The Lion Grove Garden, together with the Humble Administrator’s Garden, Lingering Garden, and Dark Blue Waves Pavilion, are collectively known as the ‘Four Famous Gardens in Suzhou’. Although the Lion Grove Garden is small, its rockery group within the garden is very famous. These grotesque rocks resemble dancing lions. Moreover, the rockeries are connected like a maze. You can count stone lions and explore the stone maze to experience the fun of hide and seek. In the center of the garden are a pond and rockeries. There are famous peaks of grotesque rocks such as Lion Peak, Containing Sunshine Peak, and Spitting Moon Peak. There are also buildings such as True Delight Pavilion, Bamboo Pavilion, and Seeing Mountain Tower surrounding the pond. Ascending the Seeing Mountain Tower, you can enjoy the landscape within the garden. On the earth mound in the western part of the garden is the Plum Blossom Inquiry Pavilion. The tables, chairs, ceiling, and window patterns inside the pavilion are all in the shape of plum blossoms. In front of the pavilion, plum trees are planted all over and they are in full bloom in February every year. There is also a long corridor surrounding the garden. In the walls of the long corridor are inscribed calligraphy tablets of the four great masters of the Song Dynasty, Su Shi, Mi Fu, Huang Tingjian, and Cai Xiang, as well as the tablet inscription works of Wen Tianxiang’s ‘Plum Blossom Poem’ of the Southern Song Dynasty. The Lion Grove Garden was originally built in the Yuan Dynasty as the back garden of a Zen temple and later was purchased as a private residence. This garden was deeply loved by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. Whenever he made his six southern tours, he would definitely come here. He even said that there were a total of five hundred stone lions in the rockery group. To this day, there are still plaques such as ‘True Delight’ bestowed by Emperor Qianlong. He even imitated and built the Lion Grove Garden in the Old Summer Palace and Chengde Mountain Resort. Opening hours: From March 1st to October 31st, it is open from 07:30 to 17:30; from November 1st to February 28th, it is open from 07:30 to 17:00; on Tomb Sweeping Day, Labor Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and National Day, it is open from 07:30 to 18:00. Preferential policies: Children: Children under 6 years old (inclusive) or under 1.4 meters in height can enter for free with valid identification. Free. Minors from 6 years old (exclusive) to 18 years old (inclusive) enjoy half-price tickets. Half price. Seniors: Seniors over 70 years old (inclusive) can enter for free with valid identification. Free. Elderly people from 60 years old (inclusive) to 70 years old (exclusive) enjoy half-price tickets with valid identification. Half price. Students: Full-time undergraduate and below students can enjoy half-price tickets with valid identification. Half price. Disabled people: Disabled people and one accompanying person of severely disabled people can enter for free with valid identification. Free. Active-duty military personnel: Active-duty military personnel of the People’s Republic of China can enter for free with military ID cards, and retired military cadres can enter for free with retirement certificates. Free. Suzhou Tong • Zhuanzhuan Card users: After successful reservation on Ctrip APP, Suzhou Tong • Zhuanzhuan Card users can enter the garden with valid certificates for verification. Free. Preferential objects: Preferential objects with the ‘Preferential Certificate for Veterans of the People’s Republic of China’ and the ‘Preferential Certificate for Relatives of Martyrs, Servicemen Killed in Action, and Servicemen Died of Illnesses of the People’s Republic of China’ (excluding inner gardens, paid items within the garden and night tours) can enter for free. Medical personnel in Suzhou: Within seven days (from May 12th to 18th and from August 19th to 25th) starting from International Nurses Day on May 12th and Chinese Physician Day on August 19th every year, medical personnel in Suzhou can visit scenic spots for free.
Medical staff in Suzhou are invited to present their ‘Personal ID’ along with the ‘Suzhou Medical Staff Free Garden Card (Electronic Card)’ when visiting the scenic area. They can enter the garden without prior appointment and are exempt from the first admission fee. For free additional information: The information above is provided for reference only, and details are subject to the public notice at the scenic spot. Service facilities include a parking lot: **Lion Grove Garden Parking Lot** with a reference price of ¥10 per visit; located at 23 Yuanlin Road, Lion Grove, with a capacity of 31 spaces. Mobile phone charging: Charging power sockets are available at the scenic area’s visitor center. Luggage storage: Reference price is free. Guided tours: The scenic area offers self-service mobile phone audio guide services. Cost: ¥5 per use. Restrooms: There are multiple restrooms located near the northeast corner of Zhi Bai Xuan and the west side of Fan Ting, with clear signs indicating their locations. Convenience stores: There are several convenience stores located near the tea houses within the scenic area.
