Tongli Ancient Town
Centuries-old canal town near Suzhou, with stone bridges, Ming-Qing lane houses, and UNESCO-listed Tuisi Garden. A quiet day escape.
Written and signed by Ivy ChenWhat it actually is
Tongli (Tong li, a canal town in Wujiang District near Suzhou) is laced with stone bridges, Ming-Qing (Ming Dynasty 1368-1644 and Qing Dynasty 1644-1912) lane houses, and UNESCO-listed Tuisi Garden. Founded a thousand years ago, it is one of six great Jiangnan (region south of China's longest river, known for water towns) water towns.
Editor's take
Worth a half-day trip if you are already in Suzhou and want one calm water-town experience with a real UNESCO-classical garden included. Skip if you have only one day for Jiangnan water towns and are choosing between Tongli and Zhouzhuang. Best for slow travelers who like gardens and canal walks.
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Tuisi Garden - UNESCO classical pond garden
Tuisi Garden (Retreat and Reflection, named for the Chinese idiom 'daily reflection on one's deeds') was built 1885-1887 by Ren Lansheng, a retired Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) official. The 1.5-hectare garden is on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list as part of the Classical Gardens of Suzhou, and is the smallest of the Suzhou classical gardens on the tentative list but the most densely packed. A pond at the center feeds pavilions, covered walkways and rockeries arranged like a scroll painting in three dimensions.
Fifteen stone bridges over ten miles of canals
Tongli keeps more of its Song-Yuan (Song Dynasty 960-1279 and Yuan Dynasty 1271-1368) stone bridges than any of the other Jiangnan (region south of China's longest river, known for water towns) water towns - the famous 'Three Bridges' (Taiping, Jilin, Changqing) sit within a 100-meter loop in the town core, and another twelve scatter across the rest of the network. Most are one- or two-arch granite spans, walked flat by 800 years of sedan chairs and bicycles.
Ming-Qing lane-house living still happening
Unlike the more heavily commercialized Zhouzhuang or Wuzhen, Tongli still has working residents living in the original lane houses. Locals sit on their doorsteps with hand-fans in summer evenings, and washing still hangs above the canals. The narrow Chuanxin Lane (Chuan Xin Nong) - 1 meter wide between two rows of whitewashed walls - feels especially unfiltered compared to other Jiangnan (region south of China's longest river, known for water towns) water towns.
Less tour-coach pressure than nearby water towns
Tongli sits in Wujiang District, not on the main Shanghai-Suzhou-Zhouzhuang bus route. Day-trip coach arrivals are noticeably thinner than at Zhouzhuang - in the off-season, an afternoon loop around the Three Bridges can feel almost empty. This is the practical reason photographers and slow-travel writers rate it above the louder neighbors.
Wadi su song - a Tongli-only pastry
Wadi su song (literally 'sock-bottom crisp', a thin flaky pastry so named for its shape) is the one Tongli snack you cannot find in Zhouzhuang. Made fresh daily in small ovens behind Ming-Qing Street, it is buttery, layered, and dusted with toasted sesame. Try a still-warm piece from any of the family bakeries between the Three Bridges and the south gate.
Evening lanterns on the inner canal
After 6 PM in spring and summer, red lanterns strung along the inner canal turn the stone bridges into warm silhouettes against the dark water. Gondolas (wupeng chuan, boats with arched bamboo awnings) light small paper lamps and drift under the bridges. The scene is the visual Tongli is best known for - and the reason photographers time their visit for the golden-to-blue hour.
Wadi su song (sock-bottom crisp) - a Tongli-only pastry
Wadi su song, literally 'sock-bottom crisp', is a thin flaky pastry so named for its shape. It is the one Tongli snack you cannot find in Zhouzhuang. Made fresh daily in small ovens behind Ming-Qing Street, it is buttery, layered, and dusted with toasted sesame. Try a still-warm piece from any of the family bakeries between the Three Bridges and the south gate.