lonelyplanet

Dear forum,

I will be spending a few days at a conference in Suzhou in mid September. Before or after the conference, I am planning to spend a few days in Shanghai. I would also like to spend 2-3 days at another location near Shanghai. For these days, i am trying to decide between visiting Hangzhou and the West Lake or Monganshan.

Does anyone have a recommendation between these two places? And, for either Hangzhou or Monganshan, do you have any recommended hotels/inns?

Thank you!!

Shanghainese

Depends on what you are looking for, Hangzhou is the honeymoon capital of China, beautiful with lots to do/see/eat, the West Lake is in the centre of the city. Moganshan (2 n's) is a small mountain resort, aside from moderate hiking, you relax and stare at the stars.

While in Suzhou, you should do a day trip to the watertown Tongli 45 minutes away.

dgunbug

We loved the walk around the lake in hangzhou as well as the spectacular show on the lake which should not be missed. Can't compare as we did not get to monganshan.

lonelyplanet

Dear Shanghainese & dgunbug,

Thank you so much for the quick replies and advice. It sounds like Hangzhou is perhaps the better place for us. And I will definitely look into Tongli for something to do while we are in Suzhou.

In Hangzhou, we are considering staying at Tea Boutique Hotel. It seems pretty close to the lake. Anyone stayed there and care to share some thoughts? Or have any favorite hotels? Is there a particular part of the lake that is better to stay than others?

Thank you all for taking the time to answer!

Shanghainese

dgunbug is right, don't forget the show http://www.hzyxxh.com/en/

The Tea Boutique if fine unless you have points and a budget for luxe hotels.

anniemackie

Dear Lonely,

Are you back? I am wondering what you thought of Hangzhou and the Tea Boutique Hotel. Hope it was fantastic!

-Annie