+8619705475100 [email protected]

Login

Sign Up

After creating an account, you'll be able to track your payment status, track the confirmation and you can also rate the tour after you finished the tour.
Username*
Password*
Confirm Password*
First Name*
Last Name*
Birth Date*
Email*
Phone*
Country*
* Creating an account means you're okay with our Terms of Service and Privacy Statement.
Please agree to all the terms and conditions before proceeding to the next step
Continue with Google

Already a member?

Login

Login

Sign Up

After creating an account, you'll be able to track your payment status, track the confirmation and you can also rate the tour after you finished the tour.
Username*
Password*
Confirm Password*
First Name*
Last Name*
Birth Date*
Email*
Phone*
Country*
* Creating an account means you're okay with our Terms of Service and Privacy Statement.
Please agree to all the terms and conditions before proceeding to the next step
Continue with Google

Already a member?

Login
+8619705475100 [email protected]

Login

Sign Up

After creating an account, you'll be able to track your payment status, track the confirmation and you can also rate the tour after you finished the tour.
Username*
Password*
Confirm Password*
First Name*
Last Name*
Birth Date*
Email*
Phone*
Country*
* Creating an account means you're okay with our Terms of Service and Privacy Statement.
Please agree to all the terms and conditions before proceeding to the next step
Continue with Google

Already a member?

Login
Lanterns, bamboo parasols and handmade objects inside Ziran Zaowu in Pingyao, Hangzhou

Tucked away on Pingyao Old Street in Hangzhou’s Yuhang District, a century-old school has found a new life as a treasury of Chinese folk crafts.

Ziran Zaowu Folk Craft Research Centre (自然造物·民艺研究中心) is a kind of living “gene bank” for traditional craftsmanship. Its space spans more than 3,500 square metres, and admission is free. There is enough here to fill an afternoon of unhurried browsing.

Ziran Zaowu lettering on a white exterior wall beside a shallow pool

Address: 60 Liyao Street, Pingyao Old Street, Yuhang District, Hangzhou (杭州市余杭区瓶窑老街里窑街60号)

Opening hours: 10:00 am–5:00 pm; closed on Mondays.

Admission: Free, with no reservation required.

Colourful lanterns, traditional toys and craft displays inside Ziran Zaowu

On the ground floor, a hand-drawn folk craft map invites you to discover the beauty of China’s different regions. A wall of photographs introduces the artisans behind the work.

There is also a coffee corner in the courtyard. Order a drink, settle in and let the afternoon drift by.

Tables of handmade ceramics and homeware in the folk craft centre

The second floor is filled with creative products inspired by traditional crafts. Collections range from craft-based gifts to Chinese festival pieces and playful contemporary takes on traditional toys. Each carries something of the craft traditions that shaped it.

The third floor houses folk craft classes and hands-on workshops. Here, you can try heritage skills such as making woodblock New Year prints, painting clay figures and weaving bamboo.

A colourful traditional kite displayed beneath a bamboo parasol

Highlights

At the entrance, an installation of 120 handmade bamboo lanterns from Chaoshan makes a striking backdrop for photographs.

Inside, thousands of handmade objects from more than 20 Chinese provinces bring together cloth tigers, shadow puppets, kites, New Year prints and much more. It feels like a folk craft museum you can reach out and touch.

Sunlight falling across handmade ceramics and craft displays inside the centre

According to the original account, the team spent 12 years travelling and visiting more than 2,000 artisans to bring crafts at risk of being forgotten back into urban life.

Their purpose is to give these traditions a place in everyday living: in cups and bowls, incense vessels and textiles that people can use and enjoy.

Wooden worktables and shelves beside large windows in the craft centre

Explore the Neighbourhood

After visiting the centre, leave time for the surrounding streets. Pingyao Old Street is itself a provincially recognised tourism and leisure district.

Nearby, a cluster of heritage venues includes the Yuhang Paper Umbrella Museum, Liangzhu Jade Carving Museum, and Kite and Lantern Museum.

Traditional tiled buildings, a lantern and direction signs on Pingyao Old Street

Continue uphill to Yaoshan Park for views over the old street and the Tiaoxi River.

If you have more time, the park at the UNESCO-listed Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City is also nearby. Within a single day, this area connects 5,000 years of civilisation with the revival of folk crafts today.

World Heritage sign for the Southern City Wall Site at the Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City
Stone entrance markers for the Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City park

Getting There

The original article recommends driving and entering “Pingyao Old Street” (瓶窑老街) in your navigation app.

Nearby bus stops include Pingyao Middle School (瓶窑中学) and Xingtai Garden (兴泰花园). The article lists routes 498, 313 and 499 among the bus services serving the area.

An ivy-covered old brick building beneath a blue sky in Pingyao

On an August weekend in Hangzhou, this cool old school offers a welcome retreat from the heat around West Lake. Step inside and see how Chinese folk crafts continue to live in the present.

For more ideas for your time in the city, explore our Hangzhou travel guide.

Adapted and translated from the Hangzhou-WOW WeChat article published on 16 August 2026. Photographs: Hangzhou-WOW, as supplied in the source PDF.

Proceed Booking