# Yu Garden, Shanghai

> Yu Garden (Yuyuan) is a 16th-century classical Chinese garden in Shanghai's Old City, about 1 km south of the Bund: rockeries, carp ponds and carved pavilions. Tickets are ¥40 in spring and autumn, ¥30 in winter. It opens Tuesday to Sunday, roughly 9:00–16:30, and closes on Mondays. Allow 1–1.5 hours.

Web page: https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/yu-garden

- City: [Shanghai](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai), China
- YesGo score: 46/100 (Yes, if nearby)
- Time on site: 1 h 15 min
- With kids: Fine with kids
- Ticket: ¥40 in spring and autumn, ¥30 December–March; July–August ¥30 or ¥40, guides differ
- Concessions: Students and seniors half price with ID
- Hours: Tue–Sun ≈ 9:00–16:30, last entry 16:00
- Closed: Mondays, except Chinese public holidays
- Address: 168 Fuyou Road (福佑路168号), Huangpu District
- Metro: Yuyuan Garden, Lines 10 and 14 — Exit 1, about 10 minutes' walk
- Payment: WeChat Pay or Alipay with a foreign Visa/Mastercard; carry some yuan as backup
- Time needed: 1–1.5 hours inside; half a day with the bazaar and temple
- Coordinates: 31.22917, 121.48750
- Facts checked: 04.11.2026

## Key facts

- **1559** — year official Pan Yunduan began the garden for his father (source: English, Chinese and Russian Wikipedia; Wanderin China)
- **¥30–40** — adult ticket by season, higher in spring and autumn (source: unofficial: Wanderin China, Trip.com; Shanghai government lists ¥40)
- **Mon** — weekly closing day, except public holidays (source: unofficial: Dahepiao, Trip.com, Wanderin China)
- **≈ 2 ha** — garden area — far smaller than Suzhou's big gardens (source: English Wikipedia; Wanderin China (about 20,000 m²))
- **3.3 m** — height of the Exquisite Jade Rock, the garden's star stone (source: English Wikipedia; Wanderin China)
- **12–14 m** — height of the Great Rockery of yellow stone (source: English Wikipedia (12 m); Chinese Wikipedia and Wanderin China (about 14 m))
- **1853–55** — Dianchun Hall served as the Small Swords Society's headquarters (source: English and Chinese Wikipedia; Wanderin China)
- **1961** — opened to the public after the 1956–61 restoration (source: English and Chinese Wikipedia)
- **1982** — listed as a national monument (source: English and Chinese Wikipedia)
- **1784** — the Huxinting pavilion was built on the pond; it became a teahouse in 1855 (source: Chinese Wikipedia (湖心亭茶楼); English Wikipedia)
- **豫园** — Chinese name, Yùyuán — signs use both Yu Garden and Yuyuan Garden (source: English, Chinese and Russian Wikipedia)

## Yu Garden tickets and prices

**An adult ticket costs ¥40** in spring and autumn and **¥30** from December to March. Guides disagree on July and August: Wanderin China says ¥30, Trip.com ¥40. Students and seniors with ID pay half. The Shanghai government's guide to the city's classical gardens simply lists ¥40, so we mark the price as being checked.

You can buy at the ticket office by the gate or in advance through the 豫园票务 WeChat mini-program, Trip.com or Klook. Weekend and Chinese-holiday queues at the window can be long, so booking ahead saves time. The ticket covers the garden only — the City God Temple next door charges separately.

Paying: the Shanghai government confirms foreign visitors can link overseas Visa or Mastercard cards to WeChat Pay and Alipay, which is how nearly everything around the bazaar is paid for. Set it up before you fly, and carry some yuan in small notes as a backup.

> **Closed on Mondays** Yu Garden shuts every Monday except on Chinese public holidays. The bazaar and the City God Temple stay open, so it is easy to turn up on a Monday and find the garden gate locked. Plan it for Tuesday to Sunday and arrive before 16:00 — that is when the last visitors are let in.

## Yu Garden opening hours

The garden opens **Tuesday to Sunday, roughly 9:00–16:30**, with last entry at 16:00, and is **closed on Mondays** except public holidays. That is what Dahepiao's day-by-day calendar and Trip.com's UK guide show. Wanderin China and Trip.com's main page give an 8:30 opening, and Trip.com a 17:00 close in spring and autumn, so treat the times as unofficial.

The garden's own website returned no content when we checked, but every source agrees on the essentials: Mondays off, closing around 16:30, last entry half an hour earlier. There is no regular evening opening — the lit-up rooftops you see at night belong to the bazaar outside.

Around Chinese New Year the Yuyuan Lantern Festival fills the bazaar and the Old City with giant lanterns. It is a separate evening event with its own tickets — the paid zone cost ¥80 for adults last season — and your daytime garden ticket does not cover it. Expect serious crowds those weeks.

## How to get to Yu Garden

1. From the Bund at Nanjing Road, walk to **East Nanjing Road** station and take Line 10 towards Hongqiao.
2. Ride one stop to **Yuyuan Garden**. Line 14 also stops here, handy from Lujiazui in Pudong or from Jing'an Temple.
3. Leave by **Exit 1** (South Henan Road, Renmin Road, Yu Garden). Walk east along Fuyou Road (福佑路) into the bazaar and follow the 豫园 / Yu Garden signs — about 550 m as the crow flies, roughly 10 minutes.
4. The garden gate is beyond the pond with the zigzag Nine-Turn Bridge and the Huxinting Teahouse. The bridge and pond are free; the ticket office is at the garden gate.
5. On foot from the Bund it is about 1 km due south, 15–20 minutes: head west from the riverfront to Renmin Road and enter the Old City from the north.
6. By taxi or DiDi, show 豫园 or the address 福佑路168号. The bazaar lanes are pedestrian, so you will be dropped at the edge.

## Is Yu Garden worth visiting?

Yes, if this is your first time in Shanghai and Suzhou is not on your list. For ¥30–40 and an hour or so you get a genuine Ming-era classical garden in the city centre, with the Old City, the bazaar and a working Taoist temple on the doorstep. Go at opening on a weekday, before the paths fill up.

Skip the ticket if you have already seen Suzhou's gardens or are heading there: Yu Garden is smaller, busier and wrapped in a shopping district. In that case the free Nine-Turn Bridge and a wander through the bazaar are enough. Avoid weekend and holiday afternoons, when there are queues on the narrow paths and the rockery steps.

## What to see inside Yu Garden

- **Great Rockery (大假山)** — thousands of tonnes of yellow stone piled 12–14 m high, said to be the oldest rockery of its kind in the region. Narrow, steep steps lead to the top.
- **Exquisite Jade Rock (玉玲珑)** — a 3.3 m porous boulder, one of the three famous stones of southern China. Legend says it was bound for Emperor Huizong's garden when its boat sank.
- **Dragon walls** — grey-tiled wall ridges ending in dragon heads, dividing the garden into separate courtyards.
- **Dianchun Hall** — headquarters of the Small Swords Society uprising in 1853–55.
- **Inner Garden** — the quietest corner, with a pond and an old opera stage; tour groups often turn back before reaching it.
- **Covered galleries over the water** — the best spots for photos of pavilions, carp and the Pudong towers beyond the roofs.
- **Nine-Turn Bridge and Huxinting Teahouse** — just outside the wall: the pavilion on the pond dates from 1784 and has served tea since 1855.

## A short history of Yu Garden

Yu Garden is a **Ming-dynasty classical garden** of about two hectares behind a high wall in Shanghai's Old City. Official Pan Yunduan started it in **1559** for his elderly father, the minister Pan En; serious building resumed in 1577 and took nearly two decades. The name comes from 豫, meaning to please or bring peace — hence “Garden of Happiness”.

Over the following centuries it changed hands and parts went to merchant guilds; in 1853–55 Dianchun Hall was the Small Swords Society's headquarters. The garden was restored in **1956–61**, opened to everyone in 1961 and became a national monument in **1982**. Much of what you see is careful reconstruction rather than untouched 16th-century walls.

## Yu Garden vs Suzhou's gardens

|  | Yu Garden | Humble Administrator's Garden, Suzhou |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Where | Central Shanghai, Old City | Suzhou, 25–40 minutes by high-speed train |
| Ticket | ¥30–40 by season | ¥70–80, booking with passport |
| Closed | Mondays | Open daily |
| UNESCO | No | Yes |
| Time needed | 1–1.5 hours | A full day trip |

Suzhou figures come from our [Suzhou](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/suzhou) page, based on the Suzhou Gardens Bureau. Short on time — Yu Garden; a free day — Suzhou.

## Before you go: checklist

- [ ] Not going on a Monday
- [ ] At the gate before 16:00
- [ ] WeChat Pay or Alipay set up with a foreign card
- [ ] Some yuan in small notes
- [ ] Chinese name 豫园 saved for the taxi
- [ ] Comfortable shoes for the rockery steps
- [ ] Remember: the City God Temple charges separately

## Historic Shanghai compared

Historic sights in Shanghai rated by YesGo.

- [The Bund](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/the-bund) — YesGo score 59/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free
- [Oriental Pearl Tower](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/oriental-pearl-tower) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ¥199 — two spheres
- [Yu Garden](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/yu-garden) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · ¥30–40 by season
- [Shanghai Maglev](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-maglev) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · ¥50, ¥40 with a same-day flight
- [Nanjing Road](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/nanjing-road) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Shanghai Museum](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-museum) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ¥148 show; Museum East free
- [People's Square](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-peoples-square) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · Free
- [People's Park](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-peoples-park) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 40 min · Free
- [Shanghai Old City](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-old-city) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Xintiandi](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xintiandi) — YesGo score 41/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Tianzifang](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/tianzifang) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [City God Temple](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-city-god-temple) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · ≈ ¥10 (one guide says free)
- [Former French Concession](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-french-concession) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · Free
- [Wukang Road](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/wukang-road) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Free
- [Suzhou](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/suzhou) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · Train ≈ ¥30–45, garden ¥70–80
- [Jing'an Temple](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/jingan-temple) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 40 min · ≈ ¥50
- [Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-urban-planning-center) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · Free, booking required
- [Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-jewish-refugees-museum) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · CNY 20; students 10, 60+ 15
- [Jade Buddha Temple](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/jade-buddha-temple) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Free; Jade Buddha hall ≈ ¥10
- [Longhua Temple](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/longhua-temple) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · ≈ ¥10 (one guide says free)
- [Zhujiajiao](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/zhujiajiao) — YesGo score 24/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · Free entry; three sights ¥60
- [Xitang](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xitang) — YesGo score 16/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · ≈ ¥95 by day, free in the evening

## The Bund, Yu Garden and the Old City in a day

Morning on the Bund, a walk south to Yu Garden, the City God Temple, Old Street west and an evening in Xintiandi. Add them to your route — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

1. [The Bund](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/the-bund) — YesGo score 59/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Free
2. [Yu Garden](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/yu-garden) — YesGo score 46/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · ¥30–40 by season
3. [City God Temple](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-city-god-temple) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 30 min · ≈ ¥10 (one guide says free)
4. [Shanghai Old City](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-old-city) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
5. [Xintiandi](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/xintiandi) — YesGo score 41/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free

## Good to know

Yu Garden is the walled, ticketed garden. The Yuyuan Bazaar around it is free streets of shops and snacks, and the [City God Temple](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-city-god-temple), less than 200 m away, is a separate sight with its own ticket. The whole surrounding district is the [Old City](https://yesgo.io/china/shanghai/shanghai-old-city). “Yu Garden” and “Yuyuan Garden” are the same place.

## Tips

- Arrive at opening, Tuesday to Thursday — by midday tour groups fill both the garden and the bazaar.
- Use Exit 1 at Yuyuan Garden station; the station has many exits and others leave you circling the district.
- See the garden first and shop afterwards — bags are a nuisance on the rockery's narrow steps.
- The classic shot of a pavilion with Pudong's towers behind comes from the galleries over the pond; it is people-free only in the first hour.
- Pair it with the City God Temple, two minutes' walk away — it also closes around 16:30.
- Afterwards walk west along Old Street into the Old City, where the crowds thin and food gets cheaper.
- Google Maps is blocked in China without a VPN or roaming eSIM — save 豫园 and an offline map before you go.

## Questions

### How much is a Yu Garden ticket?

¥40 in spring and autumn, ¥30 from December to March; guides differ on July and August (¥30 or ¥40). Students and seniors pay half.

### Is Yu Garden closed on Mondays?

Yes, every Monday except Chinese public holidays. The bazaar and the City God Temple next door stay open.

### What are Yu Garden's opening hours?

Tuesday to Sunday, roughly 9:00–16:30, last entry 16:00. One guide gives an 8:30 opening; the figures are unofficial.

### Do I need to book Yu Garden tickets in advance?

Not usually — the gate office sells tickets. On weekends and Chinese holidays, booking via the 豫园票务 WeChat mini-program, Trip.com or Klook saves queuing.

### Which metro station is closest?

Yuyuan Garden on Lines 10 and 14. Take Exit 1 and walk about 10 minutes east through the bazaar.

### How long do you need at Yu Garden?

1–1.5 hours for the garden; half a day with the bazaar, the City God Temple and lunch.

### Is Yu Garden worth it?

Yes for a first trip to Shanghai, especially if you won't reach Suzhou. If you've seen Suzhou's gardens, the free bridge and bazaar may be enough.

### Is Yu Garden the same as the Yuyuan Bazaar?

No. The garden is the walled, ticketed part; the bazaar is the free shopping and food streets around it.

### Can you visit Yu Garden at night?

No, the garden closes around 16:30. In the evening the bazaar is lit up, and around Chinese New Year there is a separately ticketed lantern festival.

## How we checked

The garden's official website returned no content when we checked, so price and hours are marked as being checked. The Shanghai government lists ¥40 with no seasons; Wanderin China and Trip.com give ¥40/¥30 by season but disagree on July–August (¥30 vs ¥40), so both are shown; Dahepiao's ¥30 with ¥15 concessions matches the low-season rate. 9:00–16:30 with last entry 16:00 comes from Dahepiao and Trip.com's UK guide; Wanderin China and Trip.com's main page say 8:30, with 17:00 in spring and autumn. Free entry for children under 1.3 m appears only on Trip.com, so it is left out. All sources agree on Monday closure; the holiday exception is from Trip.com. Address: the Shanghai government, Dahepiao and Trip.com give 168 Fuyou Road, Wanderin China 279 Yuyuan Old Street; we use the first. Area is about 2 ha per English Wikipedia and Wanderin China (Russian Wikipedia says 4 ha). The Great Rockery is 12 m per English Wikipedia and about 14 m per Chinese Wikipedia; both shown. Distances are from Wikipedia coordinates. The English core comes from search results and related questions.

## Sources

- English Wikipedia: Yu Garden; Yuyuan Garden station; Chinese Wikipedia: 豫园, 湖心亭茶楼; Russian Wikipedia: Юйюань; Wikidata Q1328025
- Shanghai Municipal Government, english.shanghai.gov.cn — Visit Shanghai's classical gardens (price, address); payment for foreign visitors
- Dahepiao — day-by-day opening calendar, Monday closure, adult and concession prices, address
- Trip.com — hours, Monday and holiday rules, seasonal prices, concessions
- Wanderin China — hours, Monday closure, seasonal prices, Great Rockery, Exquisite Jade Rock, area, history
- Shanghai Bendibao, Chinabound — Yuyuan Lantern Festival zones and tickets, separate from the garden
- Suzhou Gardens and Landscaping Bureau — via YesGo's Suzhou page (comparison)

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