Natural site · ZHEJIANG · UNESCO
West Lake
西湖 · Xīhú
About
The most-painted body of water in Chinese landscape art. UNESCO-listed since 2011. Causeways, pagodas, tea villages, full circumnavigation in half a day.
West Lake (Xihu) has been a celebrated landscape since the Tang dynasty and the central image of southern-Chinese landscape art for over a thousand years. UNESCO-listed in 2011 specifically for its layered cultural and aesthetic significance — the pavilions, causeways and views are not natural but the result of repeated imperial-era landscape design.
The lake measures 6.4 km north-south and 2.8 km east-west. The Su Causeway (created by the Song poet Su Shi when he was governor) and the Bai Causeway (named for an even earlier poet) divide the lake into smaller bodies. Lei Feng Pagoda, the Broken Bridge, the Three Pools Mirroring the Moon islet — all are subjects of Chinese poetry. A full perimeter walk takes 3–4 hours; cycling is faster.
How to get there
Metro Line 1 to Longxiangqiao for the central east bank.
When to visit
April–May for blossom; October–November for clearer light. Sunset at Lei Feng Pagoda.
Other attractions in Hangzhou
Itineraries featuring this site
- Tea trail — Hangzhou, Wuyishan and Yunnan, 10 days
10d · Ten days through three of China's most significant tea-growing regions: Longjing (Dragon Well) green tea in Hangzhou, Wuyi rock oolong in Fujian, and Pu'er aged tea in Yunnan — each with its own landscape and tea-house culture.
- Yangtze Cruise with Add-ons — Chongqing to Wuhan, 10 days
10d · The Yangtze Three Gorges downstream cruise combined with two days in Chongqing and a day each at Fengdu Ghost City and Shennong Stream before arriving in Wuhan.
- Classical Gardens Circuit — Suzhou, Hangzhou, and Beyond, 12 days
12d · China's finest classical gardens in sequence: Suzhou's UNESCO garden quartet, Hangzhou's West Lake landscape, Yangzhou's slender garden tradition, and Shaoxing's canal-town context.
- Train-only China — 14 days using HSR exclusively, no flights
14d · Fourteen days across eastern and central China using only high-speed rail — no domestic flights. A lower-carbon alternative that also provides a closer view of the country at ground level.
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