3 Days in Hangzhou: First-Timer Plan
Three days is the sweet spot for Hangzhou: enough time for West Lake, a tea village, Lingyin Temple, and the Grand Canal without padding. Much beyond this, most travelers do better pairing Hangzhou with Shanghai and Suzhou rather than stretching a Hangzhou-only week.
Before you fly: set up Alipay (link a foreign card while you still have a home phone number handy), install a VPN, since you can’t download one once you’re inside China, and book Lingyin Temple’s timed-entry reservation online.
Day 1: West Lake and a tea village
Morning
Walk the Su Causeway (built 1074 by the poet Su Dongpo) and the Bai Causeway (built roughly 250 years earlier, in 822, by the poet Bai Juyi) around West Lake. Entry to the lake, its causeways, and Solitary Hill is free. Add the boat to Three Pools Mirroring the Moon (~¥55-70), the island on the ¥1 note.
Afternoon
Head to the Longjing or Meijiawu tea villages, free to wander, with tastings ¥10-80 a cup. Longjing (Dragon Well) is grown in exactly these hills; “West Lake Longjing” is a protected designation, and the Mingqian grade, picked before early April, is the most prized.
Evening
Dinner at Louwailou (founded 1848, right by the lake), the one long-standing restaurant name worth booking for the local canon: Dongpo Pork, West Lake Vinegar Fish, Longjing Shrimp.
Day 2: Lingyin Temple and the lake’s ticketed sights
Morning
Spend the morning at Lingyin Temple and the Feilai Feng grottoes. Since 1 December 2025 both are free, but entry needs a real-name, timed reservation booked 1-7 days ahead through the temple’s mini-program in Alipay or WeChat, with daily caps, so book before you go. Lingyin was founded in 328 CE; Feilai Feng has 300+ rock carvings, including a well-known laughing Maitreya.
Afternoon
Back near the lake, visit Leifeng Pagoda (¥40, a 2002 reconstruction of the original that collapsed in 1924) or Yue Fei Temple (¥25, honoring the Song general). The Six Harmonies Pagoda (~¥20, plus ¥10 to climb) sits separately on the Qiantang River if you have time for both.
Evening
Catch the nightly “Impression West Lake” show (directed by Zhang Yimou, ¥360-960) if you booked ahead, or take a slower lakeside walk instead.
Day 3: Hefang Street and the Grand Canal
Morning
Explore Hefang (Qinghefang) Street, a free, old pedestrian street from the city’s days as the Southern Song capital, Lin’an. The China National Tea Museum and China National Silk Museum (the world’s largest silk museum) are both free and nearby.
Afternoon
Head to the Grand Canal at the Gongchen Bridge; it’s a separate UNESCO listing from West Lake, inscribed in 2014, and Hangzhou is its southern terminus. A night canal cruise runs about ¥100.
Evening
Wind down back at West Lake, or in Wulin Square if that’s closer to your hotel.
Where to stay
West Lake shoreline for the splurge (Four Seasons Hangzhou at West Lake, Grand Hyatt Hangzhou on Hubin Road), Wulin Square/downtown for central convenience, or Qinghefang/Hefang old town for atmospheric mid-range.
Transportation
Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport (HGH) connects to the lake by metro (Line 19 plus Line 1) in about 50-60 minutes for roughly ¥6-10. Pay metro fares by Alipay QR code at the gate. DiDi covers the rest; bikes are banned on the Su and Bai causeways.
Things to know
China sits at US State Department Level 2, driven mostly by exit-ban and arbitrary-detention risk that disproportionately affects businesspeople and people in legal disputes, not ordinary tourists; street crime is low. The language barrier is the more likely friction: download a translation app before you go.
Don’t assume “China is visa-free.” Roughly 50 countries get unilateral 30-day visa-free entry through 31 December 2026, but the US is not on that list. A separate 240-hour transit visa-free policy covers about 54 nationalities, including the US, UK, and Canada, but it requires a confirmed onward ticket to a third country; confirm the current rules on the official National Immigration Administration site before booking.
Tip
Book Lingyin Temple’s reservation and your onward transport (if pairing with Shanghai or Suzhou) before you land; both fill up, and neither can be arranged as a walk-up anymore.
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