Chengde Mountain Resort

Chengde Mountain Resort is situated in the city of Chengde in north China's Hebei province. Built between 1703 and 1792 during the Qing Dynasty, the Mountain Resort took 89 years to complete. Every year Qing emperors would spend six months enjoying the cool and handling government affairs here. It is included in "the Four Chinese Gardens" together with the Summer Palace, the Humble Administrator's Garden and the Lingering Garden. In December, 1994, Chengde Mountain Resort and its surrounding temples were included into the "World Cultural Heritage" list by UNESCO.

Chengde Mountain Resort is a large complex of imperial palaces, gardens and grand temple compounds. Its building layout can be roughly divided into two parts: the palace region and the garden region. The latter can be subdivided into the lake area, the plain area and the mountain area.

Located at the southern bank of the lake, the magnificent palace region used to be a busy place where the emperors would deal with state affairs, hold ceremonies and enjoy their lives. The beautiful lake area is divided into several parts of different sizes by eight small islands, linked by causeways and small bridges. The plain area lies at the foot of the mountains to the north of the lake. Its open terrain is decorated by the Trees Garden, which adds a sense of calm to the vivifying vast grassland. The mountain area covers about 80 percent of the whole garden. Forested mountains, hills, ravines and valleys are dotted with various buildings, including temples, pavilions, and pagodas. The natural scenery of Chengde Mountain Resort is the epitome of the splendid landscape of China.