West Lake

Top choice in Guangdong

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The moat of ancient Chaozhou is a lake inside a park well loved by locals. Around the lake are a few notable buildings. Hanbi Building served as a military office during anti-warlord expeditions in 1925. Sitting on a knoll is Phoenix Building, with its bird-like shape, iron moongate, gourd-shaped ceiling openings, and quirky interior spaces formed by the fowl’s anatomy.

Phoenix Building is attached to a shuttered building, Sìwàng Lóu, designed in a period style reminiscent of 1970s kung fu movies. West Lake is about ¥10 by pedicab from Paifang Jie.

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    Kaiyuan Temple

    0.65 MILES

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    0.16 MILES

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Nearby Guangdong attractions

1. Hanbi Building

0.09 MILES

Near West Lake is the Hanbi Building, which served as a military office during anti-warlord expeditions in 1925. Inside, a small display in Chinese, with…

2. Phoenix Building

0.16 MILES

Sitting on a knoll in West Lake is Phoenix Building, with its bird-like shape, iron moongate, gourd-shaped ceiling openings, and quirky interior spaces…

3. Sìwàng Lóu

0.16 MILES

A shuttered building in West Lake, designed in a period style reminiscent of 1970s kung fu movies.

4. Emperor Xu’s Son-in-Law’s Mansion

0.23 MILES

This breezy mansion originally built in 1064 retains some of its ancient stonework and wall coverings. The high door saddles, unique to southern China,…

5. Chaozhou Confucian Academy

0.3 MILES

This 4000-sq-metre compound has murky lily ponds teeming with koi and a main temple dedicated to Confucius that is supported by 48 pillars. Confucious is…

6. Jilue Huang Temple

0.47 MILES

The highlights here are the ancient Chaozhou woodcarvings decorating the walls and thresholds – most single pieces took a decade to complete. The art form…

7. Chaozhou City Wall

0.61 MILES

The remains of the ancient city wall run alongside and back from the river. You can walk on the top of most sections.

8. Kaiyuan Temple

0.65 MILES

Built in AD 738, Chaozhou’s most famous temple has old bodhi trees and an embarrassment of statues, including one of a 1000-arm Guanyin. Roof tiles can be…