Mogan Mountain莫干山

Moganshan sits in Deqing County, Zhejiang — about 2.5hrs from Shanghai, 1.5hrs from Hangzhou. After the first European-style villa went up in 1898, it became a summer retreat for Republican-era officials and foreign residents; hundreds of old villas survive today. When Naked Retreats opened in 2007, old villas and farmhouses began turning into upscale boutique guesthouses — "yangjiale" — and Moganshan is now widely credited as a birthplace of China's boutique-guesthouse scene. Today it's both a slice of old-villa history and the Yangtze Delta's go-to weekend escape.

Nature

A mountain of bamboo, nature's own air conditioning

• The Great Bamboo Sea: rolling bamboo in the wind, the mountain's signature sight
• Mountain air runs 5-8°C cooler than the foothills year-round
• Sword Pool: legend says swordsmiths forged blades here, giving the mountain its name
• Summer is the traditional peak for escaping the heat

Retreat history

A villa quarter left by Republican-era elites and foreign residents

• The first European-style villa went up in 1898; 300+ followed
• Historical figures including Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong once stayed here
• Many villas are still known by number rather than name
• Buildings like the Republican-era library survive today

Boutique guesthouses

Old buildings rediscovered after 2007

• Naked Retreats opened in 2007, launching Moganshan's "yangjiale" scene
• Named to the New York Times' 2012 list of 45 places to go
• Old villas and farmhouses turned into upscale resorts
• Prices are steep — best understood as a sample of that history, not for everyone