About Hangzhou

Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province with 12 million residents, was famously described by Marco Polo as "the finest and most splendid city in the world" during his 13th-century visit. At that time, it boasted 1.5 million people—15 times larger than his native Venice. The city is home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the legendary West Lake, celebrated by poets and artists for centuries, and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. West Lake's extraordinary beauty has inspired countless literary and artistic works, making it an eternal symbol of Chinese natural aesthetics and cultural refinement.

Today, Hangzhou is known as the "Silicon Valley of China," serving as headquarters for Alibaba, which was founded in a small lakeside apartment in 1999 and has grown into a global e-commerce giant. The city hosts more than one-third of China's e-commerce companies and was home to Mainland China's first comprehensive pilot zone for cross-border e-commerce. With 20 million people in the greater metropolitan area and serving as a hub of China's fourth-largest metropolitan area by population, Hangzhou seamlessly blends ancient cultural heritage with cutting-edge technology, embodying the perfect synthesis of tradition and innovation.