Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province is a famous tourist city. Although not big, it has a concentration of more than 40 scenic spots, which would take at least a week to visit. The 6-square-kilometer West Lake is the pride of this provincial capital city and most sites of interest are around it. Unlike the man-made lakes of other cities, West Lake is natural and its sights are delightful, no matter what the season. Scholars and poets have left a legacy of rhapsodic poetry and prose after visiting the lake, and some settled, or stayed on to live the life of a hermit.

    Along with the beautiful scenery and places of interest, West Lake has many romantic tales. Classical stories include that of the love between a young man named Xu Xian and the "white snake," an immortal whose earthly form was that of a beautiful woman, but who also took on the shape of a white snake if she drank wine. Their love was not tolerated by society and the white snake was eventually imprisoned under Leifeng Tower and Xu Xian's family fragmented.

    Modern Hangzhou inhabitants are very romantic and West Lake is now the place where young people go courting. At nightfall couples can be seen along the lakeshore, as on the Shanghai Bund.

The romantic nature of Hangzhou inhabitants has nurtured the quality of local artists. Hangzhou has produced numerous scholars and men of letters and the city is permeated with an artistic atmosphere.

For a Hangzhou city tour, tourists usually connect the tour with some other scenes, such as Suzhou private garden tour or Yellow Mountain tour, which often ends at Shanghai.
Tour Route suggested:
Day 1. Leave Shanghai in the morning and arrive at Hangzhou before noon. Have a Westlake tour, stay overnight by the lake
Day 2. Go to Yellow Mountain and stay over night on the top
Day 3. Get down and have a tour over the Ming Villages at foot of the mountain stay over night at Tunxi and have a stroll over a Ming commercial street.
Day 4. Go to Suzhou ( 4 hours ) and have a tour in the afternoon. Stay at Suzhou downtown as the hotel rate is much cheaper than those in Shanghai. Have a night city tour at downtown Suzhou.
Day 5. Back to your Shanghai hotel or Shanghai International Airport.
For detailed info. Please drop in a mail to john@chinahuangshan.com 
http://www.shanghai-huangshan.net