West Lake is at the center of Hangzhou (杭州) City, which Marco Polo described as the most enchanting city in the world.

A world-famous tourist spot, West Lake(西湖) is situated in Hangzhou City of Zhejiang Province. Embraced by green hills on three sides, the lake covers an area of 5.6 square kilometers and has a perimeter of 15 kilometers.

The lake is divided into 5 sections – Outer Lake, North Inner Lake, Yue Lake and Little South Lake – by Gu Hill, Sudi Causeway Baidi Causeway and Ruangong Mound.

The name of West Lake was fixed as early as the Tang Dynasty (618-907). In the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the renowned Chinese poet Su Dongpo wrote a poem in praise of West Lake and compared it to Xizi, a Chinese legendary beauty. Since then, West Lake has also been referred to as Xizi Lake
The beauty of West Lake lies in its lingering charm, which survives the changing seasons. Among its numerous beautiful sights, the most are the Ten Sights at West Lake and the Ten New Sights at West Lake, which are known collectively as the Double-Ten Sights at West Lake.

The Ten Sights at West Lake are: Melting Snow at Broken Bridge, Spring Dawn at Sudi Causeway, Sunset Glow over Leifeng Hill, Lotus in the Breeze at Crooked Courtyard, Autumn Moon on Calm Lake, Listening to Orioles Singing in the Willows, Viewing Fish at Flowers Harbor, Evening Bell at Nanping Hill, Three Pools Mirroring the Moon, and Twin Peaks Piercing the Clouds.

The Ten New Sights at West Lake are: Dream Spring of Hupao, Tea-tasting at Dragon Well, Gem Bathed in Flowing Rosy Clouds, Heaven Wind over Wushan Mountain, Scud over Yuhuang, Yellow Dragon Spitting Greenness, Rains of Sweet-scented Osmanthus Over Hills, Trees in Mist by the Nine Rivulets, Ruan Mound in Green, Cloud Dwelling and Bamboo Path.

West Lake is also famous for its history, imbued with national heroes Yue Fei , Yu Qian, Zhang Ruoshui and Qiu Jin, all of whom are buried along West Lake. Many famous writings about the Lake have survived by ancient poets and artists such as Bai Juyi, Su Dongpo, Liu Yong and Pan Tianshou.