[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
One of the city's most interesting tourist attractions is the Wuxi Movie/TV production base, which is known as the "Oriental Hollywood".
Built in 1987, it was China's first park themed on movie and TV culture and tourism. It was also rated as a 5A-class tourist attraction in 2007.
It contains a cluster of large classical constructions: the Town of the Three Kingdoms, the Town of the Water Margin and the Town of the Tang Dynasty, and also features performers who take visitors back to fascinating times of past glories.
Based on historical records, the Town of the Tang Dynasty copies the architecture of that period (618-907) in stunning detail.
The Town of the Water Margin duplicates the buildings in the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and the Three Kingdoms City includes palaces reflecting the style and buildings of the Han Dynasty (220-206 BC).
To film Romance of the Three Kingdoms, copies of the King of Wu's Palace, the Ganlu Temple, Cao Cao's Army Camp and the Seven Star Altar were all specially built.
There are film and TV series crews working at the base throughout the whole year. In addition, some interesting interactive features allowing tourists to communicate with their favorite stars have become one of the major activities held in the base.
Tips
Location: Dafu town, West Shanshui Road, Binhu district, Wuxi
Tickets: Town of the Three Kingdoms 90 yuan ($13.65); Town of the Water Margin 85 yuan; 150 yuan/person for ticket packages
Opening hours: 7:30 – 18:00
Public transportation: Take bus No K82 from Wuxi Railway Station
Travel guides
Recommended schedule:
9:00 – Visit the Town of the Three Kingdoms
10:00 – Watch the live-action show Three Heroes Fighting against Lyv Bu
10:30 – Watch Celebration at the Bronze Sparrow Terrace
11:00 – Boat on Taihu Lake and visit the King of Wu's Palace and the Ganlu Temple
13:00 – Visit the "capital" and "prefectures and counties" of the Town of the Water Margin
14:00 – Watch the stunt show Hot Blooded
15:00 – Visit the Liangshan and the Juyi Hall