4 Days in Hangzhou: First-Timer Plan
Four days covers the honest 3-day core (West Lake, a tea village, Lingyin Temple, the Grand Canal) plus Xixi Wetland Park. Hangzhou alone rarely fills much beyond this; if you have more time, pair it with Shanghai and Suzhou instead of 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 Bai Causeway (built roughly 250 years earlier, in 822, by the poet Bai Juyi) around West Lake. The lake, its causeways, and Solitary Hill are free to enter. 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; the Mingqian grade, picked before early April, is the most prized.
Evening
Dinner at Louwailou (founded 1848, right by the lake) 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. Lingyin was founded in 328 CE; Feilai Feng has 300+ rock carvings, including a well-known laughing Maitreya.
Afternoon
Visit Leifeng Pagoda (¥40, a 2002 reconstruction over the original that collapsed in 1924) or Yue Fei Temple (¥25, honoring the Song general).
Evening
Catch the nightly “Impression West Lake” show (directed by Zhang Yimou, ¥360-960) if you booked ahead.
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
Dinner back near Wulin Square or the lake.
Day 4: Xixi Wetland Park
Morning
Spend the morning at Xixi National Wetland Park. The central zone is free; the quieter east and west zones cost about ¥80. Canals, bridges, and traditional villages make it a slower, greener contrast to the lake.
Afternoon
If you have energy left, add the Six Harmonies Pagoda (~¥20, plus ¥10 to climb), on the Qiantang River south of the lake, a separate site from West Lake itself. Otherwise, use the afternoon for last-minute shopping near Hefang Street.
Evening
A final walk around West Lake before you head to the airport or onward station.
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 near Hangzhou East station if you’re catching an early train onward.
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. Hangzhou East puts Shanghai about 42-45 minutes away and Suzhou about 43 minutes away by high-speed rail. Pay metro fares by Alipay QR code at the gate; 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 for day 2 as soon as your dates firm up; the daily cap fills, and there’s no walk-up option anymore.
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