Sha Xi Ancient Town

Sha Xi Ancient Town, known as the second Zhouzhuang in China, is a renowned historical and cultural town that has regained its former splendor. With its Jiangnan charm, the human landscape of ‘one river, two streets, three bridges, eight scenes, and one island’ is increasingly favored by tourists.

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Sha Xi Ancient Town is appraised as a historical and cultural town with its unique riverside architecture and the complete ancient town layout of ‘one river, two streets, three bridges, and one island’, making it a typical ribbon-like water town. The tour guide includes one river (referring to the Qipu River with a thousand-year history, running through the town area), two streets (referring to the ancient streets along the north and south banks of the old Qipu River, stretching for three miles), three bridges (referring to the Liji Bridge, Yixing Bridge, and An Bridge that span the old Qipu and connect the ancient streets on both banks), and one island (Olive Island).

Upon entering Sha Xi, one is greeted by the majestic archway, with ancient streets, alleys, bridges, and trees everywhere, and famous residences, gardens, and celebrities with illustrious reputations. In the former residence of Hu Xiaobang, a master of Chinese dance, the exquisite White Building has been freshly painted, and a new exhibition room has been added to the residence. The Gong’s Carved Flower Hall, which is considered one of the best, has been restored to its original appearance, with full halls of carved beams and painted rafters, figures and flowers in various shapes and forms, vividly lifelike. The Le Yin Garden, whose garden name was written by a generation of great Chinese painters, has rockeries, pavilions, corridors, small lakes, and fountains, all in place. Walking inside the garden, it feels like being in a painting.

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Walking along the three-mile ancient street, the unique bridge archways from the Ming and Qing dynasties satisfy the eyes of foreign tourists. The antique shops, freshly painted, are decorated with lanterns and colorful flags, with small yellow flags fluttering in the wind. New shops include lantern shops, cricket shops, antique shops, soup dumpling shops, crab shell yellow shops, and craft shops, offering dozens of specialty products from Sha Xi’s history.

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The newly restored Olive Island in Sha Xi is a unique artificial island, named for its shape, which is pointed at both ends and bulging in the middle. The island is 1350 meters long from east to west, covering an area of 13,500 square meters, with three ancient bridges from the Ming and Qing dynasties spanning between the island and the town. The eastern end of the island is the Zhang Family Garden. Three new bamboo pavilions and a waterside pavilion have been built on the island, with more than 10,000 plants including osmanthus, thunder bamboo, eight-angled golden dishes, peach leaf coral, gardenia, rhododendron, camellia, and book strap grass. Climbing onto the island surrounded by green trees and bamboo, one immediately feels refreshed and connected to nature.

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Opening hours are all year round, open all day. Sha Xi Ancient Town’s four museums operate from Monday to Sunday: 08:30-16:00.

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Preferential policies: Children: Children under 6 years old (inclusive) or under 1.4 meters (inclusive) in height with valid identification are admitted free of charge; Elderly: Elderly over 70 years old (inclusive) with valid identification are admitted free of charge; Children, students, and elderly: Minors aged 6 years old (exclusive) to 18 years old (inclusive), full-time university undergraduate students and below, and elderly aged 60 years old (inclusive) to 70 years old (exclusive) with valid identification are admitted at half price; Military personnel: Active military personnel and retired military cadres of the People’s Republic of China with valid identification are admitted free of charge; Disabled persons: Disabled persons and one accompanying person for severely disabled persons with valid identification are admitted free of charge; Journalists: Free admission with valid identification; Tour guides: Free admission with valid identification.

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Additional information: The above free and half-price groups only include admission to the four museums within the scenic area: Hongjing Past, Tooth Row, Tang Research Institute, and Literature and History Museum.

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