Laomendong Historic District
老门东
A Ming-Qing old district inside Zhonghua Gate, with grey-brick horse-head gables, Jinling snacks, the Deyunshe comedy club and the Xianfeng bookshop. It has more of old Nanjing's everyday life than Confucius Temple.
Laomendong lies east of Zhonghua Gate (formerly Jubao Gate) and south of Confucius Temple. Its name comes from its position east of Zhonghua Gate. It is the centre of traditional dwellings in old southern Nanjing and was home to merchants and craftsmen in the Ming and Qing. It reopened in 2013 after renovation. It preserves the layout of lanes such as Guotong Lane, Santiaoying and Bianying, and historic buildings with grey brick, grey tiles, horse-head gables and wood-carved gateways, while also bringing in restaurants and creative businesses.
Highlights: the archway entrance and Laomendong Main Street; old residences such as the former homes of Jiang Shoushan and Fu Shanxiang; the Nanjing branch of the Deyunshe comedy club, with crosstalk performances (tickets required); the Junhui branch of Xianfeng Bookstore, a bookshop in a converted old house; and long-established Jinling snacks in the lanes, such as Lan Laoda's lotus root in sweet porridge, Siji's tofu pudding, Xiao Zheng's crispy sesame flatbread and duck blood and vermicelli soup. The southern side sits close to the Zhonghua Gate section of the Ming City Wall, where you can climb up and look over the rooftops of the whole district. The recently expanded Xiao Xihu area keeps its original residents and old lanes, with a more lived-in atmosphere.
The district is free to enter, and most shops stay open until 22:00.
Getting there: a 10-minute walk from Wuding Gate station on Metro Line 3, or Zhonghua Gate station on Line 1. It is about a 15-minute walk from Confucius Temple along the Qinhuai River.
Recommended: arrive in the afternoon, wander the lanes and eat snacks, climb the Zhonghua Gate wall at sunset, then walk to Confucius Temple for a night stroll. Allow 2–3 hours in total.
Note: weekends and holidays are crowded, and restaurants have queues. Some parts of the old residences are not open to the public.
Opening hours
Open all day (shops about 10:00–22:00)
Nearby sights
- Xiaoxihu Historic Block
- Chenguang 1865 Creative Park (Jinling Arsenal)
- Porcelain Tower & Da Bao'en Temple Heritage Park
- Zhonghua Gate
- Confucius Temple & Qinhuai River
- Zhan Garden
- Bailuzhou Park
- Jiangnan Examination Hall (China Imperial Examination Museum)