Jiaxing

Old city / Jiaxing Railway Station area

Walk to the citadel, St Mary's Church and South Lake; best for one night without a car.

Yuehe Street (Moon River Street)

Restored canal-side lanes with tea rooms and traditional-style hotels; quiet at night.

Meiwan Street

Southwest old city on the western South Lake; museums, bars and lakeside walks.

Wuzhen or Xitang

Sleep inside the preserved canal town if that is the point of your trip; book ahead for weekends.

Etiquette

• Greeting: Handshake and a nod; use surnames with a title; avoid: Hugs and cheek kisses
• Face: Disagree privately and indirectly; avoid: Correcting or embarrassing someone in front of others
• Gifts: Give with two hands; expect the gift to be refused once or twice and opened later; avoid: Clocks, umbrellas, white flowers, sets of four
• Business cards: Present and receive with both hands, read it, keep it on the table; avoid: Writing on it or pocketing it at once
• Queues and crowds: Hold your ground politely in scrums at buses and lifts; avoid: Taking pushing personally
• Temples: Walk clockwise around Tibetan stupas and prayer wheels; remove hats; avoid: Touching statues or photographing where signs forbid
• Politics: Listen; follow your host's lead; avoid: Raising Tibet, Taiwan, Xinjiang, 1989 or the party leadership
• Numbers and colour: Red and 8 are lucky; red envelopes carry money gifts; avoid: Writing names in red; the number 4

Scams and watch-outs

• Jiaxing Railway Station is on the older Hangzhou–Shanghai line; high-speed trains use Jiaxing South, which is further out — allow 30–40 min to the centre.
• St Mary's Church and Vincent Abbey are largely closed inside; you see them from outside.
• The South Lake boat is sometimes closed to boarding for security reasons; no refunds for a changed itinerary.
• Wuzhen and Xitang charge separate entry and are busiest at weekends and holidays.
• Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign card solves most payments; small stalls may still want cash.