Qiandao Lake 千岛湖

About Qiandao Lake

From Meifeng, the view makes this drowned mountain landscape especially clear. Longshan Island adds a cultural stop with its Hai Rui shrine and academy buildings. A boat outing needs a chosen lake sector and route: the central and southeastern piers serve different excursions, and a single ticket should not be assumed to include every named island.

The lake formed when the Xin'an River hydroelectric station was built at Ma Tongguan Gorge (马铜官峡) in Jiande; the reservoir began filling in September 1959, and the station's first generating unit went into operation in April 1960. The rising water submerged two county towns, eight further towns and 1,377 villages, and displaced 289,951 residents, most resettled elsewhere in Zhejiang or in parts of Jiangxi and Anhui. In 1982 the reservoir was designated part of the country's first group of national-level scenic areas (国家级风景名胜区), as the Fuchun River-Xin'an River Scenic Area (富春江—新安江风景名胜区), and in 1984 it was given the name Qiandao Lake.

The lake covers 567.40 square kilometres and, at its normal operating level of 108 metres, contains 1,078 islands larger than 2,500 square metres, the feature that gives the reservoir its name. It is divided into five zones with differing landscapes, central, southeast, northwest, southwest and northeast, of which the central and southeast zones have been developed for tourism.

The reservoir serves mainly for hydropower generation, with flood control, irrigation, fishing and shipping as secondary functions. It supports a fishery of 83 species, including mandarin fish and eel, and a separate artificial breeding industry, farming mainly carp, bream and tilapia; the lake is also stocked with sturgeon raised for caviar production.

What to look for

• Meifeng’s elevated view over the forested islands and lake channels.
• Longshan Island’s Hai Rui shrine and academy setting.

Location & getting there

Getting to Qiandao Lake

Arrange the road transfer to the Central Lake Tourist Pier in Qiandaohu Town if booking Meifeng or Longshan. The Southeast Lake Tourist Pier serves another lake sector. Qiandaohu railway station is a separate onward-transfer point; match the pier to the route on your boat booking.