The best-preserved Ming dynasty garden in Shanghai, Yu Garden was built between 1559 and 1577 by Pan Yunduan for his father's retirement and now attracts millions of visitors per year. The garden itself — two acres of pavilions, rock formations, covered walkways, koi ponds, and planted courts — is a masterwork of the classical Chinese garden tradition, designed to create a landscape of apparent great depth within a small space.
The surrounding bazaar — Yuyuan Bazaar — is a reconstruction of a Qing dynasty commercial street now occupied by shops, teahouses, and street food stalls serving xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), tang yuan, and candied hawthorn. The combination of the garden and bazaar makes this the most visited single site in the Old Town. Peak hours are extremely crowded; early morning or evening visits are more manageable.