The vast land of China, with its incredible history and heritage stretching over 5,000 years to the present day, is more accessible to visitors fascinated by its complexity than ever before. Given that it would take a lifetime to explore all its places of interest, many visitors decide on a particular region and base themselves in its main city. The south-eastern coastal region is popular as it avoids the harsh winter weather of the north around Beijing, and has many heritage sights and spectacular natural wonders. The ancient coastal city of Hangzhou is a good base for touring here, with a good selection of Hangzhou City Centre hotels as well as other lodgings set around the various districts.

There's a great deal to explore and experience in the city and its surroundings, from temples, glorious traditional gardens, charming winding streets with quaint traditional courtyard homes, local markets, tea gardens and plantations growing China's famous dragon teas and the amazing Beijing/Hangzhou Canal connecting the rivers and lakes between the two cities. From its beginnings in the 5th century BC, the Great Work, one of China's most famous, took 2,000 years to complete, and is still a major trade route from the north to the eastern coastal cities.

One of the city's first tourists, Marco Polo, described the 13th century city as one of the world's loveliest and an ancient Chinese proverb runs €There is heaven above and Suzhou and Hangzhou below'. Now one of the country's most important industrial centres, the city still holds many of its ancient charms including West Lake, the loveliest of 36 bodies of water in China with the same name. Once a lagoon until its sea mouth was blocked by sediment, the lake has three islands and two ancient man-made causeways.

The Lingyin Temple complex lies at the foot of Lingyin hill, dating from the 4th century and one of China's most revered Buddhist sites. The Front Hall, the Magnificent Hall and the Hall of Herb Masters are all spectacular, with the Magnificent Hall holding the largest carved wood and gilded seated Buddha image in the country. Towering over the temple complex in the living rock at the top of the hill are over 100 exquisite 1,000-year old Buddhist relief carvings, some of the most spiritually beautiful renderings of the Sakyamuni Buddha anywhere in the world.

The Six Harmonies Pagoda is another must-see, set along the banks of the Qiantang River on a hill and built in the Song Dynasty to conquer the river's massive tidal bore, one of the highest in the world. Apart from its 13 carved and balconied storeys, the view from its summit is magnificent. At the foot of Yuhuang Hill, close to the lake, is the China National Silk Museum, a tribute to the use of the luxury fibre in China for many thousands of years before its introduction to the West.

Just an hour's drive from Hangzhou is the traditional water town of Wuzhen, criss-crossed by canals, rivers, lakes and streams, with boats the main form of transportation. A favourite visitor destination, the town is known for its traditional crafts and ancient way of life. Charming old stone and wood buildings line the waterways, with winding alleys opening to hidden squares unchanged for several centuries.

Another hour's journey away is Xitang, an ancient town dating from the 8th century Tang Dynasty, well-preserved and a fascinating daytrip from Hangzhou, passing the Longjing €Dragon's Well' tea plantation producing the fragrant green teas famous the world over. Set on Fenghuang Hill with its rolling emerald green vistas and pretty village, the tea terraces and tea houses give visitors a chance to see the traditional production methods and taste the delicious teas.