Humble Administrator's Garden

Humble Administrator's Garden, with an area of more than 51,950 m², is regardes as the largest and the most famous garden in Suzhou. It also represents the gardening style of the south China. There is also a teahouse and a small museum that explains Chinese landscape gardening concepts.

The garden's site was a scholar garden during the Tang Dynasty, and later a monastery garden for the Dahong Temple during the Yuan Dynasty. In 1513, during the Ming Dynasty reign of Emperor Zhengde, an administrator named Wang Xianchen appropriated the temple. It was said he intended to build a garden after retired and just do some gardening work, so he got the name for the garden from an essay called "To cultivate my garden and sell my vegetable crop is the policy of humble man".

The complex consists of four parts: the eastern, central, western parts and a dwelling quarter. The dwelling quarter is filled with typical Suzhou architectures which used to be residential houses for the administrator and his family, which now serves as the exhibition halls of the Museum of the Gardens. The eastern part features pine forests and lawns, bamboo groves and flowing water. Many famous attractions here include Orchid Snow Hall, Dotted Clouded Peak, Lotus Flower Waterside Pavilion and much more. In the center part, visitors will find pavilions, mansions, corridors, lush vegetations and willow sheltered ponds. The main attraction in the western part is the 36 Mandarin DucK Hall. Ponds, corridors, terraces also scatter everywhere in this part.

In 1997, Humble Administrator's Garden, along with other classical gardens of Suzhou was proclaimed a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Admission fee:

Peak season: RMB70

Off season: RMB50