Suzhou Museum, Shanghai, China

Today: Open today, 09:00 – 17:00
Standing: High
Rank: Rank 79 of 10,894

Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

Plan your visit.

Opening hours

Monday	Closed
Tuesday	09:00 – 17:00 Last entry at 16:00 for 09:00 – 17:00
Wednesday	09:00 – 17:00 Last entry at 16:00 for 09:00 – 17:00
Thursday	09:00 – 17:00 Last entry at 16:00 for 09:00 – 17:00
Friday	09:00 – 17:00 Last entry at 16:00 for 09:00 – 17:00
Saturday	09:00 – 17:00 Last entry at 16:00 for 09:00 – 17:00
Sunday	09:00 – 17:00 Last entry at 16:00 for 09:00 – 17:00

Checked 2026-11-05 · Source

About Suzhou Museum

The Suzhou Museum is a museum of ancient Chinese art, painting, calligraphy and handmade crafts in Suzhou, Jiangsu, and one of the most visited museums in the world, with more than 2 million visitors in 2018. It was founded in 1960 in the former residence of Zhong Wang, an important general of the Taiping Rebellion. In 2006 it moved into a new building designed by the Suzhou-born, Pritzker Prize-winning architect I.M. Pei; construction began in 2002 and the building was inaugurated on 6 October 2006. Pei blended traditional Chinese and local Suzhou design with modern materials: sloping roofs, white stucco walls and a black, white and grey palette, combined with glass roofs and a steel structure.

Checked 2026-11-05 · Source

What's inside

The museum holds about 30,000 pieces, including unearthed cultural relics, ancient paintings and calligraphy and ancient crafts, and its exhibition areas cover about 3,600 square metres. The painting and calligraphy collection includes works by masters of the Song, Ming and Qing dynasties. There are four permanent exhibitions, Relics of Wudi, National Treasure of Wu Tower, Wuzhong Fengya and Wumen Calligraphy and Painting, showing prehistoric pottery and jade and Buddhist relics from the Tiger Hill Yunyan Temple and Ruiguang Temple. The modern art exhibition has shown artists such as Zao Wou-ki, Cai Guoqiang and Xu Bing. The museum's Folk Branch is in the Bei family ancestral temple near Lion Grove Garden.

Checked 2026-11-05 · Source

Season and crowds

According to the museum's official website, Suzhou Museum is open Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 17:00, and admission stops at 16:00. It is closed every Monday, except on national statutory holidays, and any temporary closure is announced to the public in advance. The site also lists a separate visit booking service for individuals and groups, so check the booking page before you go. Temporary exhibitions change through the year; at the time of checking, the homepage listed shows running until February 2027. The museum is at 204 Dongbei Street, Suzhou, and its telephone number is 0512-67575666.

Checked 2026-11-05 · Source

Place details and sources

Wheelchair access: Limited OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Admission fee: Free OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Type of place: Museum OpenStreetMap · Checked 2026-09-09
Established: 1960 Wikidata · Checked 2026-09-09
Opened: 1960 Wikidata · Checked 2026-09-09
Architect: I. M. Pei Wikidata · Checked 2026-09-09
Wikipedia article: Suzhou Museum Wikipedia · Checked 2026-09-09

Official site Official source · Checked 2026-11-05
View on Wikidata

Common questions

What are the opening hours?

Tuesday to Sunday 9:00–17:00, last admission 16:00; closed on Mondays except national holidays.

Who designed the museum building?

I.M. Pei, the Pritzker Prize-winning architect born in Suzhou; it opened on 6 October 2006.

How big is the collection?

About 30,000 pieces, including unearthed relics, ancient paintings and calligraphy, and ancient crafts.

Where it is

Open directions in Google Maps

Nearby

1 hour
3 min walk
Humble Administrator's Garden
- Must see · Heritage site
- Nature site
45 min
32 min walk
Shantang Jie
- High
- Historic site
30 min
215 min walk
Great Hero Hall
- Notable
- Place of worship