Time of the visit : 17th of nov.- 20th of nov. 2025(Hangzhou),the visit to the West Lake took place on the 18th of nov.

The visit was remarkable and memorable in more ways than one. I broke my years-old record and walked more than 43,000 steps in a single day. My pedometer app showed me that for that week I was among the top 0.3% of users worldwide. I walked completely around West Lake, with two short 20-minute coffee breaks and a few rest stops here and there.

The number and names of the individual buildings I visited during my expedition around West Lake—from 8:00 a.m. to about 7:30 or 8:00 p.m.—have largely faded from my memory. There are simply too many around West Lake. I certainly remember some particularly outstanding sites, but much of it is also a blur. In retrospect, I would say it would be better to visit West Lake on two consecutive days.

West Lake is not just a body of water; it is the heart and soul of Hangzhou, a masterpiece of classical Chinese landscape design. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011, it is celebrated for its "picturesque conception of a series of man-made vistas" that blend harmoniously with nature. For over a millennium, poets, artists, and emperors have been inspired by its beauty, enshrining it as a cultural icon of China. The lake is structured around the "Ten Scenes of West Lake," which capture its essence in different seasons and times of day.

On the 18th of Nov.,2025,at around 8.00am, I got off the metro station " Fengqi Road" and walked from there to the shores of West Lake.I walked counter-clockwise for around 15 min,bought a coffee and sat on a bench watching the scenery for 5 min.Hordes of people were on the Broken Bridge.I spontaneously decided to turn up into the hills,the Baoshi mountains

At that point I still had lots of energy and didn't mind going up visiting several sites there like the Sunrise Terrace,some caves,the Baopu Taoist Temple (entrance fee,but worth it),the Hana Peak,the Baoshi Pagoda,and some other viewpoints.Beautiful vistas over the Lake, especially from the Diamond Hill formation.There were relatively few visitors in the hills.

I left the hills near the Yue Fei Temple...on the way there I visited two different memorial halls.I then visited the Yue Fei Temple (Temple of General Yue Fei),located at the foot of Qixia Hill near the northwest corner of the lake. This is a solemn national monument to patriotism and loyalty. It honors Yue Fei, a 12th-century Southern Song general who defended China against northern invaders, only to be betrayed and executed by a corrupt official. The site is a temple-mausoleum complex, featuring a grand hall with a statue of the general, ancient stone sculptures, and his tomb. The kneeling iron statues of the traitors before the tomb, spat upon by visitors ..some visitors even take off their shoes and hit the statues...others recite poems, others break into hate speech and become very emotional. What a spectacle! It is a place of deep historical weight and moral gravity, contrasting with the lake's natural beauty.A symbol of China's nationalism.Not to be missed IMO.

I then crossed the street diagonally opposite to visit a garden with an attached temple (free of charge).Inside that garden park, to my dismay, I noticed that it was already after 12 noon.I decided to forgo visiting Gushan.A pity,but a good decision, as I would need all my reserves to circumnavigate the lake.

I then visited several gardens like the Lotus,the Quyuan,and the Fuji Garden as well as several viewpoints and scenic spots.Then I crossed a bridge to enter the Sudi causeway.I left at Jiang's Villa to explore the entire area. I got as far as South Lake, where I turned back and took a different route, so that I saw most of the attractions in that area.

I then raced to the Leifeng Pagoda, where I was one of the last three visitors to be let in.Beautiful view.After leaving the pagoda, it quickly became dark... I had also reached my physical lowest point and felt extremely tired and was already considering taking a taxi back to my accommodation.However, I persevered and continued my journey along the eastern side of the lake, where there were numerous teahouses and pavilions, as well as cafes and restaurants.

When I finally reached the Marco Polo statue, I felt like a battered boxer who had found his second wind.From there I walked to the Wulin Night Market with its good food hall, where I had an excellent meal with cold beer.

In essence, a walk around West Lake is a journey through a "living painting", where every turn reveals a carefully composed scene of bridges, causeways, pagodas, and gardens, all set against the tranquil water and misty hills—a perfect embodiment of the Chinese philosophical ideal of harmony between humans and nature.But.............but...
on a typical weekend or during a national holiday,and even on a weekday around 13/14.00 the lakeside paths and causeways would become solid rivers of people You don't so much stroll as get carried along by the current in some sectors. Personal space vanishes. The famed "seclusion" of the Ten Views is experienced amidst a crowd of thousands.
The gentle lapping of waves is often drowned out by the constant hum of chatter, tour guides shouting through megaphones, and the announcements from the ubiquitous loudspeakers. It's vibrant, energetic, and far from tranquil.

Despite this, it remains unmissable. The key is managing expectations and being strategic:

Timing is everything:Visit on a weekday, early in the morning (before 7 AM). This is magic.Leave the East shore for the end of your walk,don't start with it.

Sometimes, you have to tune out the crowd. Focus on the details: the craftsmanship of a stone bridge, the pattern of willow leaves against the sky, the calligraphy on a historic stele.
Accept the paradox.Part of the experience is witnessing this cultural icon as it is lived today—a beloved, shared public space for the Chinese. The energy and collective enjoyment are a fascinating cultural phenomenon in themselves.China's West Lake is an outdimensionally massive tourist destination.A Non-Chinese can certainly get intimidated by the crowds.Well,there are almost no foreigners.I for my part didn't see a single one.
West Lake is both a serene classical ideal and a buzzing, modern mass-tourism phenomenon. To find the former, you must actively seek it out and plan carefully. To see the latter is to understand the reality of China's most iconic sites in the 21st century. Go prepared for both.West Lake is a victim of its own beauty and fame. It's not just a scenic spot; it's a domestic tourism magnet of almost unimaginable scale,which in itself was quite fascinating to observe.

Modern Hangzhou's centre blends historic luxury by West Lake with the futuristic skyline of the Qianjiang CBD across the river. It's defined by ultra-luxury shopping, Alibaba's digital ecosystem, sleek infrastructure, and a vibrant, tech-savvy urban lifestyle.The city centre pulses with Alibaba's influence. From ubiquitous mobile payments (Alipay) to smart city services, Hangzhou is China's unofficial "Digital Capital." The tech giant's presence is felt everywhere, fostering a youthful, entrepreneurial vibe. You can get lost in subterranean shopping zones as I did.Nice,but not really my cup of tea.

Near Hangzhou are some UNESCO sites like the magnificent Liangzhou Archeological Park with the excellent Liangzhu Museum,the city of Ningbo with its Silk Road sites like the Baoguo Temple,and last but not least Hangzhou itself is the southern terminus of the Grand Canal, another UNESCO site.

The China National Silk Museum in Hangzhou is a world-class institution which I missed because of lack of time.

There are quite a lot of copies of Huangzhou 's West Lake across China.Slender West Lake,a tentative whs,is one of them in a certain way.It directly replicates the core design principle of Hangzhou's West Lake: a serpentine waterway elegantly adorned with bridges, pavilions, weeping willows, and distinctive garden scenes. Key features like the Five-Pavilion Bridge are celebrated as equal to or surpassing their inspirations. It's a condensed, refined version of the Hangzhou aesthetic.Slender West Lake is on China's UNESCO tentative list.I for one support the inscription as a copy is not necessarily second-class...Slender West Lake can hold its own against the blueprint IMO.Potsdam is a copy of Versailles....bigger and more impressive than the French blueprint.Slender West Lake is neither bigger nor better,but unique and different enough to be inscribed as a UNESCO site IMO.

West Lake is the template and a must-see for every World Heritage traveller.Just be prepared for the masses!