Qiandao Lake (Thousand Island Lake)

The Qiandaohu Central Lake Area Tourist Dock is located on Xin'an Avenue in Qiandaohu Town, Chun'an County, Hangzhou. It is the most core and facility-complete tourist distribution dock in the Qiandaohu scenic area, and also the departure hub for tourists to take cruise ships to visit the central lake area (Meifeng Island, Yule Island, Longshan Island, Moonlight Island). The dock is equipped with a large modern passenger waiting hall, complete with air conditioning, seating, electronic display screens, and ticket windows, dispatching over 3 million passengers annually. Departing from the central lake area dock, visitors can take cruise ships of different grades (approx. 150-300 RMB/person) for a tour around the lake, passing core scenic spots such as Meifeng Island, Yule Island, Longshan Island, and Moonlight Island, with a total duration of about 8 hours.

Meifeng Island is located on the northwest side of Qiandaohu's central lake area, about 8 kilometers from the central lake area dock. It is the viewing island with the most open view and most magnificent scenery among Qiandaohu's 1,078 islands, with the saying "If you don't ascend Meifeng to view the archipelago, you won't know the true face of Qiandao Lake." The island is about 204 meters high. After landing at the dock, visitors need to walk or take the cable car (approx. 30 RMB/person) up to the summit viewing platform, taking about 20-30 minutes total. A 360-degree open viewing platform is set up on the mountain summit. The best photography times for Meifeng Island are early morning and dusk.

Yule Island is located in the central part of Qiandaohu's central lake area, between Meifeng Island and Longshan Island, about 6 kilometers from the central lake area dock. The island name "Yule" is derived from the meaning "the joy of fishermen, joy all around." The entire island takes fish culture as its theme. The island is equipped with a lakeside view restaurant serving Qiandaohu organic fish head soup, Chun'an rice soup, and various lake-fresh stir-fries. Yule Island is also the concentration point for Qiandaohu water activities.

Longshan Island is located on the south side of Qiandaohu's central lake area, about 4 kilometers from the central lake area dock. The island name "Longshan (Dragon Mountain)" originates from the small hill at the center of Chun'an ancient county seat——Longshan. After the Xin'an River Reservoir impounded water in 1959 and Chun'an ancient county seat was submerged beneath the lake, the summit of Longshan happened to emerge above the water surface, becoming the only landmark remnant of the ancient county seat. The core landscape on the island is Hairui Shrine, first built in 1562 (41st year of the Jiajing reign of Ming Dynasty) to commemorate Hairui, the upright official who once served as magistrate of Chun'an County. The island also serves as an important window for understanding the "underwater ancient city" culture of Qiandaohu.

Hairui Shrine is located in the central part of Longshan Island in Qiandaohu's central lake area. It is a thematic shrine built to commemorate Hairui, the upright official of the Ming Dynasty, and also the core of Longshan Island's cultural landscape. Hairui (1514-1587 CE), courtesy name Ruxian, literary name Gangfeng, was from Qiongshan (today's Haikou), Hainan. He served as magistrate of Chun'an County in 1566 (45th year of the Jiajing reign). During his tenure, he maintained integrity, cracked down on powerful local clans, and redressed unjust cases, deeply loved by the common people and hailed as "Hai the Blue Sky." The shrine is a Ming-Qing style courtyard-style building with three sections and two skywells, featuring black tiles, white walls, and carved wood doors——dignified and elegantly simple.

Moonlight Island is located on the northeast side of Qiandaohu's central lake area, about 7 kilometers from the central lake dock, formed by four green islands connected head-to-tail. It is the most romantic island in Qiandaohu. The island takes "moonlight" as its theme, with four major functional zones: the Moon Matchmaker Temple, Moon-Viewing Pavilion, Dream-Moon Pavilion, and New Moon Slope. The Moon Matchmaker Temple enshrines the Old Man Under the Moon, a popular destination for couples to pray for marriage. The Moon-Viewing Pavilion is a six-cornered classical pavilion and the best moon-viewing spot on the island.

Lock Island is located in the central lake area of Qiandaohu, situated in the lake section connecting Meifeng Island and Yule Island. It is one of the most fun and interactive islands in Qiandaohu. The entire island takes the lock as its core cultural image. A 300-metre Lock Culture Corridor runs along the island, with walls and display racks holding tens of thousands of locks, from bronze locks of the Spring and Autumn Period, Han-dynasty iron locks, and Tang-dynasty silver locks to modern fingerprint, combination, and facial-recognition locks. The island's "Lock King" weighs one tonne and is about 2.5 metres high.

Zhuangyuan Bridge connects Lock Island and Bird Island in Qiandaohu. It is a chain suspension bridge spanning between the two islands, with a total length of about 230 meters and a height difference of about 16 meters from the lake surface. The bridge name "Zhuangyuan" originates from the "Zhuangyuan" (top scholar) in China's ancient imperial examination system——the first-place winner of the palace examination, implying "success in the imperial examination and rising step by step." Every year before the high school entrance exam (zhongkao) and college entrance exam (gaokao), large numbers of students and parents make special trips to walk across Zhuangyuan Bridge.

Wenxin Island is located in the southeast lake area of Qiandaohu, about 12 kilometers from Qiandaohu Town. It is one of the earliest islands in Qiandaohu to develop vacation businesses and currently the island with the most comprehensive vacation functions. The entire island covers an area of about 120 mu. A Wenxin Island Vacation Hotel built to four-star standard is on the island, with over 120 lakeview guest rooms, a conference center, dining halls, and a water sports center. The west side of the island has a large yacht dock and various water sports facilities.

Huangshanjian is located in the southeast lake area of Qiandaohu, about 20 kilometers from Qiandaohu Town, with an elevation of about 266 meters. It is the highest peak in the southeast lake area and one of the most stunning viewing spots in Qiandaohu. Taking the cable car from the mountain foot to the summit takes about 8 minutes. A 360-degree open viewing platform is set up on the mountain summit. Standing on the viewing platform, you can take in the densely distributed island group of the southeast lake area of Qiandaohu.