Mudu Ancient Town

Mudu Ancient Town is located in the west of Suzhou City, on the shore of Tai Lake. It is the only ancient town that gets an honorable reputation of Chinese garden town with breathtaking scenery and abundant natural resources. It has an interesting nickname, "Treasure Bowl" for it is surrounded by several famous mountains, such as Tianping, Lingyan, Qizi and Lion hills.
 

Mudu Ancient Town is over 2500 years old. The name "Mudu", originally meaning the cumulate wood blocks the river, has something to do the Xishi, one of the Four Great Beauties in Ancient China. It is said that during 773BC-476BC, to make Xishi happy, the emperor of Wu ordered the soldiers to build a Guanwa Palace for her. There were so many woods carried here so that the river was block. Here came the name.

Layout of Mudu Ancient Town

Mudu Ancient Town covers an area of about 74.59 square kilometers (as of August 2017) and has developed a unique spatial structure often described as “Three Wedges and Two Sections.”

• Three Wedges: These include the rural areas such as Qionglong Mountain, Tianchi Village, and Wufeng Village; the ecological preservation zones of Qizi Mountain, Yantai Mountain, and Zhenshan; and the scenic areas of Lingyan Mountain, Tianping Mountain, Tianchi Mountain, and Qionglong Mountain.
• Two Sections: These refer to the two concentrated urban development zones—Mudu Town District and Cangshu Town District.

Within Mudu Town District, the planning follows the pattern of “One Center, Two Axes, Six Clusters.”

• One Center: The integrated public service center of Mudu Town, located at the intersection of Jinshan Road and Zhongshan Road (Sufu Road), serves as the hub for administration and public facilities.
• Two Axes: Jinshan Road development axis and Zhongshan Road development axis, both shaping the town’s urban expansion.
• Six Clusters: These include the Ancient Town Cluster, Jinshan Road Cluster, Changjiang Road Cluster, Cangshu Cluster, Spring and Autumn Ancient City Cluster, and South Xujiang Cluster.

To the west of Jinshan South Road and north of Xujiang Canal, a new livable urban area and distinctive commercial center is planned. This area, envisioned as the southwestern gateway of Suzhou, adopts the framework of “One Center, Two Axes, Three Clusters.”

• One Center: Zhongshan Road Integrated Service Center at the intersection of Zhongshan and Jinshan Roads, functioning as the comprehensive service hub.
• Two Axes: The Zhongshan Road Public Service Axis and Jinshan Road Public Service Axis, lined with commercial and business facilities.
• Three Clusters: The Northern Ecological Restoration Cluster, Southern Leisure Service Cluster, and Southeastern Xujiang Residential Cluster.

Cangshu Area Layout

The Cangshu District of Mudu covers about 5.47 square kilometers, with a focus on cultural heritage protection, tourism experiences, countryside leisure, and resort facilities. Its spatial design follows the concept of “Two Axes, Three Cores, Four Corridors, Four Zones.”

Two Axes:

• The horizontal Canal Landscape Axis along the Muguang Canal.
• The vertical Cultural Heritage Axis connecting the core Spring and Autumn Ancient City Protection Area.

Three Cores:

• The leisure core of Cangshu Old Town.
• The historical-cultural core around Wufeng Mountain.
• The ecological tourism core around Lingyan Mountain.

Four Corridors: Four north-south ecological corridors linking the natural mountain landscapes with urban spaces.

Four Zones:

• The Special Town Zone.
• The Countryside Leisure Zone.
• The Ancient City Ruins Park and Cultural Creativity Zone.
• The Comprehensive Tourism Support Zone.

Main attractions in Mudu Ancient Town

【Yan's Garden】Yan's Garden lies in the Shantang Street within Mudu Ancient Town. It was originally the former home of an official governor, Shen Deqian, during the reign of Qianlong in Qing Dynasty. And then it was owned by the richest man Yan Guoxin in Mudu. The garden has delicate design with exquisite and fantastic scenery. The architecture here is unique. It honors to be the "classical work of gardens in south of the Yangtze River".

【Hongyin Mountain Villa】
Hongyin Mountain Villa is sited 200 meters east of Yan's Garden. It is a famous private garden built during 1736 and 1795. The villa has a fantastic landscape of rivers, ponds, pavilioins, blooms and trees. These scenes as a whole form an impressed view for the visitors. Every time the emperor Qianlong visited Mudu town, he would visit the villa to see a play, taste tea and viewing the scenery.

【Bangyan Mansion】
Sited at the Xiatang Street, Bangyan Mansion was the former house of Feng Guifen, a well-known essayist in Qing Dynasty. The mansion features in three carvings, that is, brick carving, wood carving and stone carving.

【Tianping Mountian】
Tianping Mountian is located in the west side of the Mudu Town. The elevation of it is 201 meter. It is called Tianping for it has a flat peak. There are excellent rocks natural springs and aged maples. Especially in autumn, you can appreciate the leaves of maple trees on the mountain. What’s more, the tourists could have a panoramic view of the fields woods, woods, mountains and even the Taihu Lake. Tianping in Mountain, along with Xiangshan Park in Beijing, Yuelu Mount in Hunan and Qixia Mount in Nanjing is one of the four famous scenic spots to appreciate the red leaves of maple trees.

Travel Guide

【Best Travel Time】The four seasons of the whole year in Mudu is suitable for traveling, but the spring and autumn is the best traveling time. After you have seen the beautiful sight of Mudu, You can also go to Taiping Mountain to see the red maple leaves. 

【How to get to Mudu Ancient Town】 you can take bus No. 502, 38, 63, 64, 69 and tourist bus Line 4 at the Suzhou Railway Station to get there, or you can take bus No. 65, 58, 312, 511, 505, 506, 2, 326, 512 within Suzhou City to get there. The Subway Line No.1 can also take you to the ancient town.