Nantong Travel Guide

 

 

In the earliest time of the Chinese nation was the Five-Emperor Age, wars had often been fought between the tribes living in northern Jiangsu and Han folks from the central China. These ethnic tribes were defeated by the central forces at last, so they inevitably needed to migrate to the south, thus the very first people living in area now we called Nantong were these exiled tribes. They had also left traces of northern culture here.

During the Spring-Autumn and Warring States Periods about 2,600 years ago, southern Wu forces originated from Jiangsu and Anhui regions defeated the northern people and occupied the northern land. In 506 BC Wu and Chu States were at war, the former lost. Wu people migrated east near the coast along the East China Sea. 473 BC Yue State exterminated Wu State, and then vast migration to the north had been taken place. So they brought Wu and Yue cultures in Jiangsu and Shandong areas. In later times due to war and social chaos people from the north went down to the south. The population in the lower reaches of Yangtze River had multiplied tens of times and thus the different cultures in north and south met and mixed here. 

Generally speaking, due to the geographical location and the vast migration in history, the influence of the southern culture has been so strong in Nantong, which the dialect that local spoken here is of Wu State origin. The style of Peking Opera being performed in the city is of southern overtone. Nowadays the Chinese people from the south will call Nantong locals as northerners but for the north they belonged to southern people. This aptly indicates the Nantong is in the middle of the south and the north in Chinese land. In 2006 the total population in Nantong is about 7.7 million, the vast majority of the people here are Han Chinese.

It is a city that having much Buddhist scenery and many beautiful landscapes. Additionally, Nantong is one of the great economic powerhouses in eastern China today, light and heavy industries and information technology business played important parts in local economy.

Transportation

Because the nearness of big cities like Shanghai and Suzhou, Nantong's traffic has always been convenient. Driving to Nantong is very easy that there are four highways (Ningtong, Tongqi, Tongyan and Yuanhai) to reach the town. The world's first class expressway bridge - Sutong Yangtze Bridge is also an ideal route to tour Nantong.

Air transport in Nantong is very easy too. The domestic airport is located at 18km to northeast of downtown Nantong with advanced facilities. From here you can travel to major cities on Mainland China. 

You can go to Nantong by railway. There are three train stations in the city : Nantong Main Station, Rugao and Hai'an County. Today Nantong is enrolled in China's national rail network. So you can visit various places in China by comfortable train.

Nantong is located along the northern bank of Yangtze River and it is one of ten large sea ports in China. Fast ferry services to Shanghai are available twice a day. The Yangtze River Cruises have a stop here too. Cross river ferries are frequent.

Geography

"Shanghai of the North" is a nickname used by the locals for Nantong, which is located on the northern bank of Yangtze River, which is neighboring Shanghai and Suzhou. Its total area is about 8,000 sq. km, hill scenes are less in town and the average elevation is around 4 to 6 meters above sea level. Nantong now administrates two municipal districts, six counties and an economic and technological development zone. 

Climate

Sub-tropical and maritime monsoon are the main climatic characteristics in Nantong. The four seasons are quite distinct with high relative humidity and abundant annual rainfall. Like Suzhou, Nantong's summer is hot and humid while winter is often miserable, so generally the best tour seasons of the city are spring and autumn.