Occupying an area of 23,300 square meters (about 5.8 acres), the Lingering Garden was first built in 1522, one of the four most famous classical gardens in China. Like other famous gardens in Suzhou, the Lingering Garden seeks to create stunning natural landscapes within limited space.

The garden is separated into the middle, eastern, northern and western parts connecting with beautiful corridors of 700 meters long. Of the four parts, the central part is the essence of the whole complex.

This part was the original Lingering Garden while the other three were added during the Qing Dynasty. After going through winding corridors from the gate of the garden, one reaches the central part. The central part is consisted of the western part and the eastern part. The former features in pools and hills while classical buildings dominate the latter. In the eastern part of the garden the Celestial Hall of Five Peaks is the largest hall.

The western part is enchanting for its natural scenery. It is a large rockery built from stacked stones and soil during the Ming Dynasty. Maples cover the hill. When all the leaves turn red in autumn, it is extraordinarily beautiful. The northern part used to be a vegetable garden, but now is used to exhibit potted plants of which the Suzhou people are quite proud.

The whole garden features with artificial mountains, unique limestone, beautiful pavilions and a number of attractive buildings.

For it beautiful scenery, in 1997 the garden was recorded on the list of the world heritage by UESCO.