Ningbo

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Zhejiang : Ningbo
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Ningbo (宁波; Níngbō) is a port city in Zhejiang province.

[edit] Understand

After one of the Opium Wars in the 19th century, China was forced to open five Treaty Ports for foreign trade, including Ningbo. The others were Guangzhou, Xiamen, Fuzhou and Shanghai.

[edit] Get in

Fly to Shanghai and take train, bus, or hire a car to get to Ningbo. Bus time from Shanghai to Ningbo is two or two and a half hours. It takes about 4 hours by car from Shanghai. Train time is about 3 hours (it goes through HangZhou).

[edit] Get around

Taxis are ¥9 for the first 3km. Bus is ¥1 (¥2 with air conditionning), but you must know the bus routes - stops are not announced in English.

[edit] Money matters

As a foreigner, you can exchange your money at all major banks. A maybe wiser alternative is to use your foreign debit card. International ATMs (Plus/Maestro) can give about ¥1,000 (about 100,- Euros) out of each ATM each day, which should be sufficient. ATMs can be found all over the place.

[edit][add listing] See

  • Tian Yi Square. The city's main square.
  • Moon Lake. The main city park, originally built in 636.
  • Tian Yi Library. A garden pavilion built in the 16th century.
  • Lao Waitan. The "old bund", a popular nightlife district.

[edit][add listing] Do

Go to the island

[edit][add listing] Buy

  • cheap clothing - Chenghuang Temple.
  • brand-names - Tian Yi Square.
  • Carrefour (家乐福超市), 248 Zhongxing Road, Ningbo City，宁波中兴路248. Tel: +86-(0) 574-87771211. With parking lot.
  • Metro (麦德隆超市), 1 Maidelong Road, Ningbo City， 宁波麦德隆路1号 Tel: +86-(0) 574-88208888. Also with large parking lot. You will need a metro card to do your purchase. People, however, tend to be quite helpful - if you ask them to borrow their card, they are happy to help. That's because in China the metro card does not come along with any credit card abilities unlike sometimes seen in Germany.
  • Sanfo is the leading outdoor gear stores in China and their store in Ningbo is located at 1227-1229 Baizhang Dong Lu, Jiangdong District

[edit][add listing] Eat

For an experience, go the 35th floor revolving restaurant in the centre of town. It takes 2 hours to revolve, giving you a spectacular view of the city and the meeting of the Three River Mouths.

  • TianXiang YuanKongZhong ShiShang CanTing (Revolving Restaurant), 35/F, 181 Zhongshan Dong Road. They are open most of the day, but evening is best. They close at 9pm, so go at least before 7pm. Book in advance if you want a window seat. Reservation Telephone : 0574-8725-7177 – 0. Two of you can eat a basic meal for about 100-200 RMB, though if you want to splurge and try out the delicacies on their rather large menu be prepared to pay more.

Ningbo's local seafood style is called "Yong cuisine".

  • Shipu Restaurant (石浦大酒店) [1]. Two locations, 60 Yangyue Jie (tel:8732 8777) at Moon Lake, and 7 Gongqing Road (tel:8730 7470) at Tian Yi Square. Considered one of the best restaurants in Ningbo.

[edit] Splurge

  • Waitan Huiguan (外灘会馆), Waimalu (外马路) 17. Ningbo. Reservations: 5 74 – 87 35-16 38, Fx: -13 38, 87 35 09 38. Clean Teppanyaki place. Their pricing is also somewhat spectacular - a dinner for two relieves you of about 1,200 RMB. Nevertheless, the food is quite well prepared. Service was also quite attentive.

[edit][add listing] Drink

[edit][add listing] Sleep

[edit] Budget

  • Ningbo Home Inn, Zhengming Lu, Zhangqi Xiang 21 Hao(near Moon Lake).
  • Ningbo Lizhai International Youth Hotel, 77 Gongqing Road (near Moon Lake).

[edit] Mid-range

  • Ningbo Kylie Hotel. Jicao Jie 76 Hao (downtown Jiangdong near Sheraton)
  • Ningbo Hotel. Ma Yuan Road 251. Tel:+86 574 8709-7888. [2] Room rates are with about 240 RMB per night relatively okay. Though it is a rather old hotel, it was just freshly renovated in 2005. It is not far away from the city center. By cab I'd say 7 minutes (during rush hour it could be 15 min).

[edit] Splurge

  • Ningbo Howard Johnson hotel, Liuting Jie , 230 Hao (near Moon lake)
  • Ningbo Nanyuan hotel, 2 Lingqiao Road. Tel:+86 574 8709-5678

[edit] Get out

  • Bus Buses leave Ningbo's south bus station every ten to twenty minutes for Hangzhou, China's most popular domestic destination. Shanghai is also served by frequent, comfortable buses.
  • Boat The beautiful Buddhist island Putuoshan is a short bus ride and boat trip away, but can feel like a million miles from the hustle and bustle of the city. The ticket (bus and boat included) costs approximately 60 RMB.
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