Xixi Flower Festival, an annual event for those with a floral mania, is approaching. The kick-off event was made on March 24, a day coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the opening of Xixi Wetlands Park. A period from March 24 to May 11 will be filled with fun activities.    

The festival this year centers about a reproduction of Song-style life elegance. The flower show is exquisitely arranged, with flowery embankments and bridges winding through scenic views. Both sides, bursting with colorful blossoms, add a vibrant hue to the poetic scenery of Xixi Wetlands. The classical flower boats are packed with tourists, enveloping everyone of them in an aura of spring romance.

Over 200,000 pots of flowers in more than 40 varieties are seen at places like the Green Dyke and the Fishing Village. Flowers, like Papaver rhoeas, snow willow, cherry blossoms, weeping crabapple, rapeseed, violets, marigolds, pelargoniums, and dahlias are competing on the center stage, each with a remarkable appeal to visitors. More flowers, including peonies, tree peonies, azaleas, roses, hydrangeas, lupines, among others, will also be in blossom by this April.

The so-called “Twelve Flower Goddesses” are indispensable to the Flower Festival.    Pools, waters and green paths are transformed into a stunning stage where the Flower Goddesses, all dressed in magnificent Song-style attire and with a delicate makeup, will be on both water and land patrol, like our ancients before.

For the next two months, the Flower Goddesses will also be on a visit to five tour destinations, i.e. Guo’s Villa, Cherry Blossom Tracks, Xianghu Lake, Tongjian Lake, and Gaoting Hill. The wonders of Song-time culture will be citywide visible through performances and folk activities, allowing either citizens or tourists to meet something romantic anytime, and anywhere.

A 24-episode micro drama play “Flowers Over Ponds,” produced by Xixi Wetlands’ administration, will be aired through the Wetlands’ WeChat video and Douyin during the Flower Festival, providing a glance at the Flower Goddesses and wetland stories through cameras.

The Wetlands has additionally prepared a range of park specials for visitors. For instance, from April 20 to mid-May, visitors will have the chance to pluck cherries in the Cherry Park within Xialongtan. The special rate of “Song-style Flower Boat” allows a refreshing passenger experience aboard, savoring floral tea snacks, while enjoying the flowers along the shore - for some incredibly soothing hours. More signature services, like Fisherman’s Trip, Evening Tour, and Tea on the Water, will also be unlocked.