Summer Palace (Yiheyuan)
UNESCO World Heritage Site (Summer Palace, An Imperial Garden In Beijing, 1998); National 5A Tourist Attraction · Beijing, Beijing
The largest and best-preserved imperial garden in China: some 290 hectares of lake, hill, pavilions and palaces on Beijing's northwestern edge, where Longevity Hill rises above Kunming Lake and the Tower of Buddhist Incense crowns the view. Laid out by the Qianlong Emperor from 1750, burned by Anglo-French troops in 1860 and rebuilt by the Empress Dowager Cixi in the 1880s, it became her favourite residence and the setting for late Qing court politics. The painted Long Corridor, the Marble Boat, the Seventeen-Arch Bridge and the canal shops of Suzhou Street make it a full day out, and Beijingers walk, boat and skate here year-round.
19 Xinjiangongmen Road, Haidian District, Beijing, Beijing, China
Open daily from about 6:00 (6:30 in winter). Recent listings give garden closing around 17:30 April-October and 16:30 November-March, though some sources still list later evening hours - check before a late visit. Inner attractions (Tower of Buddhist Incense, Suzhou Street, Wenchang Gallery) keep shorter hours.
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