Full coverage: G20 Hangzhou Summit

With the G20 summit approaching, host city Hang Zhou is drawing more and more global attention. What made this city stand out among all of the candidate cities?

Renowned as one of China’s six Ancient Capitals, historic Hangzhou is proudly among the first group of cities that the central government designated as a Historic and Cultural City. Also known as the Fabled City in the Southeast, Hangzhou shares with Suzhou the ultimate fame of being a Paradise on Earth.

Marco Polo, the Italian traveler from the 13th century, lauded Hangzhou as “the world’s most magnificent and noble city.” And nowadays, it is also one of the most economically vibrant cities in China. Its GDP in 2015 reached over 1 trillion yuan and its GDP per capita was 112,000 yuan. For years, Hangzhou has been recognized by the World Bank as having China’s best investment environment.

Forbes Magazine has also consecutively placed Hangzhou on its chart of "Mainland China’s Best Cities for Commerce”. It’s also recognized as the Capital of E-commerce, and one of the Top Ten Innovative Cities of China. Big companies such as the Alibaba Group and Geely are both headquartered in Hangzhou. And last but not least, Hangzhou has fast and convenient transport infrastructure.

Its Xiaoshan International Airport ranks as one of the nations’ four major international airports, while its Railway Station is one of China’s largest making the city a comprehensive transport hub where trains, planes, subways and buses are seamlessly connected.