A boat berths at the Haohe River scenic area. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

The Haohe River scenic area in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province, recently launched travel routes by boat to connect the museums on both sides of the Haohe River.

One of the routes is themed on Zhang Jian (1853-1926), a renowned industrial magnate, educator, and scholar in Nantong, one is themed on nature and history, and one is themed on family activities.

The scenic area also provides customized cultural services such as tea ceremonies, guqin, and handcrafts to give visitors an immersive experience of the city's culture.

Scenery along the Haohe River. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

Along the Haohe River is the former residence of Zhang Jian, Nantong Museum, China Abacus Museum, Haoxi Library, Nantong Shen's Embroidery Museum, Nantong Blue Calico Museum, City God Temple, and Mei'an Library.

The Nantong Museum, the first public museum in China, was originally a public botanical garden with more than 300 varieties of plants and flowers, about one third of which are medicinal and edible.

Nantong Shen's Embroidery Museum, built at the former site of China's first embroidery school founded in 1914, displays 280 artworks by Shen Shou (1874-1921), a legendary Suzhou embroiderer.

Visitors are required to make a reservation a day before their tour, and the boat departs at 9:30 am and 2:30 pm every day.