Full day · Presidential summer retreat · Bamboo forests · Historic villas
Moganshan Mountain has been the summer retreat of choice for Shanghai's elite since the 1920s. Presidents, diplomats, and artists built villas among its bamboo forests. Today, explore these historic estates, hike through endless green bamboo groves, and breathe the cool mountain air — a perfect escape from Hangzhou's summer heat.
Part of the Tianmu Mountains, Mogan Shan is 60 km (37 mi) from Hangzhou and 200 km (124 mi) away from Shanghai (roughly a 3 hours drive). The village is now home to over 40 guesthouses, villas and hotels. Mogan Shan is an ideal place to catch some much-needed fresh air during weekend away from the city. Known for its cool temperatures during the region's scorching summers, it has long been the playground of the Shanghai elite. Moganshan retains a country lifestyle with a mix of local inns and old villas built early in the 20th century.
Pick you up at your hotel lobby in Hangzhou or the Hangzhou Train Station and drive to Moganshan with our guide and driver.(Takes around 1 hour for one way)
The Sword Pond(Jian Chi) Rightly billed as the main tourist attraction of Moganshan – it is after all the reason the place got its name – the Sword Pond is set in a beautiful gully, lined with green trees and imposing rocks, and well worth the descent from the road and climb back up again. In the off season it really does feel like a fairy glen. In the high season on the other hand, there are crowds of tourists and local touts offering you rides on sedan chairs etc. Do not let that put you off. The local administration bureau has done a remarkably good job of building walkways, wooden pagodas and viewing points. You can always find a quiet spot to enjoy the serene beauty of the place, you’ll just have to look for it a little harder sometimes.
Luhuadang Gongyuan (Reed Catkin Marsh Park) Why one had to lay out a park in the middle of such beautiful and natural surroundings, only a stuffy Victorian would know. But lay out a park they did, as if the only way to enjoy nature was to impose one’s own version on top of it. Reed Catkin Marsh Park leads up from the Administration Bureau Office Car Park (where all the sedan chair carriers hang out) up to the Baiyun Hotel. Where the foreigners stuck their gazebos, the new generation has put tiny pagodas. And sculptures are scattered among the small grassy clearings in the shrubbery. For all the manufactured greenery, it is actually quite a pleasant little park. At least there is no funfair in the middle of it.
Qingliang Ting You pass this pagoda on your way up the steep road from Yucun, just as you enter the village proper. So it’s a long hike by foot back down, unless you are staying at the Radisson’s Du Yue Sheng Villa, right beside it. Views down to the plain and across the hillside are spectacular, on clear days. On misty ones you could almost imagine, if you try really hard, that you are on the top of Huang Shan, thanks to the rocky cliffs.
Drive you back to Hangzhou in the afternoon and your tour ends. (During the tour, our guide will give you the recommendation for lunch)
* The itinerary is flexible and can be customized based on your interests, pace, and arrival/departure times.
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