Atlas of China
Xuanwu Lake 玄武湖Xuánwǔ Hú
4A scenic area · Nanjing, Jiangsu
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Days to budget
- Half a day
- City
- Nanjing
- Region
- Jiangsu
- Type
- Nature
- Listed as
- 4A scenic area
About Xuanwu Lake
A lake of about 10 km round just north of the old city, bounded on the west and south by the Ming city wall and looking east to Purple Mountain, which has been an imperial park and pleasure ground since the Six Dynasties. Five islands, Huanzhou, Yingzhou, Lingzhou, Liangzhou and Cuizhou, are linked by causeways and bridges and planted with willows, cherry trees and lotus; in the Ming dynasty the empire's household registers were archived on Liangzhou. It became a public park after Xuanwu Gate (then Fengrun Gate) was opened in the wall in 1909 for the Nanyang Industrial Exposition.
How to get to Xuanwu Lake
The main entrance, Xuanwu Gate on the west shore, is beside Xuanwumen station on Metro Line 1; Nanjing railway station lies just north of the lake.
Nearby
- Fuzimiao and the Qinhuai River 夫子庙—秦淮风光带 under 10 km
Nanjing's lantern-lit Confucius Temple quarter, beside painted boats on the Qinhuai - Purple Mountain & Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum 南京钟山风景区 under 10 km
A forested mountain on Nanjing's edge, crowned by a blue-roofed hilltop tomb - City Wall of Nanjing 南京城墙 under 10 km
The Ming capital's brick ramparts, anchored by the vast fortress of Zhonghua Gate
Also within 20 km: Former Nanjing Office of the Eighth Route Army 八路军驻京办事处旧址 (under 10 km), Former Beijige Meteorological Observatory 北极阁气象台旧址 (under 10 km), Former Academia Sinica Buildings 国立中央研究院旧址 (under 10 km), Drum Tower of Nanjing 南京鼓楼 (under 10 km), Former Macklin Hospital 马林医院旧址 (under 10 km), University of Nanking Campus 金陵大学旧址 (under 10 km).
On the map
Open Xuanwu Lake on the illustrated map to see the terrain around it and what else is close, and to add it to a trip.
Open Xuanwu Lake on the map