Blossom Hill Inn Suzhou Tongli Lize

Blossom Hill Inn is a comfortable, clean and quiet place to stay close to Tongli’s sights. It used to be a school, so it has some history, and everything in the small town is fairly nearby. The staff are helpful, as is Lily, the English-speaking manager. Tongli is a good option if you’d like to see a water town with a chance of missing some of the tourist crowds. I agree with another traveler’s timing tip: arrive around 3pm, after the day visitors leave, stay overnight, then head out in the late morning before the next visitors arrive. That lets you enjoy the town in relative peace in the evening and morning. For directions, set Tongli Visitors Center (Tongli Ancient Town North Visitors Center, Suzhou), at No. 111, Dongxi Street, Tongli Town, Wujiang District, Suzhou City, as your destination. Once you’re in the large parking lot, ask your driver to call the hotel. They’ll send someone to collect your luggage and show you the way. Download Alipay and use Didi, their Uber, to book cars. If you’re new to Alipay, ask your first guide in China to walk you through it. A car hire from Shanghai to Tongli costs about $60.00 and saves the hassle of navigating several connections. You can try arranging the return the same way, though it may take a while. Other drivers there may be looking for a Shanghai return trip, so you can show them the fare quoted on Didi.