I prefer the less popular ancient town of Shaoxing with its strong New Year atmosphere to Wuzhen.

🎈When it comes to ancient towns, Wuzhen, Tongli, Zhouzhuang, and Nanxun always come to mind. However, this less popular ancient town, which has been featured on CCTV five times, is little known in Shaoxing. It is the hometown of the "shiyes" (private secretaries), and it is said that over 10,000 "shiyes" went abroad in 200 years. It is also an ancient town with a stronger New Year atmosphere. Every winter, the ancient town holds the "Lunar December Festival," during which there are activities such as water town opera, traditional handmade wine brewing, boat weddings, and folk weddings. These are traditional customs unique to the Jiangnan region, making the ancient town's New Year atmosphere particularly strong. 📍Anchang Ancient Town, Keqiao District, Shaoxing 💰Tickets: Free (40 per person for a joint ticket to small attractions); 40 yuan per boat for a Wupeng boat, which can accommodate three people 🚘Self-driving: 2.5 hours from Shanghai 🚄High-speed rail: Arrive at Shaoxing North Station, then take a taxi for 20 minutes 🚇Subway: Shaoxing Line 1, Yuezhou Avenue Station, then take a taxi for 15 minutes 🚩Travel route: Enter through the main gate, Qingfeng First Corridor → City God Temple → Suikang Bank → Stone Carving Museum → Shaoxing Xuanjuan Museum → Shiye Museum → Anchang Folk Museum → Ankang Temple → Renchang Sauce Garden → Former Site of the Bank of China. This circular route allows you to stroll without retracing your steps! 🔴Anchang Ancient Town mainly consists of buildings on both sides of the river, and the characteristics of the two sides are slightly different. The east side of the river is mainly known for cured meat products, while the west side is known for rice cakes, fermented cakes, and Renchang Sauce Garden. 📸Experiences not to be missed ✅Renchang Sauce Garden: Founded during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, it was also featured in A Bite of China (free admission) ✅Wupeng boat: The inner beauty of Shaoxing tourism, available in many places, including Anchang Ancient Town ✅Specialty food: Shiye wontons, yellow wine popsicles, yellow wine milk tea, white sugar, various sauces, fermented steamed buns, stinky tofu, specialty pastries, dried plums, etc.