PLACE GUIDE

Lianhu Park 莲湖公园

Lianhu Gongyuan

Lianhu Park preserves a pocket of water and garden space within Xi’an’s old city.

Open grounds and trees in Lianhu Park, Xi’an.
Open grounds and trees in Lianhu Park, Xi’an. Photograph date recorded by the source: 2014-02-15 09:16:37. · Acstar · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo adjustments

Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.

Explore the region

Shaanxi · 陕西省 →Xi’an · 西安市 →Lianhu District · 莲湖区 →

About Lianhu Park

Its lotus pond traces a long history of cultivation and later public-park use, giving the surrounding district its name. Today, winding bridges, rockwork and pavilions create a compact lakeside circuit. The Qiyuan Teahouse memorial adds a twentieth-century layer, recalling a wartime communications station once operating in the park.

The park's origins date to the eleventh year of the Hongwu era (洪武), when Zhu Shuang (朱樉), Prince of Qin and second son of the Hongwu Emperor, began rebuilding Xi'an, adding the city wall, the Prince of Qin's mansion, the Dongyue Temple (东岳庙), the Chenghuang Temple (城隍庙) and the Lotus Pond (莲花池) itself. It was formed by digging an artificial lake and channeling water from the Zao River (皂河) north through the Zhangba ditch (丈八沟) and Liuhe canal (柳河渠) into the city.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties the pond was repeatedly dredged and maintained; in the seventh year of the Kangxi era (康熙), governor Jia Fuhan (贾复汉) renamed it Fangsheng Pool (放生池) and restricted entry to distinguished guests. It once covered more than 120 mu (亩) of water and garden, divided into north and south lakes with a temple and an arched bridge, but it fell into ruin around 1949 and disappeared during the Cultural Revolution, when it was known only as Beiwutai (北五台).

The park today covers about 60,000 square meters, with water making up roughly one third of that area, and serves as a place for local residents to view lotus flowers, cool off in summer and relax; its lake remains the only lake within Xi'an's city walls.

What to look for

  • The lotus-water landscape with curved bridges, rockwork and waterside pavilions.
  • The Qiyuan Teahouse memorial marking the former wartime liaison station.

Location & getting there

Getting to Lianhu Park

The park is at 18 Lianhu Road in Lianhu District, beside the northern part of the Hui neighborhood.

  • Use the Lianhu Road entrance for a straightforward visit to the compact garden.
General visit reminders

Allow room for the terrain and weather when choosing your route. Check the operator’s current trail, shuttle and cableway notices where applicable, and confirm the return connection before setting out. A broad landscape pin does not identify every trailhead or access point.

Combine your visit

Suggested order within this visit:

  1. Lotus pond

    Begin with the water feature that gave the park its name.

  2. Bridges and pavilions

    Follow the garden edge for changing views across the pond.

  3. Qiyuan Teahouse memorial

    Finish with the site’s more recent historical layer.

This sequence is an editorial suggestion based on the features described in the sources. Access to individual buildings or areas should be checked locally; no travel time or shared admission is implied.

AI illustration: A close view across an ordinary lotus pond in a Chinese garden, broad green lotus leaves.
AI illustration · AI 示意图（景观类型参考，非实拍） · 荷叶莲花水面 — A general visiting detail, not an exact view of this place.
Rivers, lakes & waterfalls · 江湖／峡谷瀑布 →

Find Lianhu Park

莲湖公园 · 莲湖区

Amap · 高德地图Approximate pin · 近似位置Apple Maps · 苹果地图

The pin marks the area, not the entrance.

More places nearby

Approximate straight-line distances between map pins, not travel distances.

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Sources & visit information

The linked encyclopedia sources support background and place descriptions. Current opening hours, ticket prices, booking rules and transport schedules have not been independently verified for this guide. Confirm them with the venue or operator before travelling.

Visitor information adapted and edited from Wikipedia contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 94136841.

Background paragraphs translated and condensed from Wikipedia contributors, "莲湖公园", Chinese Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 94136841.

China Revealed · Editorially updated 2026-10-07