Shanghai Xinchang Ancient Town One-Day Tour Guide

Xinchang Ancient Town has a long history, dating back more than 800 years. The buildings are well preserved, and tourists can feel the peaceful and simple atmosphere of the Jiangnan ancient town everywhere they go. Here is a one-day tour guide for Xinchang Ancient Town.

Xinchang Ancient Town Cultural and Creative Space Check-in Route

Fou+ Cultural Experience Space → Yiqi Yihui Bookstore → First Floor Tea Garden → Impression Dali → 311 Artists Workshop → Wenshanji → Shanghai Nanshan Painting Academy → Rongyuan Yanju → Sikuku Study

Fou+ Cultural Experience Space

No. 46, Haiquan Street

Fou+ Cultural Experience Space officially settled in No. 46, Haiquan Street in 2018. It is the first offline flagship store opened by Art Pudong (Shanghai) Art Products Co., Ltd. and also the first cultural experience space in the ancient town. “Fou” comes from the alias “Old Fou” of the famous Haipai artist Wu Changshuo. The most representative feature of this store is the numerous artworks inspired by Wu Changshuo, which fully reflects the ingenious combination of traditional art and trendy design. At the same time, it integrates art derivatives, leisure teahouses, shared bookstores, training lectures, handmade experience courses and other content from other domestic and foreign artists, aiming to fully integrate Chinese traditional culture with modern life and recommend cultural and creative products that meet contemporary aesthetic standards to consumers. It has become a lifestyle that reflects cultural creativity and modern aesthetics.

As the most representative “cultural living room at the doorstep” in Xinchang’s cultural innovation, the “Fou+” cultural experience space integrates cultural functions such as art derivatives and fashion creative product sales, shared bookstores, coffee and tea drinks, and cultural activity spaces, playing its due role in enhancing the cultural connotation of Xinchang Ancient Town, creating an artistic atmosphere, enriching the form of experience, etc., and playing a positive role in the development of Xinchang’s cultural and creative industry. It provides a high-quality cultural leisure and activity space for tourists and local residents, allowing people to feel the new attitude and connotation of Xinchang Ancient Town.

Yiqi Yihui Bookstore

No. 65, Hongdong Street

Yiqi Yihui Bookstore was established on May 11, 2013. The new store is located at No. 65, Hongdong Street (next to Dongcang Bridge). The store has two floors, with tatami mats and a large terrace on the second floor. The store mainly operates coffee, tea drinks, craft beer, whiskey, clothing, Guqin (ancient Chinese zither) making experience, etc., aiming to create a comfortable comprehensive space and become the old base for many people!

The name “Yiqi Yihui” comes from Japanese tea ceremony, literally translated as “a meeting only once in a lifetime.” In our understanding, it should have both inward and outward meanings. For ourselves, every experience and mood in life is unrepeatable and unrepeatable, so please cherish your daily self! For the outside world, the universe, nature, the world, and society are also ever-changing, so please cherish, cherish the little things that happen every day in life, and cherish the people you see every day!

First Floor Tea Garden

No. 422, Xinchang Street

During the years of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the three brothers of the Gu family, Gu Yumei, Gu Menghua, and Gu Qintang, from Jiangqiao Village, Xinchang Town, successively embarked on the revolutionary road. Among them, Gu Menghua joined the revolution in 1940, engaged in underground revolutionary struggle, and received a task from the Party organization at the end of 1941. In order to facilitate cover, he sold his family’s land and partnered with Zhang Jinfan (chef) to open “Hongfuqiao Restaurant” on the bottom floor of the Diyilou teahouse on the south side of Hongqiao.

The restaurant is well located, with convenient water transport, and it is generally not noticed when strangers or acquaintances come to eat. From then on, Hongfu Restaurant became an underground liaison station for the underground party and the Pudong guerrillas. Qiu Zhongmin of the underground party was the accountant, and Di Songquan and Zhang Yongxiang were the waiters of the restaurant. There are two flat houses on the south side of Dongcang Bridge in Diyilou, which were rented by the underground party organization for underground party meetings and accommodation. Xiao Wang, then a member of the Pudong Work Committee of the Communist Party of China, was transferred to Pudong and hid in Xinchang to engage in underground revolutionary work, and he and Party member Zhu Xingmin lived and ate at Hongfu Restaurant for three years, playing an active role in transmitting information and leading the struggle.

In 2021, Shanghai Film Studio will hold the “Light and Shadow Commend a Century – Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China Film Theme Exhibition” at Diyilou. Through eight immersive scenes, a century-old wall of a hundred films, a song of light and shadow, Xinchang memory, and other exhibitions with distinctive forms and content, it will spread “red culture” and implement the oath of “never forgetting our original aspiration and keeping our mission in mind”.

Impression Dali

No. 381, Xinchang Street

Impression Dali Cultural Experience Hall is located in an old building with traditional style in Xinchang Ancient Town. It is surrounded by bridges and flowing water, with willows swaying outside the door. It is full of the charm of Jiangnan water towns. Walking in, you can see characteristic “good things” from Dali, Yunnan. The entire center is divided into four themed areas: Dali Tourism and Culture Exhibition and Experience Area, Dali “Intangible Cultural Heritage” Exhibition and Experience Area, Dali Agricultural and Special Products Exhibition and Experience Area, and Hudian Cooperation Achievement Exhibition and Experience Area, comprehensively showcasing the achievements of Dali culture and Hudian cooperation.

The agricultural and special products exhibition and experience area displays many characteristic products of Dali, such as “Yangbi walnuts”, “Nodendeng ham”, and “Pu’er tea”; in the “intangible cultural heritage” exhibition and experience area, “intangible cultural heritage” inheritors from Yunnan demonstrate wood carving and other skills on site; the cultural exhibition and experience area has a Heqing Diannan embroidery exhibition area, showcasing the charm of Bai embroidery; the Hudian cooperation achievement exhibition area comprehensively showcases the fruitful results of cooperation between Pudong and Dali in terms of talent support, financial support, etc.; a live broadcast room is also set up on site, which will regularly promote Dali’s characteristic products through online live broadcasts.

311 Artists Workshop

No. 311, Xinchang Street

The workshop is located in a small alley in No. 311, Xinchang Street, so it is named “311 Artists Workshop”. The workshop is not simply a remake of the traditional business model of storefront and back workshop, but an artistic space integrating display, training, experience, exchange, making friends, and products.

“Ruban She” was founded in 2010 by printmaking artists Cheng Liang and Zhang Wenxiu. After moving into 311, the couple said they would use the space to provide services for tourists in the ancient town, and by adding viewer experience courses, they would improve the public’s understanding of contemporary printmaking culture.

Every brick and tile, every grass and tree in the ancient town can become an endless source of inspiration for artists. Every artist who has moved in here seems to have found a home for their soul, not only as free as the wind but also harmonious with each other. They are deeply feeling the harmony between heaven, earth, and man, the authentic scenery of the ancient town, and they are also wholeheartedly injecting infinite possibilities into the ancient town, allowing it to radiate a vibrant vitality.

Wenshanji

No. 203, Donghou Old Street

Wenshanji takes “secret realm” as its renovation concept. The decoration, scenery, home furnishings, furnishings, utensils, exhibitions, and special drinks are all carefully designed, just right. Through the application of various modern artistic renovation methods, it not only preserves the original temperament of the ancient house but also exudes an artistic atmosphere everywhere. It has created an artistic leisure space that integrates tradition and modernity, art and life. It is a new cultural landmark in Xinchang Ancient Town! The cleverly integrated ancient wood carved screen and colored glass are inspired by the holy light of the church. After being baptized by the artistic holy light, the beautiful scenery of Wenshanji comes into view. The art bar counter that creates a strong contrast between tradition and modernity, the leisure sofa under the peach tree, the courtyard with koi carp and the sound of gurgling water, the art exhibition hall for quiet appreciation, and the handicraft workshop with colorful cotton thread walls interpreting the aesthetics of light. Every corner is a great place to take pictures.

An important part of Wenshanji, the “Master Studio”, has cooperated with many well-known artists from Xinchang and abroad to jointly create a new situation for cultural innovation in Xinchang. In the future, Wenshanji will continue to have new resident masters. In addition to the exhibition of their works, there will also be art salons, art teaching, cultural and creative product development, and other forms of cooperation.

Shanghai Nanshan Painting Academy

No. 9, Lane 68, Donghou Old Street

Shanghai Nanshan Painting Academy was established in October 2015. It was initiated by Zhu Zhongmin (Dayang), a famous and powerful calligrapher and painter in Shanghai, and jointly established by four other directors who are good at collection, seal carving, and literature. The Painting Academy aims to attract and organize professional calligraphers and painters, art lovers, and other cultural groups to work together to learn, exchange, and explore traditional calligraphy and painting art, enriching and promoting the rapid development of regional cultural undertakings.

The Painting Academy currently has over 50 registered artists, covering various art categories such as painting, calligraphy, seal carving, and collection. It is advised by experts such as Xiao Haichun, a master of arts and crafts, Cai Guosheng, a famous connoisseur of antique jade, Xu Jianrong, a professor of art history, and Fang Baihua, a cultural scholar. Over the years, the Painting Academy has attracted the attention and participation of over 500 loyal fans from all over the country through public lectures, various large-scale calligraphy and painting exhibitions, albums, WeChat public account information release, and various activities such as elegant gatherings, writing meetings, field trips, concentrated creation, and volunteer services. During this period, with the care and support of relevant government departments and all sectors of society, the artists have created a large number of excellent works, held and participated in various high-level exhibitions, and the Painting Academy has also provided a good platform for learning and exchange for a large number of professionals and non-professionals who are interested in calligraphy and painting art. “Shanghai Nanshan Painting Academy” has become one of the most influential cultural groups in Pudong and one of the well-known painting academies in Shanghai. Shanghai Nanshan Painting Academy is closed on Fridays and Sundays, and open at other times: 9:00-16:00.

Rongyuan Yanju

No. 41 and 45, Xinchang Street

Rongyuan is located at No. 45, Xinchang Street. “Oriental Art Residence” and “Cultural Living Room” are the first impressions tourists have of it. In addition to tea tasting, fragrance appreciation, elegant gatherings, exchanges, and exhibitions, it also provides services such as space rental, calligraphy and painting course experience, cultural and creative product development and design, and ancient book and painting restoration. The “Shunsan Ten Scenery” color painting set developed by its team was rated as “Xinchang Gifts” – the 2019 New Eight of Xinchang.

Sikuku Study

No. 289, Xinhhuan South Road

“Sikuku Study · Xinchang Elegant Gathering” is a characteristic cultural space that harmoniously combines tradition and innovation. It is jointly built by Shanghai Xinchang Cultural Development Co., Ltd. and Shanghai Yushulou Cultural Communication Center. It is the traditional culture inheritance base of the China Huaxia Cultural Heritage Foundation and the Xinchang Ancient Town Cultural Heritage Inheritance Base. It is the cultural landmark of Xinchang, a national characteristic town in Shanghai.

“Sikuku Study” strives to reproduce the ancient book collection pavilion and the study of elegant gatherings for scholars. It houses bound volumes of the “Complete Works of the Four Treasuries”, antique furniture made of golden nanmu, and top-notch stationery in China. It aims to use Confucian classics, poetry, calligraphy and painting appreciation as the carrier. In the form of study gatherings and elegant gatherings for conversation, it creates a place of tranquility and peace beyond the hustle and bustle of the world, returns to the reading interests and emotions of ancient Chinese scholars, and combines various forms of communication such as lectures by famous masters and free discussions to spread and inherit China’s excellent traditional culture, perfect and enrich the cultural cultivation and lifestyle of participants. At the same time, Sikuku Study is also the traditional culture inheritance base of the China Huaxia Cultural Heritage Foundation, the location of the Dartmouth College Institute of Chinese Calligraphy and Manuscript Culture in the United States, the 3A-level “Youth Center” of Pudong New Area, and the 2017 Pudong New Area “Two New Organizations” Group Building Work Demonstration Point, and the “Creative Space” of the Xinchang Town Group Home.

For many years, it has adhered to the motto of “explaining the old regime and assisting the new mandate, and reaching the highest level of morality”, and implemented the spirit of General Secretary Xi’s instruction to “be good at inheriting in order to be good at innovating”, in the quaint and elegant Chinese study, holding cultural forums, developing cultural and creative products, compiling local literature, benefiting the people, and assisting the government.