Shengyuan Gardens

Be a tourist in your adopted city and take a stroll down to this exquisite former residence

By the looks of the exquisite residence and gardens of Shengyuan, it seems that if you really wanted to live in luxury during the Qing dynasty you were best off being the postmaster.

Sheng Xuanhua was undoubtedly a well-respected man who set about many of the modern reforms of the post office, advising the emperor in 1911 to centralise control of the post office to Beijing. He is also well respected for his suggestion that each province in China should be given its own railway system.

Such keen insight granted Sheng Xuanhua a princely sum of money, which he ploughed into constructing his estate. Located in a hutong off Jiu Gulou Dajie, Shengyuan’s gardens are in a typical Suzhou style, and have often been compared to those in the Forbidden City for their grace and beauty.

The tranquillity extends to the pond in the middle of the garden, which is enclosed by a number of large jagged rock features, all of which you can see from the lengthy white balcony that extends out from the residence in the east of the compound.

For all of its aesthetically pleasing features, the garden does have a certain amount of functionality, with half the space dedicated to cultivating exotic flowers and herbs.

Alas, such an opulent residence is no longer befitting of a postie, and it has been converted in to the boutique Bamboo Garden Hotel that houses both the Zero Point restaurant and a bar.

It still maintains much of its authentic feel, and best of all, it means you are free to enter at any time and walk around the beautiful gardens.

Shengyuan Gardens 24 Xiaoshi Hutong, Jiu Gulou Dajie, Xicheng district. Open 6am-10pm daily. 盛园,西城区旧鼓楼大街小石桥胡同24号