• Cable Car Ride the cable car from the bottom of the mountain then explore the temples at the top, climb down slowly and admire the pagodas and temples along the way.
• Relax There are two beautiful beaches near to the main hotels on Putuoshan, namely Hundred Step Beach and Thousand Step Beach. The former charges for entry and has facilities such as sunloungers and parasols for hire, with quadbikes and banana boats also available. At night, Hundred Step Beach is sometimes used to host karaoke parties. Thousand Step Beach is longer and free to enter but no facilities are available - take a beach towel.

• Fayu Monastery is located at the foot of Fodingshan (Foding mountain), at the north end of 1000 step Beach. Entry fee ¥5.
• Huiji Monastery is located near the top of Fodingshan. Entry fee ¥5. The lazy can reach the temple by cable car (¥40 return). Take Bus 2 from the port (¥8). More active visitors and pilgrims take the concrete steps from near Fayu Temple. It takes about 1 hour to climb the mountain.
• Puji Monastery, located at the center of the island, is the most accessible and famous monastery on Putuoshan. It costs ¥5 to enter. Nearby are are hotels, restaurants and interesting shops. A public ritual performed by the monks runs from 4:30AM to 7AM. It is crowded at this time, so unless you are interested in the ceremony, it best to visit the temple outside these hours.

Whether you arrive from Ningbo, from Zhoushan or direct from Shanghai, it costs ¥140 to land on Putuoshan as the whole island is a National Park (for ¥5 more you can buy a "Digital CD-ROM entry ticket" for the island which includes a CD with a video about the island).

The 15 minute boat ride from Zhoushan or Zhujiajian costs about ¥18; The journey from Ningbo to Putuoshan costs ¥70 and consists of an about 1 hour bus ride from the Ningbo Ferry Wharf to the port in Daxie and a 1 hour boat ride from Daxie to Putuoshan. The Ningbo Ferry Wharf is located just north of LaoWaiTan in 288 Zhongma Road (中马路). If you have a hotel booking you may be met at the wharf by a hotel minibus. Look out for placards in the bus park. There is an information/hotel booking desk at the Wharf, otherwise it is a short walk to the Puji Temple central area, where there is another information centre.

There are two boats departing from Shanghai. The cheapest leaves in the evening and takes around 12 hours, and costs around ¥90-340. For approximately ¥240, you can buy a ticket which includes a bus trip to Luchao Wharf from the city centre (taking up to two hours, depending on traffic conditions) and a boat onwards to Putuoshan (taking between two and three hours).

Putuoshan has an efficient minibuses service that links all the island's main attractions, and it costs a meager ¥2 per ride. However, as many bus stops are some distance from the temples, be prepared for some long walks. Furthermore, as bus signs are usually in Chinese characters and pinyin only, it's advisable to write down the name of your destination before you set out.

If weather permits, the island is best explored on foot. This allows you to avoid the crowds and also to visit pavilions and temples that are off the beaten track. The return journey can be made by bus.

Near Puji Temple there is a night market that sells a variety of souvenirs, statues and raw seafood, a number of convenience stores, and a few restaurants offering inexpensive meals.

• Temple food. Inexpensive vegetarian fare is available at many of the temples.
• Vegetarian. As a Buddhist island, most of the island's restaurants offer a good selection of vegetarian dishes.
• Chinese dishes. The hotels near Puji Temple have restaurants that are open to non-residents.

• Putuoshan Beer is served in a number of the hotel restaurants and is worth a drink if only for novelty value.