West Embankment of the Summer Palace

颐和园西堤

The West Causeway is a long causeway in Kunming Lake in the Summer Palace that winds from northwest to southeast. There are six bridges on the Su Causeway in West Lake, and six bridges were built on the West Causeway. Even the willow trees planted along the Su Causeway were copied to the West Causeway of Kunming Lake. To this day, there are still 19 willow trees from that time still on the enchanting West Causeway. But the difference is that the Su Causeway is straight, while the West Causeway is winding.
There are also wild peach trees planted on the West Bank. When they are in full bloom, the peach blossoms and the ancient buildings complement each other, creating a picturesque scene. The peach blossom cycle is generally in mid-to-late March.

Attractions Location: No. 19 Xinjian Gongmen Road, Haidian District, Beijing, Inside the Summer Palace (South Side)

Tickets: free

Transportation:
Take Bus No. 374, 424, 437, or 74 to Liulang Swimming Pool Stop, which is within walking distance.

Time reference: Less than 1 hour


Recommended itinerary for West Embankment of the Summer Palace tours

1-day tour: In-depth tour of the West Bank of the Summer Palace

  • Full day: Summer Palace West Embankment (Metro Line 4, Beigongmen Station, Exit D, 15 minutes walk) → Kunming Lake Cruise

Experience the most tranquil West Bank scenery in the Summer Palace and feel the Jiangnan charm of "Six Bridges and Smoky Willows"

Accommodation: Aman Summer Palace
Food: Imperial cuisine at the Tingli Pavilion in the Summer Palace


2-day tour: The twin beauties of the imperial gardens

  • Day 1: West Bank of the Summer Palace → Seventeen-Arch Bridge
  • Day 2: Yuanmingyuan (15 minutes by bus No. 332) → Tsinghua University (10 minutes walk)

Compare and appreciate the different styles of the two major royal gardens of the Qing Dynasty

Accommodation: Crowne Plaza Zhongguancun
Food: Day 2 lunch "Xiaodiao Pear Soup" Tsinghua Branch


3-day tour: Royal Landscape Trilogy

  • Day 1-2 is the same as 2-day tour
  • Day 3: Xiangshan Park (30 minutes by subway Xijiao Line) → Biyun Temple (10 minutes walk)

Fully experience the landscape of "Three Mountains and Five Gardens" in the western suburbs of Beijing

Accommodation: Xiangshan Hotel
Food: Day 3 lunch "Najia Restaurant" Xiangshan Branch


4-day tour: Gardens + Great Wall

  • Day 1-3 is the same as the 3-day tour
  • Day 4: Badaling Great Wall (subway to high-speed rail 1.5 hours) → Ming Tombs (bus 879 40 minutes)

A visual feast from exquisite gardens to the majestic Great Wall

Accommodation: Changping Marriott Hotel Ledo Port
Food: Day 4 lunch "Commune at the foot of the Great Wall"


5-day tour: Gardens + Olympics

  • Day 1-4 is the same as 4-day tour
  • Day 5: Olympic Park (Metro Line 8, 30 minutes) → Bird's Nest and Water Cube

A dialogue between classical garden aesthetics and modern architectural art

Accommodation: InterContinental Hotel Beichen
Food: Day 5 lunch "Pangu Seven Stars" buffet


6-day tour: Gardens + 798 Art

  • Day 1-5 is the same as the 5-day tour
  • Day 6: 798 Art District (50 minutes by Metro Line 14) → Sanlitun (20 minutes by Metro Line 10)

The collision of traditional garden conception and contemporary art creation

Accommodation: InterContinental Sanlitun
Food: Day 6 lunch "UCCA Restaurant"


7-day tour: Panoramic view of Beijing culture

  • Day 1-6 is the same as the 6-day tour
  • Day 7: Forbidden City (30 minutes on Metro Line 1) → Jingshan Park (10 minutes on foot)

Fully experience the cultural context of Beijing from the imperial gardens to the Forbidden City

Accommodation: Wangfujing Peninsula Hotel
Food: Day 7 lunch "Four Seasons Minfu" Forbidden City Store


User Reviews

By Chu Yunfei QQ |

The West Embankment is a classic rural landscape of the Summer Palace. It separates Kunming Lake from Kunming West Lake and Tuancheng Lake, but it also serves as a place for people to look westward. From south to north, the West Embankment is strung with several pearl-like landscape buildings such as the Willow Bridge, Jingming Tower, Stone Bridge, Lian Bridge, Mirror Bridge, and Jade Belt Bridge. In spring, the willow buds on the West Embankment are light yellow and tender green, full of vitality like smoke and fog. Wild peach blossoms, apricot blossoms, pear blossoms, and peach blossoms are in full bloom, in clusters and clusters, like colorful clouds flying. When the wind blows, the petals fall in a riot of color, like snowflakes dancing, which is magnificent!

By Follow me everywhere |

The West Embankment of the Summer Palace was built in imitation of the Su Causeway in West Lake, Hangzhou. Peach and willow trees are planted along the embankment. In spring, the willows are green and the peaches are red. It is known as the "South of the Yangtze River in the North". Walking along the West Embankment from the south to the north, you will see green willows and red peaches, and the spring is bright, as if you are in a fairyland.

By Liu Zhudian |

Walking along the West Causeway gives you the feeling of walking along the Su Causeway in West Lake. There are also six bridges of various shapes, with different scenery on both sides. On the left, Kunming Lake is as calm as a mirror, and the Buddhist Incense Pavilion in the distance is majestic and majestic; on the right, there are reeds, withered lotus leaves, and sparkling water, which is full of wildness, and you may occasionally encounter a family of black swans.

By jkmeil |

The West Bank of the Summer Palace is crowded with citizens on weekends, most of whom are exercising around the lake.

By Ke Xiaohe |

On the West Embankment, there are Mirror Bridge, Lian Bridge, Jingyang Tower and Willow Bridge lined up in a row, which are in full view. Behind the West Embankment, you can see the Tower of Buddhist Incense and the Seventeen-Arch Bridge. Especially in late autumn, the West Embankment becomes a yellow ribbon, spreading across Kunming Lake, with a unique beauty.

By Love blue bear |

I specially went around the Summer Palace from the West Bank. Each of the six bridges on the West Bank is different.

By Bai Xubo |

The West Causeway is also worthy of a separate entry under the Summer Palace's list. For most tourists, due to the distance, they usually don't walk to the West Causeway. But just like the West Lake is inseparable from the Su Causeway and Bai Causeway, the Summer Palace Kunming Lake, which was built to imitate the West Lake, is also inseparable from the West Causeway. But it should be noted that you need to be outside the causeway to enjoy the causeway. If you are not taking a boat, you can walk the road west of the West Causeway and then look east to see the West Causeway.

By Zhao Yuyan |

The West Causeway was modeled after the Su Causeway in West Lake in Hangzhou. From north to south, there are six bridge pavilions of different styles, namely Jiehu Bridge, Binfeng Bridge, Yudai Bridge, Jingqiao, Lianqiao and Liuqiao.

By 彪標 |

It was named "West Dike" in memory of Xi Shi, and it echoes the "Li Dike" leading to the "Bogong Island" scenic area at the west end of the island. The two dikes embrace the lake and connect the three scenes, and the dikes and lakes complement each other. Like the Li Dike, the West Dike is on the Xili Lake, but the two dikes are on the east and west sides of Yufu Island respectively. They connect Yufu Island, Shilifang Dike and the Ring Road into one, like two ribbons on Li Lake.

By yf890312 |

The scenery is beautiful, comparable to the West Causeway in Hangzhou. One of the main gardens of the Summer Palace, it not only attracts many tourists and photography enthusiasts, but is also a holy place for retired elderly people to walk around.