Shanghai: Shaoxing Lanting Garden & Calligraphy Town Trip

Step into the heart of classical Chinese culture on this private, easygoing day trip from Shanghai to the ancient city of Shaoxing, the home of the legendary calligrapher Wang Xizhi.

After a comfortable pickup from your Shanghai hotel in a private vehicle, you travel with your English-speaking guide to Shaoxing's Calligraphy Saint's Hometown (Shusheng Guli), a beautifully preserved water-town district where Wang Xizhi once lived. There is no over-commercialization here, just winding flagstone lanes, whitewashed walls, black-tiled roofs, and a gentle pace of old Shaoxing life. Your guide shares the famous tale of the Fan-Inscribing Bridge, where Wang Xizhi helped an old woman by writing on her fans, and you visit the serene Jiezhu Temple and the historic Jishan Academy.

For lunch you sample authentic Shaoxing flavors, included on this tour, from local rice-wine treats to savory regional specialties.

In the afternoon, your private car brings you to the tranquil Lanting (Orchid Pavilion) Garden, a masterpiece of Chinese landscape design surrounded by bamboo and flowing streams. You see the Goose Pond, the poetic Winding Stream where ancient scholars once held their elegant gatherings, the imposing stele pavilions with imperial inscriptions, and the Wang Xizhi Memorial and Calligraphy Hall. The atmosphere is calm and refined, perfect for slow exploration and photography.

Throughout the day your private guide and driver take care of everything, so you can simply enjoy the culture, gardens, and gentle walking at a comfortable, unhurried pace before returning to your Shanghai hotel in the evening.

A relaxed private day trip from Shanghai to historic Shaoxing. Wander the canal-side Calligraphy Saint's hometown and the elegant Lanting Garden, home of China's most famous calligrapher, Wang Xizhi.