Tongli Ancient Town is nestled to the Beijing–Hangzhou Grand Canal and by Taihu Lake in Wujiang District, Suzhou. It is located in the Demonstration Zone of Green and Integrated Ecological Development of the Yangtze River Delta. The town is advantaged with three national development zones: the national economic and technological development zone – the Wujiang Economic and Technological Development Zone, the national modern agriculture industrial park – the Wujiang Modern Agriculture Industrial Park, and the national wetland park – the Tongli National Wetland Park. The town has won quite a few titles such as the Dubai International Award for Best Practices granted by the UN-Habitat, the National Famous Historical and Cultural Town, the National Ecological and Livable Demonstration Town, as well as the National AAAAA Tourist Attraction. The Retreat & Reflection Garden in Tongli Ancient Town has been included in the World Heritage List.
Tongli Ancient Town Nighttime Culture and Tourism Consumption Cluster covers a total area of 2.88 square kilometers with 814 shops. The Retreat & Reflection Square is the core of the business area; and Muwan Shang Leisure Block, Retreat & Reflection Garden, three bridges, as well as Ming and Qing Shopping Street are the key areas. It covers a total area of 1.88 square kilometers (north to Chongben Road, south to Yingyan Road, west to Damiao Road, and east to Huanhu West Road). Cultural and entertainment projects cover an area of 1 square kilometer, accounting for 53 percent of the business area; the nighttime cultural and entertainment projects cover an area of 0.83 square kilometers, namely 44% of the business area. There are 451 nighttime shops and 376 cultural entertainment projects. The nighttime projects account for 83 percent of all. The cluster integrates tourism and sightseeing, catering and homestay, cultural and creative products, nighttime performance, featured blocks and other forms of business and products. The cluster is operated and managed by Suzhou Tongli International Tourism Development Co., Ltd. that annually invests as much as RMB 150 million at average. The cluster was selected as the second batch of provincial nighttime culture and tourism consumption cluster construction units in Jiangsu Province in 2021.
