Situated in the northern part of Chengde, the Mountain Resort, also called the Temporary imperial Dwelling Palace in Rehe, was built by the Emperors Kangxi and Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty for the sake of stabilizing the frontier region and maintaining the unity of multi-nationalities. This large resort is considered the most remarkable imperial garden still existing today in China. In 1994, UNESCO inscribed Chengde Mountain Resort and its outlying temples on the World Heritage List.

The emperors of Qing Dynasty usually came to Chengde Mountain Resort in the forth or fifth month of the lunar calendar and went back to Beijing in the ninth or tenth month. During this period, they handled state affairs from here. Actually, Chengde Mountain Resort became the second political center of that time.

The whole garden covers 564 hectares and is surrounded by a 10 kilometers' long wall. It is twice as large as the Summer Palace in Beijing. About 70% of the whole resort is hilly. The resort has two parts-the palatial area is of classic elegance, and the scenic area is with green plains and picturesque islets. The good points of the numerous Chinese garden styles are mixed with the beauty of magnificent northern scenery and splendid southern landscape.

The Hall of Simplicity and Sincerity is the main hall in the Chengde Mountain Resort, which was often used for attending to government affairs and holding grand ceremonies. It is built mainly with a kind of aromatic hardwood called nanmu. The Hall of Refreshment in Mist-Covered Waters, also called the "Rear Dwelling Quarters of the Palace", was the place where the emperor and his wives and concubines lived. The design of the building in the palace area is simply furnished, lacking any luxurious materials. It is austere and elegant, harmonizing well with the simplicity of the whole resort.

The lakes together with eight islands cover an area of 57 hectares. On the lake there are three islets connected by the embankment, which look like "glossy ganoderma", a kind of precious herb. So Emperor Kangxi named them "Ganoderma Road and Cloud Embankment". Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong used to do some reading here.

In a word, the Chengde Mountain Resort shows rich, unified scenes and a pluralistic cultural background. It is a pearl of Chinese gardening style and is a wonder of the world.

Entry fee: 50 yuan

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