For traditional holidays like Dragon Boat Festival, or Duanwu Festival, the best way to celebrate is always following traditional customs. This guide includes the most popular Dragon Boat Festival traditions for visitors to experience in Huangpu district.

1. Go on an outing in Jiangnan-style gardens

In Shanghai, the early summer scenery is lovelier in elegant gardens. With extra free time during the festival, be sure to go out and appreciate the blossoming flowers and Chinese traditional architecture.

Yuyuan Garden

To visit Jingnan-style gardens in Shanghai, you do not have to travel far. Yuyuan Garden, the top of the five classical gardens in the city, is located right in the center of the city. Dragon Boat Festival elements are integrated seamlessly with the garden, whose name "Yu" means "health" and "peace", two important wishes that are underscored during this festive holiday.

In Yuyuan Garden, visitors can appreciate over 40 serene scenic spots inspired by the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

Address: No 168 Fuyou Road

Classic Chinese garden architecture in Yuyuan Garden. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

Penglai Garden

Locals in the surrounding areas come to Penglai Garden to go for their daily walks. Located on Nanchezhan Road, the garden hints at the local lifestyle, making it a perfect place to slow down and relax.

An archway in Penglai Garden. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

From the tree-lined paths to the children's playground, the layout of this park is ready to provide joy to people of all ages. It also has corridors and archways with antique designs, adding an elegance that is only found in Jiangnan-style gardens.

Address: No 350 Nanchezhan Road

2. Enjoy traditional food

One cannot fully experience the festive atmosphere without enjoying festive food. Every Dragon Boat Festival, the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street is crowded with food enthusiasts and restaurants offering authentic dishes that will make your mouth water.

Sunya Cantonese Restaurant

Pork zongzi in Sunya Cantonese Restaurant has been a best-seller for six consecutive years. The blend of glutinous rice and pork is rich, but not greasy, leaving a lingering taste on the palate.

Address: No 719 East Nanjing Road

Customers line up throughout the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street to buy zongzi and other local delicacies. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

Lao Zheng Xing Restaurant

During Dragon Boat Festival, locals lean toward using eel, yellow fish, cucumber, salted duck egg yolk, and realgar wine in their dishes. These five traditional ingredients are called wu huang. In Lao Zheng Xing Restaurant, eel is sliced and then cooked in a thick brown sauce. its fragrance is delectable, especially when garlic pepper and green onion are added.

Address: No 556 Fuzhou Road

A view of an eel dish, one of the wu huang. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

3. Appreciating operas

Opera has a long-standing history in Shanghai, dating back more than 700 years. Below are two recommended theaters for you to enjoy the unique art of Chinese opera.

Beaufort Terrace

Reintroducing Shanghai opera in the late 19th century, Beaufort Terrace allows the audience to sit around the stage and drink tea while enjoying the opera performance, indulging in the charm of traditional culture.

Address: 4F No 10 Wenchang Road

People from all walks of life come to Beaufort Terrace to sit and enjoy the opera. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

Tianchan Yifu Theatre

For Peking Opera performers, the chance to perform in Tianchan Yifu Theatre is an honor, as it represents recognition of their talent. In the early 20th century, many famous Beijing Opera performers impressed audiences with their beguiling shows. Today, this famous opera house still preserves high-quality opera performances, bringing unparalleled artistic enjoyment to the visitors.

Address: No 701 Fuzhou Road

Tianchan Yifu Theatre. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

4. Make Scented pouches

Scented sachets are believed to have the effect of warding off evil spirits and bringing health and comfort to people who wear them during Dragon Boat Festival. Indeed, these little packages not only have beautiful patterns that represent good luck, but also contain herbs that give pleasant scents.

Nan Song Lao Hao Chinese herb pouches

Stepping into the store, you will be surrounded by the fragrance of herbs and dazzled by the delicate design of the sachet bags. Here you can either pick a ready-made pouch or make one yourself. The wide variety of accessories and herbs in the store guarantee that this will be a unique Dragon-Boat-Festival gift.

Address: No 23-3 Lane 248, Taikang Road

The colorful scented pouches on display in the store. [Photo/Wechat account: shhplyj]

Source: "shhplyj" Wechat account