I love travelling in China and by the time I am writing this page, I have already travelled across 19 Chinese cities. For example, in early 2018 I visited Nanjing, Hefei, and Changzhou. In April, I had set on a new voyage from Suzhou and visited Nantong and Taizhou (both in Jiangsu, China). It was such a memorable trip that although I had initially planned to spend only one night in each of the cities, I extended my trip and spent two nights in both Nantong and Taizhou.
So in this post, I’m going to share my memories of Nantong – the coastal city located very close to Shanghai. Initially, I’ll talk about some general observations about Nantong. Then I’ll tell you about the top things to do in Nantong, including the city’s best travel attractions. My next blog-post will be about travelling in Taizhou.
Where is Nantong?
Nantong is a port city located in the eastern part of the mainland China. Geographically, it’s very close to Suzhou, Wuxi, Shanghai, Changzhou, Nanjing, etc. The common language used in Nantong is the Mandarin Chinese.
Why travel to Nantong?
Well, depending on your travel interests, there could be various reasons to travel to Nantong. For example, Nantong (being a coastal city) is a very famous destination for the seafood lovers. Although there is not too much to see in Nantong as compared to the cities like Nanjing or Guangzhou, yet the city has loads to offer in terms of sightseeing and tourist attractions. For example, there are beautiful museums, temples, night markets, etc. (some of them are listed below).
An economically developed city
Well, compared to many other hinterland cities, such as Hefei, I think the cities in the eastern part of China have a much better infrastructure (such as public transport). The roads are so beautiful that I often take photos and share in my blog-posts. Make no mistake, Nantong is a beautiful city with an impressive infrastructure.
No wonder, the cost of living (including food, accommodation) is also slightly higher. Throughout the city, I paid bills using either Alipay or WeChat, and some time with the Chinese international credit card.
Nantong accommodation
You can find many good and affordable hotels in the city center. Particularly, there are plenty of hotels along NanDa Jie. Moreover, the city doesn’t seem to be so famous among the international travelers, so there are not many backpacking options available in Nantong. But the hotels (double bed) for each night could be booked for RMB 140 or so. You’d better use booking.com to find a suitable accommodation.
Suzhou to Nantong
There is no direct train from Suzhou to Nantong. In fact, that’s the reason why I travelled from Suzhou to Nantong via bus.
I have written a detailed post about the intercity bus in China – please check out this post: Chinese Intercity Bus Travel Guide.
Nantong public transport
There are a good number of buses connecting different parts of the city. For example, you can get to the city center from the Nantong bus station by bus. The bus fares are usually fixed at RMB 1. Do carry some coins as the driver won’t be offering any change. Moreover, there is no subway in Nantong (April, 2018). As such, I never took a taxi and managed my Nantong tour using the local bus.
There are also tourist bus lines in Nantong that stops at the famous scenic spots. Let me show you a photo that I took at one of the Nantong’s tour bus stations-
Nantong Travel attractions and top things to do
Now let’s look at some of the top Nantong travel attractions – I’ll list them down over here! Please use the Baidu Map to precisely locate them.
Wolf hill
The famous Wolf hill (狼山, Láng shān), also known as “Langshan”, is a must visit scenic spot in Nantong. You can get a very nice view of the Nantong city from the hilltop. On top of the hill, there is a famous Buddhist temple. A nice place to click photos. You can easily spend nearly a half day exploring the hill. There are beautiful gardens around the hill. There are eateries as well on the top. Often crowded on weekends and holidays.
The entrance ticket to the wolf hill is priced at RMB 70 (some discounts available for students, senior citizens, etc.).
Subsequently, you can either hike to the mountain top (for free) or take a cable car (gondola ride) for RMB 60 (no discount).
I also saw a live cultural performance where African students performing Shakira’s Waka Waka at the basement of the hill. Check out this video-
China Abacus Calculation Museum
This is a small two-story building museum located very close to the Hao River. Here you can see the usage history of abacus in different sports. If you have to search the museum in Baidu, you can enter (中国算盘计算博物馆, Zhōngguó suànpán jìsuàn bówùguǎn). Free entry.
If you have more time, you can walk along the Hao River or maybe take a boat ride in the river. In the evening there are lots of locals who come to riverbank to relax. The whole area around the museum is simply amazing.
Haoxi Academy and Bonsai Park
It’s a very scenic area located along with the Hao river. The academy and park are part of the Hao River Scenic Area. In fact, the academy is listed as one of the top 10 landscape architectures in Nantong. It was designed by a famous Chinese architect- Professor Guxi pan. The entry is free.
Boat trip on Nantong Hao River
I can’t emphasize more – the boat trip is simply a great experience. Come here in the evening. A one-hour trip is worth trying upon. You can also hire an e-boat.
Wenfeng Park
Well, if you like visiting gardens, then Wenfeng Park is a must visit place for you.
This is a very big and beautiful park (文峰公园, Wén fēng gōngyuán). The park has so many gigantic trees, swimming pools, fountains, flowers, and what not.
When I went to the park, it was a rainy day and the lush green scenery looked absolutely stunning. I thoroughly loved wandering in this park. Free entry.
Nantong Textile Museum
This a very informative museum narrating the history of Nantong’s association with the weaving industries. The museum has multiple halls for a variety of exhibitions.
The garden along with the museum looks beautiful. Free entry. In Baidu, you can search the location of this museum as 南通纺织博物馆 (Nántōng fǎngzhī bówùguǎn).
Geyi Art Museum
A small museum located very close to the Nantong Textile Museum. Most of the tourist information displayed here is in Mandarin Chinese. However, the museum is indeed worth stopping by. The tall Wenfeng pagoda is particularly very beautiful. Free entry. Allow 15-20 minutes.
Nantong Museum
If you have to visit only one museum in Nantong, then I’d recommend choosing Nantong Museum (南通博物馆, Nántōng bówùguǎn). The museum is located very close to the Nantong University and Nantong Medical College and its overall design has a very traditional Chinese feel.
Here you can learn more about Chinese calligraphy, pottery, etc. free entry. There are also some delicious street food nearby the museum worth checking out. Indeed, a beautiful museum.
Nantong university
Well, this is a very famous university in Nantong. Nantong Medical College (南通医学院, Nántōng yīxué yuàn) is also located nearby. Owing to the security reasons, you may not be allowed to go inside these campuses alone, but a photo at the institutes gate is of course possible. That’s what I exactly did-
Auchan Shopping Center
If you like shopping or eating delicious food, then you can try Auchan (欧尚超市, Ōushàng) Shopping Center. The prices are not that cheap, but you can get a variety of items in a very close proximity. There is a restaurant in the mall called “Nice Meeting You”.
You can also find western brand of clothes at Auchan. Let me show you the shopping center from the outside-
Nantong city center
Nantong’s city center (or downtown) is spread close to the famous NanDa jie. Lots and lots of shopping options nearby. Come here in the day or night, you’d love it. It’s really a very nice place to eat authenticate Chinese food. The fried potato is also worth trying (RMB 10 for one bowl). Usually crowded on weekends.
Adopt a puppy
If you are a pet lover and wish to adopt a puppy, you can do that for free in Nantong. You can come to the NanDa Jie area and look for them. I saw many people adopting puppies for free. Some documentary work needs to be completed. Let me show you a photo that I clicked there-
Nantong clock tower
Well, this is an old and historical clock tower. It’s located just opposite to the NanDa jie.
I’d recommend coming here in the night time as the night view around the tower is just great! Here is the tower-
Nantong Nightlife
Well, apart from eating and sight-seeing, there is not much to do in Nantong city in the night time. I went to a KTV to find what was going on there – I was literally asked to pay RMB 300 (including the fee for a girl and box -the chat/smoking room) for one hour chatting session. But I just got the WeChat of a KTV veteran and returned. The lady kept messaging me to come and often asked for a red packet. As the night passed, I was also offered discounts and soon the price came down to RMB 100. But I never returned to the KTV again in Nantong. 🙂
Nantong Dance Halls
I visited two dance halls in Nantong, and there was not much activity going on.
In fact, in one of the halls, I reached at 7.30pm, and there were only a few senior citizens inside – they were about the finish the dance practice. The hall got closed soon. I’ll show you the empty dance hall floor-
In another dance hall, there were only males, and it was full of smoke – I simply returned to my hotel. 🙂
Related post – MeiMei Dance Hall – Suzhou.
In summary, I think it’s absolutely worthwhile to travel to Nantong. A couple of days exploring the coastal city, eating delicious food, visiting museums, etc. would ensure you a wonderful time.
That’s all in this post!
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Happy travelling in Nantong.
Cheers!
Last updated: Monday, May 28, 2018