Summer Palace Travel Tips
Best Summer Palace Tour Routes
The Summer Palace has 3 main entrances for travelers: the East Palace Gate, the North Palace Gate and the Newly-built Palace Gate (Xin Jian Gong Men). Here following are several best tour routes concluded by both former visitors and staff from the Palace:
Entering from East Palace Gate:
Tour Route A: East Palace Gate → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Wenchang Hall → Hall of Jade Ripples, Yiyun House → Hall of Joyful Longevity → Long Gallery → Hall of Dispelling Clouds → Tower of Buddhist Incense → Marble Boat → Nanhu Island (by boat) → Seventeen-Arch Bridge → Bronze Ox → Newly-built Palace Gate (about 2.5 hours)
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| East Palace Gate |
Tour Route B: East Palace Gate → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Wenchang Hall → Hall of Jade Ripples, Yiyun House → Hall of Joyful Longevity → Long Gallery → Hall of Dispelling Clouds → Tower of Buddhist Incense → Suzhou Market Street → North Palace Gate (about 2 hours)
Entering from North Palace Gate:
Tour Route A: North Palace Gate → Suzhou Market Street → Four Great Regions → Tower of the Buddhist Incense → Hall of Dispelling Clouds → Long Gallery → Marble Boat → Nanhu Island (by boat) → Seventeen-Arch Bridge → Bronze Ox → East Causeway of Kunming Lake → Wenchang Hall → Hall of Jade Ripples, Yiyun House→ Hall of Joyful Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → East Palace Gate (about 3 hours)
Tour Route B: North Palace Gate → Suzhou Market Street → Marble Boat → Long Gallery → Hall of Dispelling Clouds → Tower of Buddhist Incense → Hall of Joyful Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Wenchang Hall → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → East Palace Gate (about 2 hours)
Entering from Newly-built Palace Gate:
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| Zhichun Pavilion |
Tour Route A: Newly-built Palace Gate → East Causeway of Kunming Lake → Wenchang Hall → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Hall of Jade Ripples, Yiyun House → Hall of Joyful Longevity → Long Gallery → Hall of Dispelling Clouds → Tower of Buddhist Incense → Suzhou Market Street → North Palace Gate (about 2.5 hours)
Tour Route B: Newly-built Palace Gate → Nanhu Island → Seventeen-Arch Bridge → Bronze Ox → Marble Boat (by boat) → Farming and Weaving Scenic Area → Suzhou Market Street → Tower of Buddhist Incense → Hall of Dispelling Clouds → Long Gallery → Hall of Joyful Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Hall of Jade Ripples, Yiyun House → Wenchang Hall → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → East Palace Gate (about 3 hours)
Tips: Visitors can take a battery cart when traveling by land, which connects the following 5 stops: Bafang Pavilion (near the Seventeen-Arch Bridge), Xiuyi Bridge (near South Ruyi Gate), Pavilion of Bright Scenery (south of six Bridges on West Bank), Changguan Hall (near Western Palace Gate) and Jade Belt Bridge.
Boat Service
To hire a boat is a good choice to appreciate the lake view during a Summer Palace tour. There are different kinds of boats varying of size, startups, and close time. Boat rental at 8 wharfs is available from 08:00 to 16:00, but will be closed in stormy days.
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There are mainly 5 kinds of boats. There is a large boat from Beijing Exhibition Center to the Summer Palace via Beijing Zoo, The National Library of China, Zizhuyuan (Purple Bamboo) Park, Royal Purple Bay, and Longevity Temple (Wanshou Temple) and there is boat from the Summer Palace to Yuyuantan Park.
Ticket for a single trip is CNY 40-50 excluding entrance fee of the Summer Palace.
| Boats Categories | Wharfs Location | Deposit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pedal Boat | at the south of Zhichun Pavilion and the Gate of Dispelling Clouds | CNY300 | CNY40 /h (4 seats) CNY60 /h (6 seats) |
| Manual Boat | at the eastern end of Seventeen -Arch Bridge and the south of Bafang Pavilion | CNY300 | CNY40 /h (4 seats) |
| Battery Boat | at the south of Zhichun Pavilion | CNY400 | CNY60 /h (4 seats) CNY100 /h (6 seats) |
| Dragon Boat | Shizhang Pavilion (west end of the Long Gallery ) and Bronze Ox | CNY10 (single trip) | |
| Large Ancient Pleasure Boat | Marble Boat and Nanhu Island | CNY8 (single trip) | |
Dinning and Others
There are 3 fast food restaurants in Zhichun Pavilion, nine rooms east of Hall of Dispelling Clouds and Shizhang Pavilion. They offer mainly Chinese food, together with various noodles. Near Marble Boat stands a restaurant offering imperial food, named Tingli Guan (also called Hall of Listening to Orioles), which has another branch near North Ruyi Gate. Their meal time is between 11:00 to 14:30. Moreover, there is a McDonald's outside the North Palace Gate.
For the convenience of visitors, there are free hand-power wheelchairs at most entrances (East Palace Gate, Gate of Wenchang Hall, North Palace Gate, North Ruyi Gate, Newly-built Palace Gate, South Ruyi Gate, and South Palace Gate) and Tourist Service Center in the southeast out of East Palace Gate. Interpretation service in English and Russian is available. Kindly note that as a regulation, professional video camera equipments are not allowed to be used inside without permission, and that all cultural relics and sights inside should be respected by visitors.