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Hangzhou lies nestled in a delta of waterways and mountains just south of Shanghai. It’s a beautiful city of greenery and water, defined by its relationship with the nature that surrounds it. And at less than two hours from Hong Kong, it’s the ideal destination for a gentle, refined escape from the SAR.
 
Be Inspired by the West Lake
Hangzhou’s West Lake is legendary in China: its beauty has inspired art and literature ever since humans first arrived in the area. A walk down the Baidi and Sudi causeways which partition the lake should deliver enough of a feel for this charming place—willows brush the still waters as human-powered boats waft silently across the surface. 
 

 
The causeways themselves are a lot busier: the West Lake is huge for domestic tourism, so you’ll want to avoid visiting on the weekends. Electric tourist vehicles run up and down the causeways, but it’s better to either walk or hire a bike for a gentle ride. Alternatively you can pay RMB160 to be rowed around the lake for an hour, far from anyone else.
 

 
Gorge Yourself on a Snack Street
Hefang Street has been done up to look like a Ye Olde Chinese Street, with all of its associated touristy claptrap. What’s more interesting is the surrounding area: in particular the Zhongshan Nanlu Snack Street, a long row of street food stalls which comes alive in the evenings. 
 

 
Bounce from stall to stall for a taste of snacks from all over China: Pan-fried Shanghainese buns bursting with scalding hot juices; sesame-studded naan from Xinjiang; Shaanxi cold noodles with their refreshing burst of mala spice; thin fried cakes stuffed with vegetables and nuts; bao stuffed full of red-braised pork, chopped up to order; whole beggar’s chicken, wrapped in lotus leaves and clay and cooked in coals; and of course, that Hangzhou specialty—stinky tofu. It’s cheap, clean, delicious and brilliant fun.
 

 
Do Some Tea Traveling
Aside from the West Lake, Hangzhou is famous for its tea: namely the Longjing, or “Dragon Well,” variety. This imperial green tea is calming, refined, and delicately pure: all that Hangzhou is, in a cup. To be considered true Longjing tea, the leaves must come from one of the several tea villages to the west of the lake itself. Visiting any one of them is absolutely worth your time, especially in the month-long prime picking season at the end of March—although there are also summer and autumn harvests.  
 

 
Tea bushes stretch out in long green lines across the hills. Broad hats bob down the rows as women pick only the leaves that are just the right length, before carrying their harvest home in wicker baskets. Wander down the alleys of one of the tea villages and you’ll be invited into the villagers’ houses to try the leaves they themselves have picked and roasted. Top-class Longjing tea is known as “Ming Qian” tea, and must be picked in the week before the Qing Ming festival. It’s fabulously expensive: wholesale prices average RMB7,000-8,000 per kilo, and in 2012 the tea hit a record price of RMB360,000 per kilo at auction, which is more expensive than gold. But as the harvest goes on prices drop, and you’ll be able to pick up some amazing quality tea straight from the farmer, for a lot less than that.
 

 
Go Temple-Hopping
Hangzhou is home to the Feiliai Feng Scenic Area, a gorgeous expanse of greenery with seven temples set into the Wulin Mountains. Lingyin Temple, or the “Temple of the Soul’s Retreat,” was established in 326AD and is one of the oldest and most important Buddhist temples in China. It’s a large and impressive complex with enormous statues and crowds to match. Make sure to check out the Feilai Feng grottoes, home to some 330 stone Buddha carvings hewn into the limestone rock over the course of 400 years. The story goes that when the Red Guard arrived to smash the Buddhas in the Cultural Revolution, students covered the statues with Mao posters until Zhou Enlai enforced his protection. 
 

 
Each of the temples has its own unique feeling, and visiting them all would take more than a day. But do make time for the serene, beautiful Yongfu Temple, nestled high up the hill. On a clear day you can see right through to the West Lake. A ticket to the scenic area is RMB45; Lingyin temple itself is an extra RMB30. 
 


 
Where to Stay
The Amanfayun resort sits in a quiet, gorgeous valley to the west of Hangzhou. It’s no standard hotel: the whole resort is actually a converted village, based around a single path and stream running through the entire complex, dotted by 100-year-old buildings which have been turned into villas. The location is ideal for temple-and tea-seeking: it’s in the middle of the Longjing tea villages, and at one end of the village path is Lingyin Temple, while at the other end lies the Hangzhou Buddhist Academy. Monks at the academy use the cobbled path through the village as a shortcut, and during your stay you’ll find yourself exchanging nods with gray- and mustard-clad monks on their daily commute. It’s unbelievably peaceful, and inescapably beautiful. Rates start at RMB4,500 + 15 percent.
 
22 Fayun Lane, West Lake St., West Lake Scenic Area, Hangzhou, (+86) 571-8732-9999, www.amanresorts.com.
 

 

Photos: Amanresorts
 
Getting there

 
Hong Kong Airlines flies quickly and comfortably to Hangzhou daily. Prices start at around $1,900 return.
 
3151-1888, www.hongkongairlines.com.

 


Tea and Beauty in Hangzhou

Water, tea and beauty everywhere: Adam White visits Hangzhou.

Be Inspired by the West Lake

Tea and Beauty in Hangzhou

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Water, tea and beauty everywhere: Adam White visits Hangzhou.

Be Inspired by the West Lake

Water, tea and beauty everywhere: Adam White visits Hangzhou.