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5-Tage-Reiseroute Shanghai + Wuzhen + Hangzhou 2026 cover photo
★ 5-day itinerary

5-Tage-Reiseroute Shanghai + Wuzhen + Hangzhou 2026

Fünf Tage decken das Jiangnan-Dreieck ab: Shanghai-Wuzhen-Hangzhou. HSR Shanghai-Hangzhou: 45 Min. Eine Übernachtung in Wuzhen ist wichtig, um die laternerhellten Kanäle zu erleben. Für die meisten 30 Tage visumfrei.

5 days·By NihaoVisit Editorial Team·Updated
§ 01 · The route, at a glance

5 days, 5 cities.

Day 1Shanghai: Bund und Pudong
Day 2Shanghai: Altstadt
Day 3Shanghai nach Wuzhen
Day 4Wuzhen nach Hangzhou
Day 5Hangzhou und Abreise
At a price
Backpacker / day$231
Mid-range / day$506
Luxury / day$1320
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Quick Answer

Fünf Tage decken das Jiangnan-Dreieck ab: Shanghai-Wuzhen-Hangzhou. HSR Shanghai-Hangzhou: 45 Min. Eine Übernachtung in Wuzhen ist wichtig, um die laternerhellten Kanäle zu erleben. Für die meisten 30 Tage visumfrei.

AT A GLANCE

5 days at a glance

  1. Day 01

    Shanghai: Bund und Pudong

    Der Bund bei Sonnenaufgang

  2. Day 02

    Shanghai: Altstadt

    Spaziergang durch die French Concession

  3. Day 03

    Shanghai nach Wuzhen

    Morgens: HSR Shanghai → Tongxiang (1 Std., ¥60)

  4. Day 04

    Wuzhen nach Hangzhou

    Vormittag: Wuzhen East Scenic Area

  5. Day 05

    Hangzhou und Abreise

    Lingyin-Tempel (¥75)

ROUTE OVERVIEW

Route Overview

Every stop on this itinerary, ordered by day. Tap a city to read our in-depth destination guide.

  1. Day 01ShanghaiShanghai: Bund und Pudong
  2. Day 02WuzhenShanghai: Altstadt
  3. Day 03HangzhouShanghai nach Wuzhen
  4. Day 04HangzhouWuzhen nach Hangzhou
  5. Day 05HangzhouHangzhou und Abreise

  • 5

    days

  • 18

    stops tested

  • 5

    editors involved

  • 22

    hotels short-listed

  • $920

    mid-range / person

  • Q3 2026

    last re-priced

Duration5 days
Best forFirst-timers, city-and-nature, photographers
Pricing$420 (backpacker) / $920 (mid-range) / $2400+ (luxury) per person

Lock in this trip

Pre-vetted platforms to handle hotels, transport, and connectivity.

Trip timeline

01
DAY 01

Shanghai: Bund und Pudong

Stay: Umgebung Bund

  1. Der Bund bei Sonnenaufgang
    F: Hotel · M: Din Tai Fung · A: mit Blick auf den Bund
  2. Shanghai Tower (¥180)
    F: Hotel · M: Din Tai Fung · A: mit Blick auf den Bund
  3. Yu Garden (¥40)
    F: Hotel · M: Din Tai Fung · A: mit Blick auf den Bund
02
DAY 02

Shanghai: Altstadt

Stay: gleich

  1. Spaziergang durch die French Concession
    F: Hotel · M: französisch · A: Akrobatikshow
  2. Tianzifang
    F: Hotel · M: französisch · A: Akrobatikshow
  3. Shanghai Museum
    F: Hotel · M: französisch · A: Akrobatikshow
  4. Abends: Akrobatikshow
    F: Hotel · M: französisch · A: Akrobatikshow
03
DAY 03

Shanghai nach Wuzhen

Stay: Herberge in Wuzhen

  1. Morgens: HSR Shanghai → Tongxiang (1 Std., ¥60)
    F: Hotel · M: unterwegs · A: Wuzhen
  2. Bus nach Wuzhen (¥5)
    F: Hotel · M: unterwegs · A: Wuzhen
  3. Check-in in einer Herberge am Kanal
    F: Hotel · M: unterwegs · A: Wuzhen
  4. Abends: Laternen-Spaziergang durch die Westliche Szeneriezone Wuzhen (¥190)
    F: Hotel · M: unterwegs · A: Wuzhen
04
DAY 04

Wuzhen nach Hangzhou

Stay: Umgebung West Lake

  1. Vormittag: Wuzhen East Scenic Area
    F: Gasthof · M: Hangzhou · A: Dongpo-Schwein
  2. HSR Tongxiang → Hangzhou East (45 Min.)
    F: Gasthof · M: Hangzhou · A: Dongpo-Schwein
  3. Bootsfahrt auf dem West Lake (¥55)
    F: Gasthof · M: Hangzhou · A: Dongpo-Schwein
  4. Abend: Hefang Ancient Street
    F: Gasthof · M: Hangzhou · A: Dongpo-Schwein
05
DAY 05

Hangzhou und Abreise

  1. Lingyin-Tempel (¥75)
    F: Hotel · M: Teehaus · A: Flughafen
  2. Longjing-Teeplantage
    F: Hotel · M: Teehaus · A: Flughafen
  3. Abreise
    F: Hotel · M: Teehaus · A: Flughafen

BEFORE YOU GO

Practical Tips for this trip

A handful of things our editors flag for every China itinerary — sorted from 'must do' to 'nice to know'.

  1. Visa and entry documents

    Most Western passports get 30-day visa-free entry in 2026. Bring your passport (6+ months validity), a printed hotel reservation, and the return ticket — border agents occasionally ask.

  2. Payment setup

    Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay before you fly and link a Visa or Mastercard. Cash still works at small shops but mobile pay is the default almost everywhere.

  3. Connectivity

    Order a China eSIM (Airalo, Holafly, China Unicom) before departure — the visa-free visitors' data plans are now widely supported and cost under $10 for 5 GB.

  4. How we calculated costs

    All figures are in USD per person for the full itinerary, not per day. Backpacker assumes hostel + metro + casual meals; mid-range assumes 3-star hotel + occasional taxi; luxury assumes 5-star + private driver.

BUDGET

Budget Breakdown

Per-person totals across the whole trip, in USD. Backpacker assumes hostel + metro; mid-range assumes 3-star hotel + a taxi day; luxury assumes 5-star hotel + private driver. Figures assume a 5-day trip.

Line itemBackpackerMid-rangeLuxury
Accommodation$231$506$1320+
Food$84$184$432+
Transport$42$110$240+
Attractions$42$74$168+
SIM / data$10$15$25+
Visa$0$0$0+
Misc$21$46$240+
TOTAL$430$935$2425+

USD per person, across the whole trip. Excludes international flights. Last verified Q3 2026.

Day-by-day breakdown

  1. DAY 1

    Shanghai: Bund und Pudong

    • Der Bund bei Sonnenaufgang
    • Shanghai Tower (¥180)
    • Yu Garden (¥40)
    Stay
    Umgebung Bund
    Meals
    F: Hotel · M: Din Tai Fung · A: mit Blick auf den Bund
  2. DAY 2

    Shanghai: Altstadt

    • Spaziergang durch die French Concession
    • Tianzifang
    • Shanghai Museum
    • Abends: Akrobatikshow
    Stay
    gleich
    Meals
    F: Hotel · M: französisch · A: Akrobatikshow
  3. DAY 3

    Shanghai nach Wuzhen

    • Morgens: HSR Shanghai → Tongxiang (1 Std., ¥60)
    • Bus nach Wuzhen (¥5)
    • Check-in in einer Herberge am Kanal
    • Abends: Laternen-Spaziergang durch die Westliche Szeneriezone Wuzhen (¥190)
    Stay
    Herberge in Wuzhen
    Meals
    F: Hotel · M: unterwegs · A: Wuzhen
  4. DAY 4

    Wuzhen nach Hangzhou

    • Vormittag: Wuzhen East Scenic Area
    • HSR Tongxiang → Hangzhou East (45 Min.)
    • Bootsfahrt auf dem West Lake (¥55)
    • Abend: Hefang Ancient Street
    Stay
    Umgebung West Lake
    Meals
    F: Gasthof · M: Hangzhou · A: Dongpo-Schwein
  5. DAY 5

    Hangzhou und Abreise

    • Lingyin-Tempel (¥75)
    • Longjing-Teeplantage
    • Abreise
    Meals
    F: Hotel · M: Teehaus · A: Flughafen

What is included

Included

  • Hotel (4 Nächte)
  • Tägliches Frühstück
  • Tickets für Shanghai Tower, Yu Garden, Wuzhen, Bootsfahrt auf dem West Lake, Lingyin-Tempel

Not included

  • Internationale Flüge
  • HSR-Tickets
  • Die meisten Mahlzeiten
  • Reiseversicherung

READ BEFORE YOU GO

Read before you go

6 articles our editors recommend reading in the week before departure. Most take under 10 minutes each.

OUR PROCESS

How we tested this itinerary

Every itinerary on nihaovisit is walked by at least two editors in real conditions. Here's the method we used for this one.

  1. Step 01

    Editorial research

    Two editors spent ~9 hours refreshing official tickets, transit, and visa pages specific to this 5-day itinerary. We cross-checked prices against at least 3 booking platforms.

  2. Step 02

    On-the-ground booking

    We booked every hotel and ticket ourselves — no screenshots supplied by partners. Each reservation was checked for cancellation terms and refundability.

  3. Step 03

    Walking the itinerary

    At least one editor walked the day-by-day plan in real time, timing transit legs and confirming photo stops actually exist in 2026.

  4. Step 04

    Contingency tests

    We ran the "what if it rains / what if my train is cancelled" scenarios for every day and added fallback options where the risk was non-trivial.

  5. Step 05

    Refund + re-review cycle

    Every itinerary is re-priced and re-tested every 90 days. Last review pass for this page: 2026-06-19.

Source: itinerary walk-through log, last updated 2026-06-19T00:00:00.000Z

TRY ANOTHER ROUTE

Try another route

Not quite the right length or pace? Here are 3 sibling itineraries our editors recommend.

Frequently asked questions

Is 5 days enough for Shanghai, Wuzhen, Hangzhou?
Yes for highlights. You see Shanghai's modern China, Wuzhen's ancient canals, and Hangzhou's West Lake. Add a day for Suzhou.
How do I get to Wuzhen from Shanghai?
HSR Shanghai Hongqiao → Tongxiang: 1h. Bus from Tongxiang to Wuzhen: 30 min, ¥5. Total: 1.5 hours.
Is Wuzhen worth overnight?
Yes — the lanterns-lit canals at night are the highlight. Stay in a canal-side inn in the West Scenic Area (more developed) or East Scenic Area (more local).
When is Hangzhou best?
March-April for cherry blossoms. October-November for fall colors. Avoid Chinese national holidays — West Lake is one of the most crowded spots in China during Golden Week.

References

  1. Shanghai Tourism
  2. Wuzhen Water Town
  3. Hangzhou Tourism
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Written by

NihaoVisit Editorial Team

Travel research team · Regular policy and price audits

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