China Footnotes — Hangzhou (杭州): 10 places for a first visit
Walk around West Lake at sunrise, drink Longjing tea where it grows, and understand why China has called this place heaven for centuries.
Data version 3f413bec8e5a, generated 2026-10-08T20:57:50.684Z.
How to use this file
- Read every Hangzhou place in full: https://chinafootnotes.com/hangzhou/llms-full.txt
- Read one place: https://chinafootnotes.com/places/{id}.md
- JSON: https://chinafootnotes.com/api/places?city=hangzhou · https://chinafootnotes.com/api/cities/hangzhou
- Before you go (visa, paying, apps, internet, booking ahead): https://chinafootnotes.com/before-you-go.md
- The whole guide, all cities: https://chinafootnotes.com/llms.txt
Key figures
- Population: 12.7 million (2025)
Weather by month
- Jan: 8.6 °C / 2.2 °C, about 9.8 rain days
- Feb: 11.1 °C / 4 °C, about 9.2 rain days
- Mar: 15.9 °C / 7.6 °C, about 11.9 rain days
- Apr: 22.1 °C / 13 °C, about 10.4 rain days
- May: 26.9 °C / 18 °C, about 10.2 rain days
- Jun: 29.2 °C / 21.8 °C, about 12.8 rain days
- Jul: 34 °C / 25.6 °C, about 9.3 rain days
- Aug: 33.4 °C / 25.4 °C, about 10.9 rain days
- Sep: 28.7 °C / 21.4 °C, about 8.3 rain days
- Oct: 23.6 °C / 15.8 °C, about 5.9 rain days
- Nov: 17.7 °C / 10 °C, about 8.1 rain days
- Dec: 11.3 °C / 4.3 °C, about 7 rain days
Source: WMO, distributed by NOAA NCEI
Book before you go
- Lingyin Temple and Feilai Peak: Free timed booking · opens 7 days ahead at 08:00
- Zhejiang Provincial Museum: Chinese ID: no booking · Passport: book online first
Around West Lake
- Hefang Street (河坊街): Open neighbourhood. A restored Southern Song-style street of old pharmacies, snack stalls and lanterns.
- West Lake (西湖): Park. A free, always-open lakeshore of causeways, bridges, boats and a nightly fountain.
- Leifeng Pagoda (雷峰塔): Attraction. A rebuilt lakeside pagoda over excavated ruins, with a lift to the top-floor deck.
- Zhejiang Provincial Museum (浙江省博物馆): Museum. The provincial museum's old Gushan campus on West Lake, free with a courtyard library.
- Yue Fei Temple (岳王庙): Temple. The shrine and tomb of the Song general Yue Fei, a short solemn visit beside West Lake.
Lingyin & the tea hills
- Lingyin Temple and Feilai Peak (灵隐寺·飞来峰): Temple. A 1,700-year-old Chan temple beside a cliff of carved Buddhas; free, but book a slot.
- Longjing Tea Village (龙井村): Open neighbourhood. The village where West Lake Longjing tea grows: free terraces, tea houses and a spring.
- China National Tea Museum (中国茶叶博物馆): Museum. A free national tea museum set among Longjing tea fields and a Jiangnan garden.
Canal & Xixi
- Grand Canal and Gongchen Bridge (大运河拱宸桥): Open neighbourhood. The canal's southern end: a Ming stone bridge, craft museums and old lanes.
- Xixi National Wetland Park (西溪国家湿地公园): Park. A big city wetland of reed lanes and boat routes, half free and half ticketed.