There are many great places to visit with your family or kids in Guangzhou, after today I’m going to add Lingnan Impression Park to the list. I was a bit worried if it would be just a fake theme park, but it actually had everything needed for a fun day with the family.

Lingnan Impression Park  岭南印象园 is located in University Island, just half an hour drive from the Guangzhou city center. Tickets are 60rmb for adults and 30 for kids, small kids get in for free. Many discounts are available if you book in advance through group buying apps.

The area is big enough to spend half a day, we ended up staying for five hours, but 2-3 hours can be enough too. The village main street is the busiest, but even today on a holiday it wasn’t too crowded. Areas around the small lake were quite quiet during morning and lunch time, offering some peace and beautiful views.

The main street offers a few restaurants, coffee shops and plenty of Cantonese culture shops. All the traditional art forms are present here, including Lingnan architecture, sugar painting, paper cutting, Cantonese opera, costumes and so on. The park is full of great spots for photos!

The park is located on the spot of the original Lianxi Village. Fok family temple is one of the oldest, constructed in the Ming dynasty and renovated in 2002. There are a few other old buildings as well, but mostly is newly built replicas that continue the Lingnan architectural style.

During the day there are several shows being presented around the area, including puppetry, dancing and Cantonese opera. You can visit several temples and replicas of private houses to get a glimpse on how the wealthy lived back in the ancient China.

Don’t forget food! The main street is full of small food stalls and there are at least three Cantonese restaurants in the park. Coffee shops serve ice cold drinks and ice cream is available no more than few  steps away no matter which part of the park you are.

Besides getting to know the Lingnan culture, the park is also a big playground for kids! There are several play areas for kids of different ages. Huge sand pit, climbing, slides, catching small fish and even a splash pool that is open during the Summer holiday.

Kids will enjoy the playgrounds for sure, no matter what age! Anna’s favorites where the slides and playing with the sand.

These slides have to wait a year or two before we let Anna go in them, but luckily there were smaller slides and climbing nets for the toddlers as well.

All in all we enjoyed our day at the Lingnan Impression Park a great deal. We didn’t get to visit any of the museums or temples, but today was all for having a fun family day so we spent our time at the playgrounds. Next time we want to visit the farm side and see the small animals too, this time Anna’s nap time didn’t allow us to see everything.

More family friendly sights and activities in Guangzhou coming soon!

Xiaozhou village is an old historical village and the first time I visited it was by accident more than 7 years ago. We were curious students who walked over the bridge from University Island and found the art village by pure luck. After that I have roamed the alleys of Xiaozhou village at least ten time, but the previous visit was almost two years ago. So it was time for a new visit with our daughter Anna!

We started off with a delicious Cantonese breakfast, Anna loved the egg rolls, congee and dumplings! My husband Alan was also impressed how the flavors brought back memories from his childhood. A perfect start for the day.

Xiaozhou is Guangzhou’s own little “water village”, with a narrow canal going like a snake through the village. Before it was an important life line for the villagers and even these days I saw villagers using the water for washing carpets and rugs.

Numerous small bridges can be found all over the village. Keep an eye on your kids as many of them don’t have railings or gates! On the bridges you can also see art students from the University Island drawing or photographing the views.

Old traditions are still important all over China, including Guangzhou. Offerings are made to ancestors and gods especially on imporant festivals and holidays. Even though Xiaozhou has become more touristy through the years, the locals still keep their old habits and it’s perfect for getting a glimpse on the true life of Cantonese locals.

Xiaozhou also offers peacefull coffee shops, made for reading and writing you bestseller novel. You might notice that some of the coffee shops iare the owner’s living rooms, the family with pets bring lively athmosphere. Our daughter Anna was eager to play with cute little dog at one of the coffee shops, but once the dog came closer she got a bit afraid.

All in all we had a lovely morning and lunch at Xiaozhou village. Next week is 8 day holiday because of the national day, so we hope to explore even more old and new places in Guangzhou.