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Santanyinyue (三潭印月), or Three Pools Mirroring the Moon, is the largest...
The three stone pagodas south of the island known as Three Pools Mirroring the Moon are the landmark of West Lake and the symbol of Hangzhou. The three stone pagodas are printed on the back of the one yuan paper banknote of 1 RMB.
As the name of the island "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon" suggests, in Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival ( Moon Cake Day ), candles are lit inside the round holes of each pagoda (south of the island), creating the mixed splendor of candle light, moonlight and lake light on the three-pool area in the lake, hence the name of Three Pools Mirroring the Moon.
Follow me to have a glimpse of the island known as "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon". Actually Three Pools Mirroring the Moon is like a lake within West Lake. The whole island resembles a traditional Chinese water and mountain painting - zigzag bridges, lily ponds, curved-eave pavilions and densely forested trees, a perfect place for a leisure afternoon stroll. Avoid coming here on China public holiday due to the hordes of domestic tourists.
The dock at Huagang 花港码头 ( Dock by Fish Viewing at Flower Park）
Pay 55 yuan and get on a wooden boat for a return trip to the island known as "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon". Every 15 minutes a shuttle boat will leave the dock for the island, full and go with free seating.
From your boat, you can have a distant view of Su Causeway like a green belt lying on West Lake from the south to the north dotted with six moon bridges.
It is not a bad idea to rent a rowing boat for a romantic cruise. You see the young couple comfortably sitting in a rowing boat with the background of three stone pagodas on the south of the island, Leifeng Pagoda atop the southern hill of West Lake and City God Pavilion on the summit of Wushan Hill protruding into Hangzhou city center.
Now we are board the island - a lake within West Lake - pavilions, bridges, ponds, flowers and trees.
The charming reflections on the water.
The large dock area on the northern shore of the island, a nice place for a broad view of West Lake.
Look into the distant northeast shoreline of West Lake.
Snap a picture of the beautiful island.
A pleasant and comfortable boat cruise on West Lake.
If you don’t want to go the do-it-yourself route and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours, here are some options for Hangzhou Guided Tours:
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