24 Hours Hotline: +86 137-3541-1378
Email:[email protected]
24 Hours Hotline: +86 137-3541-1378
Email:[email protected]
Brief Introduction of Qibao
Qibao is a very small ancient water town features with Hui style architecture in Shanghai. It’s over 30 minutes away from downtown Shanghai, but is definitely worth the trip. As a water town, it’s views aren’t nearly as scenic as those in the famous water towns like Wuzhen or Zhouzhuang, and lacks the many attractions of Suzhou, but it has plenty of excitement for a half-day visit and can be a fun place to shop and try unusual foods. It’s a great escape from the modernity of Shanghai. It is a comfortable way to see some of the old traditions, skills, wares, and snacks that you won’t see elsewhere today and preserved only by the tourism model.
Top Things to Visit in Qibao Anicent Town
Qibao cricket museum
There have a long history about cricket fighting in Qibao old town.
Qibao in a period of great prosperity during the Ming and Qing Dynasty.
By the prosperity Qibao also become a town popular for gambling, cricket
fighting become one regular method of gambling. Before every Autumn
there have many people catching, feeding, dealing and fighting cricket,
this activity become more and more popular, also more and more famous.
Cotton Textile Hall
During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Qibao was subordinated to Songjiang Prefecture and was the main distribution center for “ clothing by the world ”. The museum exhibition focuses on planting, harvesting, spinning, weaving and dyeing, and introduces the brilliant cotton textile industry of Qibao.
The Memorial Hall of Zhang Chongren
It is located on the North Street of Qibao town. The building is the style of the Qingjiang South Wharf Wall, which opened on March 17, 2003. Covers an area of 800 square meters. There are 6 exhibition treasures, and more than 20 sculptures by Zhang Chongren are exhibited.
Zhou’s Micro-carving Museum
Zhou’s father and daughter used stone carvings and micro-carvings as talents to create works of art, and micro-carved “Huaxia Treasures” series, red building stone carving series, stone pot stone carving series, Jinwen Han monument series and so on. There are thousands of pieces in the exhibition, each with different forms and unique ingenuity.
What to Eat in Qibao Ancient Town
Tang Yuan
You can find Tang Yuan in Old Street Tang Tuan shops. Locals call the Tang Yuan without soup “tuan zi.” Our top recommendation here is the tuan zi (RMB 2 each), a steamed dumpling of hand-mashed glutinous rice stuffed with minced pork -- the filling is a classic Shanghainese combination.
Hai Tang Cake
These baked rice cakes have a generous red bean filling, a slight crackle from molten caramel on the crust and a soft, pancake-like texture. The humble Hai Tang Cake is plain looking, resembling a rustic pot pie, but it is the most iconic and the most delicious of all the qi bao rice cakes
Wine Marinated Meat
There are many kinds of bad vegetables in Shanghai, but the most distinctive one is the seven treasures. It changes the traditional method of distilling the brine, using glutinous rice and sweet wine to marinate and keep the tenderness of the pork and the sweetness of the rice wine.
Qibao Mutton
The traditional Chinese dish, Qibao Braised Lamb, was first distributed by the court of the Qing Dynasty. It is said to be the favorite of the Empress Dowager Cixi. Combine lamb, rock sugar, American ginseng, red dates, fine soy sauce, etc., on a small fire for 4-6 hours, and the texture is soft and tender, sweet like honey.
Basic Information
Location: Qibao, Minhang District, Shanghai
Entrance Fee: Free for enter the Qibao Town, but you need to pay if you want to go to visit the musuems. Combation tickets for 8 museums is CNY30.
Opening Hours: whole day, the museums and attractions will closed after 17:30pm
Time for visiting: 2-3 hours
How to get to Qibao Ancient Town from Shanghai
1) Take Shanghai metro line 9 from any station in Shanghai downtown, get off at Qibao metro station exit 2, walk about 10 mins can reach Qibao Ancient Town;
2) By Shanghai city taxi from your hotel directly.
3) Take city bus No. 803,513,87,91,92,92B to get off at Qibao Station
Prev: Xinchang Ancient Town
Next: Nanxiang Ancient Town
1. Is Qibao Water Town nice? Should I plan my Shanghai tour including Qibao?
It's worth visiting. It feels like there are lots of snacks in the ancient town of Meijing in the south of the Yangtze River. Eating snacks and drizzling. The weather in September is really good. It's romantic to take your partner with you. Transportation is also particularly convenient.
2. What is the best way from Shanghai downtown to Qibao water town
You can take metro or bus from Shanghai downtown on your own. Take Metro line 9 from downtown and get off at Qibao Station. It only few minutes walking from metro station to the old town; there are many buses from downtown to Qibao as well. If you want to travel easy, you can take taxi or book transfer service.
3. When is Qibao Water Town open? How much is the entrance fee?
Qibao Water Town opens all day long but the small attractions and indoor exhibitions are open from 9:00 to 18:00. It’s free for you to enter the town, but you need to pay for the attractions inside. A combo ticket costs CNY 30 and a separate ticket for each attraction costs CNY 5 to 10. You can buy it on spot.
4. How long should I stay in Qibao water town area?
We suggest you spend half day at Qibao Water Town will be enough since the town is quiet small. Covering an area of 47 square kilometers (11,614 acres), it is a little fan-shaped town. Here noted as Shanghai's Venice, glimmers like a bright pearl in the landscape of lakes and mountains.
5. What’s the Qibao Water Town famous for?
Qibao Ancient Water Town is not only famous for its charming scenery and ancient architectures but also famous for its variety of delicious local food. There are food stalls which sell typical local food along the south of the old street. Actually, it is the food street that Qibao ancient water town is famous for.
6. Do you have Shanghai tour with Qibao Water Town?
Yes, we have some Shanghai tour packages including Qibao Water Town. Such as Shanghai city highlights with Qibao Town; Full day exploration at Qibao Water Town… We can also make a customized Qibao Tour which arrange the tour to Qibao Water Town based on your requirement.
7. When is the best time to visit Qibao in Shanghai?
The scenery in Qibao is suitable for a visit all year round. The town is quite small and can easily be explored by foot. But still, always avoid Chinese public holidays, such as National Day or Labor Day.
8. Is the credit card available in Qibao Water Town? Or should bring some cash?
Most of shops are not accept the credit card here in Qibao. You’d better bring some cash along with you in China, especially some small towns. Nowadays, people in China use more mobile payment that cash, you will find all the shops here with QR Code for the customer to scan and pay directly.
9. Is Qibao Water Town similar to Zhujiajiao? Which one is better?
Zhujiajiao and Qibao are both water towns and with similar scenery. Zhujiajiao is bigger than Qibao, but Qibao is the only water town located in greater Shanghai with a history as long as one thousand years. The town is much more than just a living fossil of the Chinese Water conurbation or the result of modern urban planning. If you are a foodie, you can taste a range of traditional snacks here.
10. Will Qibao water town be busy during weekend? How can I avoid the crowd?
Yes, it will be busier during the weekend or holidays than work days since it’s free open for tourists, many locals stay nearby. We suggest you visit in the morning, take a chance to visit here during the work days. If you take a tour, our guide will use his/her way to avoid the crowds.
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