The Mountain Resort (the Qing dynasty's summer palace), in Hebei Province, was built between 1703 and 1792. It is a vast complex of palaces and administrative and ceremonial buildings. Temples of various architectural styles and imperial gardens blend harmoniously into a landscape of lakes, pastureland and forests. In addition to its aesthetic interest, the Mountain Resort is a rare historic vestige of the final development of feudal society in China.

By the end of the 17th century the Qing emperors had established their capital at Beijing, and they began to look around for somewhere cool and green to retreat to when the dusty heat of summer set in. They found what they were looking for at Chengde, beyond the Great Wall.

Here they created a summer residence, exploiting mountains, woods and other existing natural features to which they added contrived landscapes to make settings for innumerable pavillions, palaces and temples. Construction took a total of 87 years. The buildings and gardens cover an area of 560 hectares, and are surrounded by a wall 10 km. long.

Outside the palace walls, to the north and west, a total of 11 temples were built. Manyof them were built in Tibetan style. Divided into eight groups, they became known as the Eight Outer Temples. The main gates of these buildings pointed towards the palace, symbolising the unity of China's various ethnic groups under the central rule of the Qing emperors.

The Chengde Mountain Resort is most famous for the 72 scenic spots which were named by the Kangxi and Qianlong Emperors. Many of the scenic spots around the resort's lake area were copied from famous landscaped gardens in Southern China. For instance, the main building on Green Lotus Island, "Tower of Mist and Rain," It is a copy of a tower in Nanhu Lake at Jiaxing in Zhejiang Province. The resort's plain area possesses characteristics of the scenery of the Mongolian grasslands. Forested mountains and valleys are dotted with various buildings. This includes the Sarira Pagoda, a 70 m tall stone Chinese pagoda built in the year 1751 during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. The pagoda is shaped with an octagonal base, while the pagoda's nine stories are decorated with colorful glazed tiles and the steeple is crowned with a gilded round spire.

 China Tours inclusive of visiting Chengde Mountain Resort