There are in all over3,000 hall buildings in the Summer Palace. The varied-style ancient architectures among the beautiful landscape of the lakes and hills may dazzle the tourists. Upon second observation, you can find that the overall arrangement is properly spaced.

In accordance to their functions, the Palace consists of three parts: the administrative area with the Hall of Benevolent Longevity, the imperial living area with the Hall of Joyful Longevity and the scenic area with Kunming Lake and Wanshou Hill. And the scenic area is divided into three parts due to their different geographical locations: the southern slope of the W anshou Hill, the Kunming Lake and the reaar hill and back lake.

Acquaintance with the different parts is necessary for efficient tour in the Summer Palace. Now, let's begin our tour from the administrative area.

| The Summer Palace |