By ship
The overnight ferries between Hangzhou and Suzhou are no longer running.
Riverboats on the Yangtze stop at Suzhou. See Along the Yangtze river.
Suzhou-Shimonoseki: Shanghai-Shimonoseki Ferry (http://www.ssferry.co.jp/), 083-232-6615 Japan or 0512-53186686 China, thrice weekly service. ¥15,000+.
By train
There are four major train stations in Suzhou: Suzhou Station Suzhou Zhan, Suzhou North Station Suzhou Bei Zhan, Suzhou Industrial Park Station Suzhou Yuanqu, and Suzhou Xinqu Station.
If you live in SIP it's more convinient to use Suzhou Yuanqu station note some trains stop on that one instead of Suzhou Station
Suzhou North Railway station is used for high-speed trains departing to/from Beijing. It's situated a bit outskirts. A ride to Beijing usually takes 5 hours.
Suzhou Station is located just north of the downtown on the northern ring-road Beihuan Lu and is on the Shanghai-Nanjing mainline. There are frequent high-speed trains to Shanghai, Wuxi, Changzhou, Zhenjiang and Nanjing. A train ride to Shanghai takes less than half an hour and Nanjing is about one hour away.
The slower and lower class T- and K- services from other provinces on their way to Shanghai or Nanjing stop at Suzhou, but if you are traveling from anywhere within Jiangsu you're advised to take a fast G-train.
Buying tickets for G- and D-trains using self-service machines is not possible for people without chinese ID card since June 2011 - only using ticket office. All other tickets can be bought at the counter at the railway station or at railway ticket offices throughout the city. For services other than the high-speed trains, it's wise to book outbound tickets a few days in advance as they fill up quickly, especially during public holidays. If you have a Chinese bank account, it is possible to book a ticket at the railways' official 12306.cn, it is in Chinese only and only accept UnionPay payment. The official 12306.cn doesn't charge any fees.
Ticket Offices in the city: 8 Taijian Alley Guanqian Jie è§åè¡ï¼, 566 Renmin Lu ï¼äººæ°è·¯ï¼, 50 Jinmen Lu ï¼éé¨è·¯ï¼, 22 Beiju Lu, 18 Shi Lu ï¼ç³è·¯ï¼, 120 Sanxiang Lu ï¼ä¸é¦è·¯ï¼ and Xiangwang Lu ï¼ç¸çè·¯ï¼ (Near the east end of Shi Quan Jie ï¼åå ¨è¡ï¼
From the Suzhou Railway Station into townThe new train station is exceptional and has metered taxis only and bus services well set out. Buses mostly services will head towards the Guanqian Street/Ganjiang Lu area of downtown 15-20 minutes, although it's advisable to check. Buses 6, 26, 29, 178 will go to the SIP. It is possible to buy a tourist map English-Chinese, Â¥10 indicating the bus routes in one of the tourism offices on the lefthand side of the walkway leading up to the North exit. Once outside the station, the bus stops can be found on the righthand side. Bus You1 and You4 both heading towards Renmin Lu leave from platform 4. On foot, it takes about 20-30 minutes to walk to most of the sights - simply go outside the station and head right. At the first intersection, make an immediate right into either one of two tunnels heading under the train tracks. A pedestrian path is available that will take you to the old part of town. Once you cross the river, the 8-story pagoda called Beisi Ta should be in plain sight. In summer, it might not be very convenient to walk downtown as temperatures might easily get up to 40 degrees.If you are adventurous you can try to unofficial e-bike taxi - guys standing right to the station outside, you can negotiate to about ¥20 to city center.
By bus
Suzhou has 3 main bus stations
Suzhou South Bus Station
èå·åæ±½è½¦ç« SÅ«zhÅu Nán Zhà n, Yingchun Rd, East Nanhuan Rd, 0512-65204867, the largest station, a modern, clean terminal serving regular shuttles to Shanghai, Nanjing and Hangzhou as well as most other major destinations around eastern China. It is just south of the city centre and is connected by many local buses and taxis. You can arrive at the bus station by taking buses 29, 30, 31 and 101.Suzhou North Bus Station
èå·åæ±½è½¦ç« SÅ«zhÅu BÄi Zhà n, 29 Xihui Rd, 0512-67530686 is immediately adjacent to the train station. It mainly serves nearby cities such as Wuxi, Zhangjiagang, Changzhou and Kunshan as well as less-frequent services to other cities including Nanjing. The station was recently completely rebuilt and is much cleaner and more spacious than before, and is now a smoke-free zone. The ticket office and departure gates are located on the 1st floor whilst arrivals are located in the basement. All buses serving the train station also stop at the North Bus Station, and you can walk into the city centre in 20-30 minutes (see Get In/By Train for more info.Suzhou West Bus Station
èå·è¥¿ç« SÅ«zhÅu XÄ« Zhà n, Jinshan Road Changjiang Road New District Suzhou (Suzhou Xinqu) is on the far edge of the Suzhou New District north of Suzhou Amusement Park and mostly serves nearby towns of little interest to travellers.The China Eastern Airlines City Air Terminal on the intersection of Renmin Lu and Ganjiang Xilu also has a small terminal for shuttle buses to Shanghai Hongqiao and Pudong airports, see Get In/Air for details.