SIP Adds Modern Profile to Traditional Suzhou Tourism

"Like paradise in heaven, there are Suzhou and Hanzhou on earth."At the mentioning of its name, Suzhou will invariably remind people of a garden city with age-old delicate bridges flowing over limpid canals and buildings of grey roof-tiles and white-plastered walls. Yet this is not the scene in Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP), a new, prosperous, and modern urban district developed a decade ago, which has become an increasingly popular modern tourist destination in Suzhou.

Getting to Know a Modern Suzhou by the Jinji Lake

SIP used to be well-known as an industrial park with outstanding performance in trade and business; now more and more domestic and foreign tourists know there is a Jinji Lake there, which is on their must-go tourist destinations in this city along with the exquisite gardens and centuries-old ancient towns. While the old town impresses them with the past glories, the new district reveals to them the modernity of the city on the road of constant development. Application is being processed for Jinji Lake to become Grade 4A national scenic area and the next goal is to reach Grade 5A.

 

 

The night views around the lake are amazing. Both locals and visitors like to step out to enjoy the moonlight by the water, to go to the bars along Ligongdi, to have a cup of drink at Rainbow Walk, to look up to the world's longest sky-screen at Times Square, or to take a cruiser to the Peach Blossom Island.

 

Attracting 5.5 Million Tourists a Year

In the past two years, SIP has invested more than 10 billion yuan in tourist infrastructure so as to make the new district a destination of leisure tourism to complement the tourist functions of the old town. Currently, the tourist products of city sightseeing tour, business and exhibition, recreation and holiday-making, and factory tour in SIP are taking shape. The selected tourist items include Fashion & Recreation Tour by Jinji Lake and Holiday Tour by Yangcheng Lake.

The F&B facilities are vital for tourist destinations. So SIP introduced many branded services, including eight international hotels as well as many retail and business leaders in local, domestic, and international markets.

Apart from Jinji Lake, the other two lakes in the area also enjoy special tourist recourses and the plan is to promote holiday tourism around Yangcheng Lake and to launch knowledge-based tourist products on Dushu Lake. In 2009, the total number of tourists to SIP reached 5.5 million, which makes it the leader in the city in terms of growth.

 

Creating Industrial Chain by Integrating Tourist Resources
SIP plans to build the country's first business tourism pilot area and the construction projects scheduled to start this year include Ligongdi Phase 3 and Jinji Lake Yacht Club. To match up with the improved infrastructure, the SIP administration also invests in software construction and building the tourist service centers by the lake.

Moreover, to secure financial sources, SIP government allots special dedicated funds to the building of tourist infrastructure in transport, information service, hotel accommodations and restaurants, culture and entertainment. The diverse tourist resources will build up a modern façade of Suzhou tourism and ensure coordinated growth in domestic tourism and in-bound tourism, and adequate accommodations for both individual self-driving tourists and tour groups.

Originally published on Gusu Evening News
February 9, 2010