Well now, I've been lazier than I thought I'd be about posting since joining BnA. So, I thought I'd make up for it by writing a bit about Wuhan. Seems fitting since I've spent almost a year here (funny how you get stuck in some places, isn't it? =P) and I was doing some hospitality work here so if anyone has specific questions please feel free to ask; I'll try to find out if I don't already know.

Like most of China, the cost of living is lower than what you'd normally find in Europe or the USA. But Wuhan, being a bit tucked a way in Central China is still a step down on the cost scale from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other places tourists flock to. The hostel I know, which I believe is the only one in the city, has beds starting at 35 RMB (about 5USD). Breakfast of goooood local noodles and soy milk would be about 3RMB. Most dishes in the average restaurant are 8-12 RMB (I am vegan so I might not know if meat is markedly more expensive, it hasn't caught my attention). Nicer restaurants, the dishes might be 20-30 RMB. Wuhanese people love good food and it's very easy to find good food from all over China by walking down the street. Even at the wee hours it's easy to find some noodle or BBQ places that are still open.

Being up the Yangtze from Shanghai, Wuhan's got quite an busy industrial sector. While this doesn't make the air the cleanest (oh I do miss my California air), it makes for a fantastic nightlife. There are boulevards set up on either side of the Yangtze for strolling (free) and ferries that regularly cross the river (cheap and fun).

Some of my favorite free and cheap activities though would be:

1) Breakfast in the Hubuxiang Snack Alley (a great collection of cheap Wuhanese local foods)
2) Admire the Yangtze as I walk across the "Large Bridge" (free)
3)Visit Gui yuan Temple ("Temple of 500 Buddhas" is what I think travel guides call it). It's a fantastic temple with a hall of, you guessed it, 500 Buddhas. There's also a giant Guanyin statue outside and good vegetarian eating in the area.
4) The Hubei Provincial Museum. Completely free and they've got a fantastic collection of artifacts from the area's ancient Chu culture. Including bells that date from the Warring States Period, about 400 BCE. They even have performances of re-cast bells (I set it as my ring tone).
5) The Wuhan City Museum is also free and houses a nice collection (in a gorgeous building too).
6) Park performances. Between the river parks, the Guqin Pavilion, and other parks scattered around the city, there are a lot of people who gather around just to listen to music. It's very nice to be strolling down a street and happen upon a Classical Chinese jam session.
7) East Lake. One of the largest lakes contained within a city. It's a bit of a bus ride from downtown, but it's still a nice lake and a nice retreat from the honking of taxi's. There's also a beach for sunbathing and it's right next to...
8) Wuhan University. It maybe a school. But it's a very nice school. With actual, that's right, actual trees. If you come at the right time of the spring you'll find the campus packed with tourists who've come from all over china to watch Cherry Blossoms bloom.
9) Across the city from East Lake and the University is the Wuhan Zoo. I haven't gone (part of the vegan thing) but I hear it's cheap and nice. The TV even made a big deal about Australia giving them some Kangaroos ^_^.
10) Wuhan Arboretum is cheap and has a lot of beautiful plants.
11) The Wuhan Art Museum is completely free and has some really great works by Chinese artists.
12) There's a mountain (hill maybe) in the city called Mo Mountain which I haven't been to but I've heard is fairly cheap and very beautiful
13) And if mountains are your thing, Wuhan's central location also makes it VERY convenient to a good number of Buddhist and Daoist mountains like Wu dang Mountain, Yellow Mountain, Munan Mountain, Lu Mountain....a lot =D. While the mountains themselves may be expensive, getting to them from Wuhan is pretty cheap.

Then the usual things like beer (about 2 RMB at street-side stalls and restaurants), massages, etc. As note, while not cheap per se, I did find some good foreign alcohol at half the US price at Metro (German uber-store that Wuhan has a couple of)

Cheers! =D

Thanks Kong!
I have a stopover in Wuhan next month on my way to Beijing and haven't really found many people to be that positive about it. Your information is helpful, thanks!!

xx

Happy to hear you found it helpful, Jennifer. I thought I should probably mention that the hostel is called Wuhan Pathfinder and it's at 368 Zhong Shan Road (中山路), about 10 RMB by cab from the Wuchang train station.
MAP
Cheers! =D