Lotus Pond Park

Lotus Pond Park

Lotus Pond Park is a national AA-level tourist attraction and a cultural heritage site protected by Beijing Municipality.

Lotus Pond Park is located south of Beijing West Railway Station, adjacent to the West Third Ring Road, covering an area of 440,000 square meters, including a water surface of 156,000 square meters. It is a cultural heritage site protected by Beijing Municipality. In 2002, it was listed as a 2A

level tourist attraction.

In ancient times, Lotus Pond Park was known as West Lake, Tai Lake, South River Pool, and other names. The "Tian Zhi Ou Wen" records: "South River Pool, commonly called Lotus Pond, is located south of the stone road outside Guangning Gate. A man surnamed Wang planted trees here and built pavilions. There is a large pond about ten acres in size, covered with red and white lotuses, where one can go boating, and crowds of visitors gather during the long summer." It is one kilometer wide from east to west and 1.5 kilometers wide from north to south. During the Liao and Jin dynasties, the capital was established southwest of Lotus Pond, making it a physical reference for studying the location and topography of the Jin Dynasty's central capital. The pond was an important water source for the capital at that time. In later dynasties, when the capital was moved northward, this area gradually fell into disuse.

Before the 1960s, Lotus Pond still had clear water and tree-lined shores. Since the 1970s, due to industrial development upstream causing river pollution, Lotus Pond turned into a stinky pond. Polluted water from upstream was directly channeled into culverts, and since then, Lotus Pond became a dry lake without water, existing in name only.

In November 1998, the Beijing Municipal Planning Commission approved the restoration and renovation plan for Lotus Pond Park. The Fengtai District Government established the Lotus Pond Restoration and Renovation Office, officially launching the restoration project. The park developed a 10,000-square-meter fitness area and planted tens of thousands of lotus roots, gradually restoring its former glory. A temple fair is held here every Spring Festival. Lotus Pond Park has now become a modern classical-style garden park integrating entertainment, leisure, and education.

Address: No. 48 Guangwai Lotus Pond, Fengtai District, Beijing (the amusement area of Lotus Pond Park is 50 meters north of the east gate)

Transportation to the attraction: Buses 6, 50, 340, 613, 620, 704, 822, 927, 368

Special Bus 7

Attraction phone: 010－63723344

010－63716402

010－63725154

Attraction ticket: 2 RMB (ticket price may increase during the lotus exhibition)

Further reading:

· Third Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Heritage Sites Protected by Beijing Municipality