Yuanmingyuan Garden, also known as the Old Summer Palace, is a famous imperial garden in the Qing Dynasty. It consisting of three areas such as Yuanmingyuan Garden, Changchun Garden, and Qichun Garden. With a rich and beautiful history, the Yuanmingyuan Garden is known as the "Garden of Ten Thousand Gardens". In 1860, the British and French coalition burned the main buildings to ashes, and now tourists can only rely on the wreckage to mourn and search for the glorious figure of the empire back then.
Yuanmingyuan Garden
The garden design of Yuanmingyuan is mostly themed on water, with water features winning. It has both a vast and calm lake surface and narrow and turbulent streams. The Yuanmingyuan is mainly composed of two major areas: Fuhai Scenic Area and Houhu Scenic Area.
Fuhai is the water surface in the garden, meaning "as lucky as the East Sea". It was the water amusement center of the Royal Garden at that time. There are three square islands of different sizes connected by bridges in the center of the sea. Along the Fuhai River, there are numerous small water surfaces circling around, accompanied by stacked rocks and mountains, and gathering soil to form hills, forming nearly a hundred natural spaces that are stacked layer by layer, with mountains and water turning back and forth, just like a heavenly creation.
The Houhu Scenic Area is located in the western part of Fuhai, surrounded by nine small islands, and is a symbol of the national territory of "Kyushu". The garden landscapes of each island have their own unique features and complement each other to form a landscape.
Qichun Garden
Qichun Garden, also known as "Wanchun Garden", consists of Zhuyuan, Hanhui Garden, Xishuang Village, and the northern half of Chunhe Garden. It was once one of the main residences of Emperor Jiaqing of the Qing Dynasty, and after Daoguang, it was mainly used as a residence for the Empress Dowager and Empresses Dowagers. There are many small scenic spots in the park, making it a large collection of small water gardens.
Nowadays, Qichun Garden is the main venue for the annual Lotus Festival in Yuanmingyuan. There are large areas of lotus flowers planted on the water surface in the park. In the midsummer season, the lotus flowers bloom in full bloom, and the entire Qichun Garden is full of colorful colors. Rowing a boat and navigating through lotus leaves is also a great experience.
Changchun Garden
Changchun Garden is mainly composed of large-scale water features. The core building of that year, including the scripture hall, had a grand scale, and its layout was based on the Ningshou Palace in the Forbidden City. It was the residence where Emperor Qianlong often resided after abdication. There is a Lion Forest in the northeast corner of the park, modeled after the Lion Forest in Suzhou. A series of European style garden buildings, commonly known as "Western Buildings", have been built in the northwest of the park, and the well-known "Great Water Method" is located here.
In addition, there are more than ten buildings and gardens, including Xiqiqu, Xianfa Bridge, Haiyantang, Yuanying Temple, Guanshui Temple, Xianfa Mountain, and Xianfa Wall. However, there are only ruins left, and one can only imagine the grand occasion of the past in the ruins.
The Yellow Flower Formation in the Western Tower Scenic Area of Yuanmingyuan is a rectangular maze modeled after European style. At that time, palace maids and eunuchs played here, and the emperor and a group of concubines sat on a high platform to watch. Because palace maids held palace lanterns made of yellow flowers, they were called the Yellow Flower Formation. At this point in the garden, you must take a walk through this maze and experience the atmosphere of monarchy and people enjoying each other back then.
Watching exhibitions and documentaries
In 1860, a looting by the British and French coalition destroyed a generation of famous gardens, and the spectacular scenes of that year no longer existed. If imagination cannot reach it out of thin air, you can experience the grandeur of the year in the "Yuanmingyuan Prosperous Panoramic Model Exhibition" in Changchun Garden through the explanation of the instructor. Address: Southeast of the Xilou Ruins in Changchun Garden, northeast of the Hanjing Hall.
In addition, the Yuanmingyuan Exhibition Hall located in the Western Tower Site area will broadcast a large-scale documentary called "Yuanmingyuan" from 8:30 to 17:00 every day
Travel Tips
Address: No. 28 Qinghua West Road, Haidian District, Beijing
Tel: 010 6262 8501
Official website: http://www.yuanmingyuanpark.cn/
Opening Hours: 07:00-18:00 throughout the year
Admission: CNY 25