Famed Huangshan & Classical Gardens

Taking China tours from Paris to Shanghai is quite convenient as there are five direct international flights connecting these two famous metropolises. The flights are operated by three airline companies respectively. Two flights MU554 1325/0700+1 and MU570 2120/1440+1 are from China Eastern Airlines. Flights AF112 1400/0710+1 and AF116 2325/1635+1 are from Air France. CA834 1215/0535+1 from Air China is a good alternative but it shows that this flight is available every other day during weekday. All the flights are expected to last between 11 and 11.5 hours.

As the second biggest city in Europe, Paris is an important gateway not only for people from Marseilles, Lyons, Toulouse or Nice of France but also for travelers who intend to start China tour from some countries of the Western Europe.

When traveling to foreign countries, the first consideration should be visa application. Beside the embassy of PRC in Paris, you can also apply for visa at Chinese consulates in Marseille, Strasbourg, Lyons and Saint-Denis. Do not forget to bring your passport, application form and recent color photo before going to the embassy. Should you need more relevant information about embassy of the PRC in France, please click here.

Upon arrival, please find the way to your hotel. We recommend the Golden River-view Hotel Shanghai, which is close to Shanghai Railway Station and Hanzhong Road Subway Station of line 1, line 12, and line 13.

From Pudong Airport, you can take subway line 2 to People's Square, and change to line 1 to Hanzhong Road; use Exit 4 and walk westwards to enter Hengfeng Road, and then walk northwards along the road for 150 yards, you will find the hotel on your left side. It should take around one hour and the ticket fare costs CNY7 per person. You should notice that when you take subway line 2 from the airport, you need to get off at Guanglan Road Station and take another train on the opposite platform to continue the trip to People's Square. Alternatively, you can take a taxi from Pudong Airport to the hotel directly, and the fare would be around CNY150.

Accommodation suggestion: Golden River-view Hotel Shanghai

Start your self-guided China tour from Paris France today. You will have a whole day exploring Shanghai City on your own and here is our suggestion. After breakfast, please take subway line 1 from Hanzhong Road to People's Square and leave from Exit 1. Walk through the square to the Shanghai Museum, where you can see precious cultural relics. There are many Chinese and western restaurants near People's Square. You can have lunch there before going to the next attraction of this China backpacking route.

From the People's Square, please take subway line 2 for two stops to Jing'an Temple; leave from Exit 5 and you will see Jing'an Temple on the opposite side of the road. As one of the oldest temples in Shanghai, it may offer you a peaceful visiting experience. Then, please take subway line 7 to Changshu Road and change to line 1 to South Huangpi Road; get out from either Exit 1 or 2 to visit the Former French Concession. You can enjoy old houses, parks, and mansions of both European and Chinese styles nearby by following the recommended hiking route: Xin Tian Di - Xingye Road - Nanchang Road - Yandang Road - Fuxing Park - Gaolan Road - Former Residence of Sun Yat-sen, at No.7 of Xiangshan Road - Former Residence of Zhou Enlai, at No.73 of Si'nan Road - Middle Fuxing Road - Ruijin Hotel, at No.118 of Second Ruijin Road - Middle Fuxing Road - Jinjiang Hotel and Okura Garden Hotel Shanghai at South Maoming Road - St. Mary's Church, at No.55 of Xinle Road - North Xiangyang Road - Shanghai Museum of Arts and Crafts, at No.79 of Fenyang Road - Taiyuan Guesthouse, at No.160 of Taiyuan Road - Yongjia Road - South Wulumuqi Road - Hengshan Road. This route should take 4 - 6 hours on foot. You can omit some stops according to your schedule.

After that, take subway line 1 from Hengshan Road Station to Hanzhong Road and walk back to your hotel.

Our advice for today's Shanghai tours from Paris is to visit Zhujiajiao Ancient Town and then take an overnight soft sleeper train to Huangshan.

After breakfast, check out the hotel but leave your luggage at the reception desk. In front of the hotel, you can take the bus No. 927 to Jing'an Temple. Getting off the bus, you should keep walking south along Huashan Road for 250 yards, and turn west to West Yan'an Road for another 80 yards, you will get to the Middle Yan'an Road Huashan Road bus stop, where you can take the bus Huzhu Special Line to Zhujiajiao directly. You will arrive at Zhujiajiao Water Town in around 2 hours and the bus ticket costs CNY9 per person. Spend half of the day visiting the old town and enjoying local food. On your way back, you can take Huzhu Special Line to Middle Yan'an Road Tongren Road. Then, go across the road to take subway line 2 at Jing'an Temple Station and get off at East Nanjing Road Station. Use Exit 7 and walk eastwards for 500 yards to the Bund. You can have dinner in a restaurant on East Nanjing Road, which is a prosperous pedestrian street in Shanghai.

Don't forget to collect your luggage before heading for the railway station. From the East Nanjing Road, you can take subway line 2 and transfer to line 1 at People's Square. Get off at Hanzhong Road to fetch your luggage at the hotel. The whole route should take around 15 minutes. Then, take subway line 1 for one stop to Shanghai Railway Station. You can also walk northwards along Hengfeng Road for 660 yards to reach the railway station. You are recommended to take the overnight train K8418 to arrive in Huangshan in 11 hours. We suggest you book the ticket in advance with TravelChinaGuide and pick it up by yourself at the railway station.

Accommodation: Overnight soft sleeper train

You will arrive at Huangshan Railway Station early in the morning. We recommend you check in Huangshan Yi'an Junlai Hotel, which is within 20 minutes' walk from Tunxi Ancient Street. Upon arrival, get out of the railway station to reach Beihai Road. Walk eastwards for 200 yards to take bus no. 12 to Huangshan Bianjian Stop, and you will see the hotel on the western side of the road. Or, you can take a taxi straight to the hotel in around five minutes and the taxi fare is around CNY10. Check in the hotel and have a short rest, or leave your luggage at the hotel if it is too early for check-in.

For the rest of the day, you can visit Hongcun Village, a water town that is praised as a 'Painted Village'. To get there, you may take a taxi to Huangshan Bus Station at a cost of CNY10. There are special tourist buses to Hongcun Village, departing at 8:00, 9:00, 10:00 and 11:00 in the morning. You will arrive at the village after 1.5 hours' drive. You are suggested to stay there for half of the day viewing the picturesque water town. Then, take the same bus back to Huangshan Bus Station in the afternoon; hail a taxi back to the hotel upon arrival and have supper in a nearby restaurant.

Accommodation Suggestion: Huangshan Yi'an Junlai Hotel

We suggest you climb the Yellow Mountain this morning and spend the night in a hotel on the mountain so that you can enjoy the gorgeous sunrise the next day. Please get up early and pack necessities for one-night stay. As you are going to climb mountain today, we suggest you have a big breakfast in the hotel and take some snacks with you. Check out after breakfast but deposit heavy luggage at the hotel.

There are tourist buses to Yellow Mountain at the square in front of Huangshan Railway Station. You may take bus no. 12 to the railway station. The tourist bus departs every 10 minutes between 5:30 and 17:30, and the fare is CNY20 per person. You will arrive at the foot of the mountain in 70 minutes. Then, change to shuttle bus at Tourist Distribution Center for a 25 minutes' drive to Yungu Temple and the bus fare is CNY19. Upon arrival at Yungu Temple, spend 10 minutes taking the cable car from Yungu Station to White Goose Range and start the climbing.

We suggest you buy a map and follow this most popular route: Beginning-to-believe Peak - Black Tiger Pine - Beihai - Refreshment Terrance - Lion Peak - Beihai - Xihai - Paiyunlou Hotel - Paiyun Pavilion - Xihai Grand Canyon - Paiyun Pavilion - Red Cloud Peak - Paiyunlou Hotel. The whole trip takes about six hours. You are advised to stay at Paiyunlou Hotel, which is close to the Red Cloud Peak where you will enjoy stunning sunrise the next morning.

Accommodation Suggestion: Paiyunlou Hotel

In order to enjoy the beautiful sunrise, you'd better get up around 4:00 and climb to Red Cloud Peak. After viewing the sunrise, check out the hotel and follow the map to get to the Bright Summit Peak, Tianhai, Turtle Peak, Lotus Pavilion, Lotus Peak, and then Jade Screen Peak to take the cable car to go downhill. Take the tourist bus at the south gate of Yellow Mountain back to Huangshan Railway Station. Upon arrival, catch the bus no.12 at Railway Station Bus Stop to Ermalu and walk southwards to Tunxi Old Street to enjoy old Hui-style buildings and local food. Afterwards, take bus no. 18 at Yimalu (Binjiang Road) near the western end of the street to the hotel.

Take all your luggage to hop onto a taxi to the Railway Station for the overnight train K8420 to Suzhou. To relieve your fatigue in two days' mountain climbing, we suggest you choose the soft sleeper, as the compartments are usually clean and quiet and you will have a good sleep. You can purchase the ticket by yourself in advance or book through our website.

Accommodation: Overnight soft sleeper train

The train would arrive in Suzhou in the morning after 11 hours' journey. We recommend you check in the 3-star Gusu Hotel, which is very near to the famous Shiquan Street and Suzhou University. You can leave the station from the North Exit to take a taxi at the underground taxi stand to the hotel. The trip requires 25 minutes and costs about CNY20. Leave your heavy luggage at the hotel and start your independent exploration!

Suzhou City is famous for well-designed gardens, so we recommend the most famous Humble Administrator's Garden, Tiger Hill, and The Master of Nets Garden.

You can take a taxi to the Humble Administrator's Garden, one of the top four gardens in China, that requires around 20 minutes' drive and costs CNY15. The recommended visiting time is two hours. From the garden, please walk westwards for 350 yards to Lindun Road; go across the road and head south for 170 yards to Suzhou Museum Bus Stop to take tourist bus 1 or 2 to Tiger Hill. Upon arrival, walk northwards along Huqiu Road to the scenic area. You can finish the hiking of Tiger Hill in about one hour and then have lunch on the nearby Shantang Street. After lunch, please take a taxi to The Master of Nets Garden. You will arrive at the garden in around 40 minutes and the taxi fare should cost CNY35.

Feel hungry after a day's trip? Please leave from the northern gate of the garden and take a taxi to the famous pedestrian street, Guanqian Street. The prosperous street brims with shopping malls and restaurants. You can stroll along the road to enjoy local delicacies. After feasting your stomach, take a taxi back to your hotel with a fare of approximately CNY15.

Accommodation Suggestion: Gusu Hotel

Check out the hotel after breakfast, and take a taxi to Suzhou Railway Station for a high speed train to Hangzhou. There are dozens of trains to Hangzhou daily, but we suggest you leave from Suzhou before 10:00 so that you can reach Hangzhou East Railway Station by noon. Upon arrival, please find your way to the recommended Renhe Hotel, which is on the eastern bank of the West Lake and is five minutes' walk away from Longxiangqiao Station of subway line 1. You can take subway line 1 at East Railway Station for six stops to Longxiangqiao; leave from Exit C4 and walk westwards along Pinghai Road for 100 yards. Then, turn south into Dongpo Road for another 200 yards forward, you will find the hotel on the east side. Check in and have a good rest. There are many nice restaurants around the hotel; you can have lunch there and start your exploration in the city.

We suggest you visit the Six Harmonies Pagoda in the afternoon. You may take a taxi to the scenic area in 25 minutes with a charge of CNY25. At the top of the pagoda, you can have a full view of the rolling Qiantang River and the grand Qiantang River Bridge. After admiring scenes around Six Harmonies Pagoda, hire a taxi back to the hotel.

Accommodation Suggestion: Renhe Hotel

There is an old Chinese saying, 'Up above there is heaven; down below there are Suzhou and Hangzhou'. Hangzhou has long been well known for the picturesque scenery. We strongly recommend the West Lake and Lingyin Temple, where you will be treated with the most attractive views of the city.

After breakfast, please walk south along Dongpo Road for 100 yards to catch bus no. 7 at Hubin Station and get off at Lingyin Station. The bus trip takes about 30 minutes. Then, walk south to Lingzhu Road and head westwards to find the entrance to the temple. We suggest you spend 1.5 hours visiting Lingyin Temple and Peak Flown From Afar inside. Afterwards, still take bus no. 7 at Lingyin Station and alight at Yuemiao after four stops to find the northern end of Su Causeway. You may walk along the causeway to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the West Lake. There are restaurants at the southern end of the Su Causeway; you may have lunch in one of them. Then, continue appreciating the natural beauty of the West Lake by walking along the Nanshan Road; or, you can take a sightseeing ship from the nearby Flower Harbor Park Wharf for a brief cruise on the West Lake, and then stroll down Nanshan Road to view the surrounding scenes.

At night, cafés and tea houses near the lake are the best choices to relax from the busy day and today's backpacking tour ends here. You may take a taxi back to your hotel in around 20 minutes at a cost of CNY15.

Your memorable China tour from France is concluded today. Please take a taxi to Wulinmen Civil Aviation Mansion at a cost of CNY15 and change to airport shuttle bus to Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport for the flight back home.

The flight from Hangzhou to Paris can be transferred at Xian, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Beijing or Doha in Qatar. Hainan Airlines operates a flight HU7907 1940/0635+1 three or four times a week from Hangzhou to Paris with a stopover in Xian. This 17 hours' flight may appear to be your first choice to avoid rechecking the luggage. You will get back home today or tomorrow according to the different flight you are going to take. Hope you have enjoyed your China holiday tour!