What to Buy in Hangzhou

Hangzhou, as a famous historic city, has a lot of special local products. Many tourists want to buy some local item as a souvenir or gifts as a memory of their trip to Hangzhou. Then what to buy in Hangzhou is the most unique? Hangzhou Silk, Dragon Well (Longjing) Tea, Hangzhou embroidery, Xihu silk umbrella, Chrysanthemum are highly recommended local specialties for you to purchase.

Hangzhou Silk

Silk products in Hangzhou have always been regarded as the best in China. Hangzhou silk with a long history is with soft texture, beautiful color and wide varieties. The famous brands of silk include Wensli, Chang Cheng, Xi De Bao, Kai Di, etc.


Silk shops are easily found in this city. You can go to Xin Hua Road Silk Market to buy. It is a 1150 meters of street, home to more than thousands of silk stores. They operate a variety of silk fabrics, silk garments and all kinds of raw silk. Silk handicraft, neckties, scarves, silk tourist souvenirs are quite abundant and leave you a lot of choices. There are other great places you can buy silk in this city, such as China Silk Museum, Hangzhou Huaibei Silk Mark.

Dragon Well (Longjing) Tea

Dragon Well (Longjing) Tea is one of top ten most famous teas in China. It is regarded as the name card of the city. It has a history of more than one thousand years in China. Long Jing Tea planted in Long Jing Village area or Meijiawu Tea Plantation are recognized as the best. And Tea which is picked before Tomb-Sweeping Day is in the best quality and is sold with the highest price. Long Jing tea is selected as national gift in diplomatic activities. If you want to buy good tea, you’d better go with a local people, it is better to be a person who can recognize the quality of Long Jing tea. He even can bargain for you.
 


Hangzhou Embroidery

As a symbol of Hangzhou arts and crafts, Hangzhou embroidery is a long established artwork. Flourishing in the Southern Song Dynasty, it is inseparable from silkworm-raising, silk-reeling and weaving. During that period, they were divided into two types, one for royal family to vary their magnificent dresses, and the other for common civilians as ornamental articles such as the robe, quilt cover, etc...

With a development for hundreds of years, Hangzhou embroidery is now used for decoration, fashion and other items like quilt cover, screen and fresco. Name Hangzhou embroider, also weigh ancient embroider, traceable Chinese generation, it is period of at the height of power and splendour to the Southern Song Dynasty.

The embroidery at that time, it is "palace embroider", it is "civilian embroider", former it is royalty only, inside Yuan Xiuge is planted dress; Latter and inwrought official is taken, bedcover, screen, hanging. Hangzhou embroider is on inwrought craft, absorb and shirt-sleeve revive, Hunan, Sichuan, another name for Guangdong Province the length of 4 names embroider, embroider law is changeful, formed oneself distinctive color.
 

Xihu Silk Umbrella

Xihu Silk Umbrella is a famous specialty in Hangzhou City and made from Hangzhou silk and bamboo. The surface of umbrellas is painted silk. The paintings are mostly landscapes or ancient and ladies, feathers of auspicious birds, flowers, looking colorful and beautiful. The handle of the umbrella are in many different styles, with elegant décor and full of rich local China-southern characteristics. You can go to China Silk Market or Qinghefang Street to buy it if you want to take it as a souvenirs or gifts.