Are you looking for a gateway for the weekend? If you are looking for a quick trip to paradise, this place is for you!
Qiandao Lake or “Thousand Islets Lake”, located in Chun’an Country of Zhejiang Province, is a human-made, freshwater lake which was” formed after the completion of the Xin’an River Hydroelectric Station in 1959. Qiandao lies about 150 kilometers west of Hangzhou.
The largest National Forest Park in China (81% of the area are forests) includes many attractions such as Bird Islands, Snake Island, Monkey Island and Lock Island. Five million tourists are visiting Qiandao lake every year because of its many sightseeing sports.
How to go there?
Take a train from Shanghai to Hangzhou
It will take around four hours to go to Qiandaohu, so it is better to leave Shanghai at the latest at 8 a.m to fully enjoy your trip. You need to take the train from Shanghai’s Hongkou Railway Station to Hangzhou East Station. The train ride lasts an hour.
Take a bus from Hangzhou to Qiandaohu
When you arrive at Hangzhou East Station, you need to purchase bus tickets at the bus terminal to go to Qiandaohu. If the tickets are sold out, you can take a taxi or Didi for approximately 40 RMB to Hangzhou West Bus Terminal. The buses to Qiandaohu runs every 20 minutes from there. The ticket fare is 73 RMB, and the bus ride is about two hours.
Best activities in Qiandaohu
Many tours are organized in the National Forest Park. One of them, enable you to see two islands: Huangshajian and Tianchidao. The ferry fare is about 210 RMB for adults and 140 RMB for students. The tour lasts approx. four hours, including the time on the islands.
The tour includes Bird Island where you will see a numerous variety of birds like peacocks, eagles, ostriches…
Furthermore, some scuba-diving is also really recommended. Indeed, you can dive into the ancient ruins of Lions city. It is a 1400-year-old ruin, submerged for over 50 years. It is supposed that the city of Shi Cheng (also known as Lion City, named for Wu Shi mountain) was built during the Tang Dynasty in 621 AD.
The city lays intact at the bottom of the lake with many structures, carvings, guardian lions and arches still preserved. Since 2011, it has been declared under the protection of the Zhejiang Province.