---
title: "Jiangnan Great Wall Day Trip: Climb the Taizhou Prefecture Wall, Wander Ziyang Street (from Shanghai or Zhejiang) | LyrikTrip"
description: "You don't have to go to Beijing to stand on the Great Wall. This private day trip from Shanghai or Zhejiang takes you up the Taizhou Prefecture Wall in Linhai, known as the “Jiangnan Great Wall” — built by the Ming general Qi Jiguang while he fought off pirates, and later the blueprint for the northern Ming wall — and far quieter on weekdays than Badaling. Lunch is street food on Ziyang Street, and you're back at your hotel the same night. From $343 per person, with private car, high-speed rail, entrance tickets and guide all included."
type: "experience"
theme: "Jiangnan Great Wall"
url: "https://www.lyriktrip.com/experience/linhai-jiangnan-great-wall-day-trip"
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# Climb the Great Wall without going to Beijing

Climb the Taizhou Prefecture Wall, the blueprint for the northern Ming Great Wall

*Jiangnan Great Wall Day Trip*

## Key facts

- Price: From $343 per person
- What you'll see: The “blueprint” for the northern Great Wall
- Crowds: Quieter than Badaling on weekdays
- Duration: One day (about 13 hours)
- Departure: Shanghai or Zhejiang, hotel pickup and drop-off
- Group type: Private tour · from 1 traveler

## Want to climb the Great Wall, but your trip is in *Shanghai or Zhejiang*?

The Great Wall is the first wish on a lot of travelers' lists for China. But if your itinerary is in Shanghai or Zhejiang, getting to Badaling means a four-hour-plus high-speed train to Beijing first, and shuffling through holiday crowds once you're there. You don't have to go that far. The Taizhou Prefecture Wall in Linhai, Zhejiang, is known as the “Jiangnan Great Wall”: the Ming general Qi Jiguang fought pirates here, and it was he who built its two-storey hollow watchtowers. When he was posted north later on, the design went with him, onto the Ming Great Wall. The architectural historian Luo Zhewen called this wall the “model” and the “blueprint” for the northern Ming wall. You leave your hotel in the morning, stand on the ramparts in the afternoon, and sleep in your own bed that night.

## What you get on the *Jiangnan Great Wall*

Climb for the view, shoot without the crowds, plus a pirate-fighting story and old-street snacks

- **Stand on the ramparts and look out over river and town**: The wall runs along the Ling River on one side and up over Beigu Hill on the other. Climb the Haohan Slope and the rooftops of the old town and the whole river are below you — the “standing on the Great Wall” moment you had in mind.
- **Skip the crowds**: On weekdays this stretch of wall is far quieter than Badaling. No waiting ages for a photo, and you can sit down and rest whenever your legs want a break. Holidays do get busy here, so avoid them if quiet is what you're after.
- **A real pirate-fighting story**: Pirates, a celebrated general, and a curved rampart built to keep out enemies and floods at the same time — your guide talks as you walk, and you'll find out how the watchtowers on the northern Great Wall were learned from here.
- **An old street that's still lived in**: The old shops on Ziyang Street are all still trading. Lunch happens right there on the street: freshly fried egg-white “sheep's tails”, seaweed biscuits hot off the griddle. None of it is a set dressed up for tourists.

## What to see on the wall, *what to eat on Ziyang Street*

Your guide stops at these spots up on the wall, and picks out a few snacks with you on Ziyang Street.

### Two-storey hollow watchtower (signature)

Built under Qi Jiguang's direction, with two levels and room for troops to shelter from the rain. It's the ancestor of the watchtowers on the northern Ming Great Wall — stand inside and you're standing at the beginning of the Great Wall's story.

### The barbican and the curved bastion (signature)

The side facing the Ling River was deliberately built as a semicircle, so floodwater flows around it. The wall still shields the old town from flooding today.

### The Beigu Hill stretch and Haohan Slope

The steepest section, and the best one for photos. Climb it and the wall winds along the ridge with the whole old town at your feet.

### Ziyang Street (signature)

More than a kilometre of old street at the foot of the wall, and officially a Chinese Historical and Cultural Street. Egg-white “sheep's tails” are crisp outside and soft within, seaweed biscuits come straight off the griddle, and a shibingtong is one thin crepe rolled full of fillings.

### Egg-white “sheep's tail” (signature)

A famous Linhai snack: egg whites whipped stiff, wrapped around red bean paste and deep-fried. Crisp outside, soft inside, and named for its resemblance to a sheep's tail.

### Seaweed biscuit

A freshly baked flaky pastry with a seaweed filling — savoury, crisp, and often worth a queue at the old shops on Ziyang Street.

### Fried prawn fritter

Fresh prawns and minced pork in a batter, deep-fried until golden and puffed, and eaten hot as you walk.

### Sweet-and-sour mochi in egg

Soft glutinous rice cake wrapped in egg and griddled, then finished with a sweet-and-sour sauce. Sweet with a tang.

## Your *itinerary*

Timings below assume a Shanghai departure and are for reference; actual train times depend on the tickets issued. Departures from Zhejiang are adjusted to your starting point.

- **07:30** · Leave your hotel (Shanghai example): A private car collects you from your hotel and takes you to Shanghai Hongqiao Station, with your guide travelling alongside. Train tickets are booked in advance using your passport details.
- **08:50** · High-speed rail to Linhai: About 3 hours. You reach Linhai Station around midday, where a local private car is waiting outside for you.
- **12:30** · Lunch on Ziyang Street: Work your way through Linhai's snacks on the old street, one thing at a time, with your guide ordering for you. Please tell us about any dietary restrictions or allergies in advance.
- **13:30** · Climb the Jiangnan Great Wall: Walk the riverside stretch first to see the barbican, then head up Beigu Hill and past the hollow watchtowers. How far you go is up to you, and you can come down off the wall whenever you're tired.
- **16:30** · Head home: Take an early-evening high-speed train back, reaching Shanghai Hongqiao around 21:00, where a private car returns you to your hotel. Dinner isn't included; you can pick up snacks on Ziyang Street to eat on the train.

> **Why eat first and climb after** — You arrive in Linhai right at lunchtime, and Ziyang Street sits at the foot of the wall. Eat properly first, then go up — otherwise the afternoon's steps are hard going.

## Before *you go*

- Duration: One day, about 13 hours, including roughly 6 hours of high-speed rail round trip
- Departure: Available from Shanghai or Zhejiang, with hotel pickup and drop-off; the timings shown assume a Shanghai departure
- Group type: Private tour, from 1 traveler (solo travelers, please ask us first); 6 or more pay the 5-person rate
- Guide: English and Chinese as standard; German, French, Spanish, Italian and others on request in advance
- Documents: Please bring your original passport — high-speed rail and the scenic area both require names registered to each traveler
- Fitness: The Beigu Hill steps are steep; you can walk only the gentler riverside stretch

### Included

- Private car between your hotel and the high-speed rail station
- Round-trip high-speed rail tickets
- Local transport in Linhai
- Taizhou Prefecture Wall entrance tickets
- Ziyang Street street-food lunch
- Guide throughout

### Not included

- Dinner
- Personal expenses
- Gratuities

## Badaling — *or the Jiangnan Great Wall*?

From Shanghai, it's the same Great Wall, and a far easier day

- Badaling means a four-hour-plus high-speed train to Beijing; the Jiangnan Great Wall is about 3 hours by high-speed rail
- Badaling usually means a night in Beijing; here you set off in the morning and you're back at your hotel the same day
- Badaling is crowded in peak season and on holidays; here weekdays are quiet and you don't queue for photos
- At Badaling you see the Great Wall; here you climb the “blueprint” for the northern wall and hear the pirate-fighting story from start to finish

## Add the Great Wall *to your Shanghai and Zhejiang trip*

Tell us where you're starting from (Shanghai or Zhejiang), your dates and how many people are travelling, and we'll confirm the train tickets and guide. English and Chinese guides as standard; other languages on request in advance.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is the Jiangnan Great Wall the Great Wall?

It isn't the Great Wall that runs past Beijing — it's the Taizhou Prefecture Wall in Linhai, Zhejiang, also called the “Jiangnan Great Wall” or “Jiangnan Badaling”. The hollow watchtowers Qi Jiguang built here were later used on the northern Ming Great Wall, which is why this wall is called its “blueprint”.

### How long does it take to get to Linhai from Shanghai? Can it be done in a day?

Shanghai Hongqiao to Linhai is about 3 hours by high-speed rail, so a day trip works. On a Shanghai departure we collect you from your hotel around 07:30 and return you around 21:00; from Zhejiang, everything is arranged around your departure point.

### Can we start from Zhejiang?

Yes. We depart from either Shanghai or Zhejiang and pick you up at your hotel; train times and departure times are rearranged around where you're starting from, and the times on this page assume a Shanghai departure.

### Is the wall hard to climb? Can older travelers and children manage it?

The riverside stretch is fairly gentle, while the Beigu Hill section has steep steps. How far you walk is up to you, and you can stick to the gentle stretch. If anyone in your group has limited mobility, please tell us in advance.

### Why does the price per person go down when more people come?

The private car and guide are arranged for the group as a whole, so the more people travelling together, the less each person pays. Three and four people pay the same rate; five or more get the best per-person price.

### What language does the guide speak?

English and Chinese guides are provided as standard; German, French, Spanish, Italian and other languages need to be arranged in advance when you book.

### What documents do we need to bring?

Please bring your original passport. High-speed rail and the scenic area both require names registered to each traveler, and we book your train tickets and entrance passes in advance using your passport details.

### What documents do I need to bring?

Please bring your original passport. Both high-speed rail and tourist sites require name-matched entry; we’ll book your tickets in advance using the passport details.

## Jiangnan Great Wall Day Trip

From $343 per person · Taizhou Prefecture Wall + Ziyang Street · Back at your hotel the same day