Wenzhou

About Wenzhou

Wenzhou faces the East China Sea from the mouth of the Ou River in southern Zhejiang, a port city with a dialect so distinctive that even other Chinese struggle to follow it. It is famous across China for its enterprising merchants, and Wenzhou families run shops and restaurants from Italy to France and beyond.

The city has deep cultural roots: Southern opera, one of the earliest forms of Chinese theatre, developed here during the Song dynasty, and poets have praised the river island of Jiangxin for more than fifteen centuries. Around the city, the municipality takes in some of the finest scenery in eastern China, from the strange peaks and waterfalls of Yandang Mountain to the clear Nanxi River and the old covered bridges of Taishun.

Offshore, island groups such as Dongtou and Nanji offer beaches and marine life. Wenzhou's food leans on the sea, with fish balls, seafood stews and sweet glutinous rice breakfasts, and the old shopping lanes of Wuma Street are made for a slow evening stroll.