Constructed during the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), the Summer Palace is a sprawling complex over 726.5 acres in size, the bulk of which comprises an artificial lake. It was popularly used as a summer resort of members of the imperial palace, and reached its height during the 18th century when the Empress Dowager Cixi embezzeled funds intended for the navy to rebuild and extend the palace to its current proportions. The palace was ransacked in 1900, but was restored in the 1500's.

The palace features a number of intricate gardens, pavilions, towers, bridges and corridors. It is split into four parts: the front hill area, front lake area, the rear hill area and the rear lake area.

The Summer Palace "Gardens of Nurtured Harmony" is a palace in Beijing, China. The Summer Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill (60 meters high) and the Kunming Lake. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometers, three quarters of which is water. The central Kunming Lake covering 2.2 square kilometers was entirely man made and the excavated soil was used to build Longevity Hill. In its compact 70,000 square meters of building space, one finds a variety of palaces, gardens, and other classical-style architectural structures.

Kunming Lake was created by extending an existing body of water to imitate the West Lake in Hangzhou. The palace complex suffered two major attacks--during the Anglo-French allied invasion of 1860 (with the Old Summer Palace also ransacked at the same time), and during the Boxer Rebellion, in an attack by the eight allied powers in 1900. The garden survived and was rebuilt in 1886 and 1902. In 1888, it was given the current name, Yihe Yuan. It served as a summer resort for Empress Dowager Cixi, who diverted 30 million taels of silver, said to be originally designated for the Chinese navy (Beiyang Fleet), into the reconstruction and enlargement of the Summer Palace.

In December 1998, UNESCO included the Summer Palace on its World Heritage List. It declared the Summer Palace "a masterpiece of Chinese landscape garden design. The natural landscape of hills and open water is combined with artificial features such as pavilions, halls, palaces, temples and bridges to form a harmonious ensemble of outstanding aesthetic value." It is a popular tourist destination but also serves as a recreational park. (Thanks Wikipedia).

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On bus routes: 907, 375, 801, 808, 732, 394, 718

Last edited on Nov 2, 09 10:53 PM.
Contributors: Paula Y. , Pokin Y. Show History

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Craig H.

Oct 9, 2011

The trip to the Summer Place was just because I was in Beijing and had some free time. It was well worth the time, but as I was getting ready to go I stopped at a vendor's stall near the taxis stand, and was thinking about buying something. I was actually talking to the vendor when an impatient taxis driver came over and got me into his cab. I knew what the rate was because I came to the Summer Palace by taxis. But as we drove along I noticed the meter was running very fast. I had not gotten a good view of the taxis before I was rushed inside and had gotten into an illegal cab. This is a common problem in many places -- you just have to be more careful than I had been. I got off at the Beijing zoo, a poorer but wiser man.

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Pokin Y.

Jun 20, 2007

I went to see this place as part of a big guided tour. Not, in my opinion, the best way to go about things. We were shuttled from place to place following streams of people patiently filing their way around the palace. Stop here, take a picture there. When the guide told us rub the butts of these two lion sculptures for good luck, the group obediently went up and did so. So the guides said jump where??

That said, this is a stunning complex. You arrive, and immediately take a boat ride through this massive artificial lake. Once you land, you can explore the gardens, the buildlings and all the detailing - all of which was quite impressive. Now if only we could just lose some of the crowds.

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Jasmine S.

Jul 12, 2008

Really enjoyed the Summer Palace. It took me a while to figure out what bus i needed to take to get there but once there I loved it. It has a really old feel about it and there is so much to buy. Make sure you bargain though.And bargain well. Walking away seems to be a winner for some bargains, depending on how much they want to sell items to you.

This is a large palace to look at. I heard a story that the emperor at the time had a war going on but he lost the war because he spent his money on this palace instead...

Definitely a must see when in Beijing

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Lindsay G.

Dec 26, 2008

Nice gardens, lake and architecture. It is relatively-speaking like the Forbidden City, but woodsier. This was the last major attraction that I visited while in Beijing/area, so by then, it did not seem as impressive to me after having seen a number of other temples and I had begun to grow a bit weary of travel and research. I´m sure, however, I would have had slightly different sentiments had I visited it earlier in my itinerary. Still very nice, though.

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Eleni M.

Jul 31, 2009

A vast, lush, and nice area for long walks, away from the fuss and pollution of Beijing. The palace buildings and the temples are beautifully renovated and one can also enjoy a boa ride in the vast, man-made lake.

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