and Guangdong regions who enjoy heavy flavors...

• About the feeling of “Metropolis”:

  • If you want to experience towering modern cities and bustling international metropolises, I suggest you take a high-speed train to Shanghai!!!

• To sum up:

  • Don’t expect too much on a trip to Hangzhou. Spend around three days exploring the famous sites such as West Lake and Lingyin Temple, taste Hangzhou local cuisine (just try once)! That’s pretty much it.
  • Best Time to Travel: Ideally choose spring or fall weather where it’s warm and pleasant, early summer won’t be bad either. This way you can stroll around the West Lake comfortably, and at times when it gets hot, you could seek coolness near Tuhu Spring (a famous water source attraction) breathing fresh air.

• Future Travel Guide Teasers:

  • Hangzhou travel guide on famous attractions in the next article (Part II), food (if it counts) guide in Part III, accommodation guide in Part IV. A detailed individual introduction for each tourist site or restaurant would follow.
  • All my guides are suitable for ordinary people, including cheaper yet fun travel ways, whether you’re solo-traveling (Military-style tourism, means tight time schedule and fully-packed itinerary), traveling with loved ones, they all apply. Of course, if you’re well-off financially, experience here will be completely different！！

[Joseph Thompson]

Well, this is awkward for someone like me who's already booked tickets for next week.

[Dallas Durgan]

What I mean is, if it's your first time visiting, it's best to be mentally prepared and not set your expectations too high. Everyone has their own unique travel experiences and little surprises along the way, you know? And hey, since you're already committed to going, you might as well make the most of it and really soak in the unique charm of the city.