Wuxi in total covers a large area, but the actual Central Business District is very compact and easy to navigate on foot. At first it can seem a little confusing, because the city is not designed like a rectangular grid. However, once you can picture the layout of the city from a bird’s eye view, it is quite simple.

 

There is a ring road, Jie Fang Lu (解放路), running in a circle around the Central Business District. It is logically named in four sections: Jie Fang Nan (south) Lu, Jie Fang Xi (west) Lu, Jie Fan Bei (north) Lu, and Jie Fang Dong (east) Lu. The street names are always given in Chinese and Pinyin (English spelling), so you can always figure out roughly where you are in the city.

 

Running north-south, bisecting the circle formed by Jie Fang Lu, is the main street, Zhong Shan Lu (中山路). This is where many of the big shops, department stores and hotels are located.

 

Wuxi's other main thoroughfares run east-west. Ren Min Lu (人民路) is the biggest of these roads, just north of the city centre. Just south of the city centre is Xue Qian Jie (学前街) which also runs east-west. The street that runs east-west across the middle of the city is rather narrow and is named Hou Xi Xi (后西溪) on the west side of Zhong Shan Lu and Chong Ning Lu (崇宁路) on the east side.

 

Links

Printable Map of Wuxi (in Chinese)
Zoomable Map of Wuxi (in Chinese)