[2025 Shanghai Attraction] Travel Guide for Yuanxiang Lake (Updated Mar)

I was with the Poly Theatre, so I went to Jiading to check in. The best viewing position is actually the buffet restaurant on the 40th floor of Jiading Hyatt. It is really shocking to overlook from the high-rise. Originally, Yuanxiang Lake was designed by the world-famous Dutch NITA company and is also one of the designers of the Expo. It is no wonder that the bigger is full. From the above, we can see that the shape of the lake is like the word "sea" in Shanghai. The lake is divided into large and small lakes, and some connected bridges are still being built or repaired. It may be more interactive after the whole is good. This is the largest artificial lake in the west. It is about 4 times that of People's Square, 8.5 times that of Xujiahui Park, and 34 times of Nanhuizui Guanhai Park, the landmark of Lingang New City. When there is sunshine, you can see the sparkling light. A lot of good films, I did not expect to have such a good look, so the camera did not bring, direct cell phone punch ~! There is also the Jiading Library in the surrounding area. Lets go together.

I came to see a show at the Shanghai Poly Grand Theater today and arrived early to explore Yuanxiang Lake. With its beautiful scenery and world-class architecture and art, it's the perfect weekend getaway. 🌊Yuanxiang Lake: An Ecological Pearl in Western Shanghai Yuanxiang Lake is the central landscape of Jiading New City and the largest artificial lake in western Shanghai. The lake covers a vast area. When viewed from above, it resembles the Chinese character for "sea," echoing the character for "above" formed by the Shanghai International Circuit, together signifying "Shanghai." 🌸A Lakeside Stroll: Enjoying the Scenery Stroll along the lakeside path, where the clear, sparkling water meets the lush greenery along the shore. The scenery is truly delightful. There are also waterfront boardwalks and elevated walkways where you can experience the tranquility of the lake up close. 🌸Children's Play Area: A Paradise for Kids The children's play area at Yuanxiang Lake is a favorite among kids, with sandpits, swings, climbing equipment, and more. Kids can have a blast here. You'll also see many families picnicking and camping on the lakeside lawn—a perfect spot for a family outing. 🎭Shanghai Poly Grand Theater: A Perfect Fusion of Architecture and Art The Shanghai Poly Grand Theater, located on the banks of Yuanxiang Lake, was designed by renowned architect Tadao Ando. The theater's exterior features fair-faced concrete and glass curtain walls, creating a simple yet modern look. 🌟Architectural Highlights: The Charm of Fair-faced Concrete The theater building itself is a work of art. From the hollow staircase and shimmering water stage to the entrance hall that changes with the light, every corner is Instagram-worthy! 🚗Getting There: Easy Access The Poly Grand Theater is easily accessible. You can take Metro Line 11 to Jiading New City Station and then transfer to a bus to Yuanxiang Lake. If you're coming for a show, driving and parking at the theater is convenient, but arrive early to avoid long queues, which might make you late for the performance. 📸Recommended Photo Spots 1. Yuanxiang Lake: Capture stunning photos of the lake, trees, and blue sky. 2. Poly Grand Theater Water Stage: The interplay of architecture and water creates a picturesque scene. 3. Children's Play Area: Capture heartwarming moments of children playing on the equipment.

📮Bring a curious mind and an eye for beauty, and start a pleasant journey of discovery! As long as you want, "travel" begins the moment you step out of your home! 🏞️Attraction: Yuanxiang Lake, Jiading 📍Address: Yuanxiang Lake Park, Jiading 🚗Transportation: Take Metro Line 11 to Jiading New City, transfer to Bus 15 to Baota Road Yumin South Road. 💴Tickets: Free🆓 📷Photo time: Jan 1, 2025 🌈✍️Travel Notes📝 1️⃣On the first day of 2025, I searched for Yichi Garden Jinfu Store in Jiading to have coffee and write a New Year's wish list. The store was still as quaint as ever. Sitting in the glass house, enjoying the sun, coffee, writing a list, chatting... Enjoying... 2️⃣Then I started walking back, passing by Yuanxiang Lake, and saw the beautiful reflection of the red cedar trees, and even a tree with red and green leaves! Beautiful... 3️⃣In addition to the Jiading Library, there is also Jiangnan Bookstore in Yuanxiang Lake Park. The location by the lake is so beautiful, with a full glass design, enjoying the beautiful scenery of books, and having a cup of coffee is also a place where you can stay all day. 4️⃣Walk and stop by the lake, look around, run, ride a bike, set up a tent, and enjoy the sunshine. It's a great place to go on the weekend. ‼️Tips: Do your homework before you go ✅Check the route on the map ✅Check business hours, check if you need to make an appointment in advance, to avoid a wasted trip ✅When you go out, remember ♥️safety first♥️

Today, I took a walk in the foggy Yuanxianghu Park and suddenly found that some of the Chinese tallow trees by the lake had turned red. They looked so beautiful and ethereal in the misty rain! The red and yellow leaves had fallen all over the ground. I couldn't help but pick them up and admire them. I really couldn't bear to see such beautiful leaves wither and die. I picked up some beautiful red leaves and decorated the big tree with them. It was really beautiful! Autumn is not just about maple leaves 🍁 and ginkgo leaves. There are also Chinese tallow leaves. The red leaves and white fruits are really beautiful! You can pick up the leaves and make bookmarks 🔖

Yuanxiang Lake was completed and opened to the public in 2011. Its name comes from Zhou Dunyi's 'Ode to the Lotus' from the Song Dynasty. It is the largest artificial lake in the western part of Shanghai, shaped like the Chinese character '海' (sea), and together with the '上' (Shanghai) character of the Shanghai International Circuit, it forms the characters '上海' (Shanghai) when viewed from above. Although the peak blooming season for the lotus has passed, catching the last glimpse of such beautiful lotus flowers is still very worthwhile. The lotus pond is located on one side of the Jiangnan Bookstore. Important information: Free entry, open 24 hours, self-driving is recommended. There is a parking lot at the entrance of Jiangnan Bookstore, with free parking for up to 1 hour. Photos taken on August 25, original images straight out of the camera.

"I particularly love the lotus that emerges unstained from the mud, cleansed by clear water without being seductive. Its interior is open and its exterior is straight, not spreading or branching. Its fragrance becomes purer the farther it spreads. It stands clean and upright, suitable for distant admiration but not for close play." Yuanxiang Lake is named after this. It was designed by the world-renowned Dutch company NITA. Surrounding cultural and leisure facilities such as Jiading Library, Poly Grand Theatre, and Jiading Hyatt Hotel provide visitors with a variety of entertainment options. Additionally, walking, cycling, picnicking, and setting up tents are common daily activities. 📍Detailed address: Shanghai Jiading New Town Center

The Yuangxiang Lake in Jiading New Town is a hidden gem. It's a great place to escape the heat on weekends during the recent high temperatures. Not only can you camp, but you can also play with paddleboards on the water. Yuangxiang Lake is located in Jiading New Town. It has convenient transportation and easy parking. The surrounding public service facilities are well-developed. Next to it is the Poly Grand Theatre designed by Tadao Ando. The park also has water points, which are very friendly to camping partners. 🌄Opening hours: 24 hours a day 📍Location: Southwest side of the intersection of Baiyin Road and Huyi Highway, Jiading District, Shanghai

85 hectares. In Shanghai, there is such a place, it is the largest artificial lake in the west of Shanghai. With a total area of 33.85 hectares, it is a free spot for walking with children and taking photos! Perhaps curious friends will ask, where exactly is this largest artificial lake in the west of Shanghai? What different scenery does it offer? With these questions and curiosity, today let's talk about Yuanxiang Lake in Shanghai. Yuanxiang Lake is named after Zhou Dunyi's 'Love of the Lotus' from the Song Dynasty: 'I love the lotus because it grows out of the mud and doesn't get dirty, and it washes in clear water without being seductive. It is straight on the inside and straight on the outside, without branches or tendrils, its fragrance is far-reaching and clear, it stands erect and clean, and can be viewed from a distance but not played with disrespectfully.' Its artistic conception corresponds with the planning pattern of Jiading New City, which is 'a forest every kilometer, a lake every hundred meters, rivers and lakes connected, with the fragrance of lotus filling the city.' In the planning, Yuanxiang Lake is opposite the F1 racetrack at the western end of the central axis of Jiading New City, distributed at both ends of the central axis. The racetrack is shaped like the character '上' (shang), and to echo this shape, Yuanxiang Lake is designed with the character '海' (hai) as its image. From a high altitude, the characters '上' and '海' echo each other. Yuanxiang Lake is not only the core landscape of Jiading New City but also the largest artificial lake in the west of Shanghai, with a land area of about 60.89 hectares, of which the land area is 27.04 hectares and the water area is 33.85 hectares.

🦜 The day before yesterday, I visited Jiading New City and discovered a secret little forest. The place is shaded by green trees, with small bridges over flowing water, birds singing and flowers fragrant, making it feel like an escape from the city to a distant journey— 👉🏻 Yuanxiang Lake Park 📍 Southwest side of the intersection of Baiyin Road and Huyi Highway ⏰ Open all day 🎟️ Free 🪷 Yuanxiang Lake is named after Zhou Dunyi's 'Love of the Lotus' from the Song Dynasty: 'I love the lotus, which rises from the silt but is not tainted, washed by clear ripples without being seductive, transparent inside and straight outside, neither sprawling nor branching, its fragrance carried far and clear, standing pure and upright, to be viewed from a distance but not to be played with disrespectfully.' The shape of the lake resembles the 'sea' character in Shanghai, echoing the 'Shang' character-shaped Shanghai racetrack from afar. 🏕️ The park is very large, with a children's playground, a wellness plaza, a water-friendly platform, benches, lawns, etc. You can picnic or camp on the lawn, under the shade of trees, as long as you don't light open fires. ✅ On one side of the park, there is a Jiangnan Bookstore where you can go in to read books and have a coffee. On the other side of the park, there is a Poly Theater with a unique design, which is even more spectacular when reflected in the water. ✅ Not far from the park, there is the Jiading Cultural Center and Library. If you want to go shopping, there is a TSF shopping mall opposite the Poly Theater. 🚌 Although the park is not close to the subway station, there are still many buses, which is quite convenient. Of course, it's even more convenient to drive here for camping.

'Jiading' is another name for Jiading, and Jiangnan Bookstore • The Eye of Jiading is located next to the beautiful Yuanxiang Lake. The design of the entire bookstore is very interesting. 🏠Design ✅3 layers of landscape are clearly distinguished, with a 180-degree large floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the sparkling Yuanxiang Lake. ✅The circular coffee workbench is arranged around a tree, the top of the tree in the middle has a round glass that allows natural light to come in, making the entire bookstore full of vitality and dynamism. ❤Reasons to recommend: ✅People can sit in front of the circular floor-to-ceiling window, read books and taste coffee with natural light, and enjoy the beautiful scenery of Yuanxiang Lake in their spare time. If the temperature is right, they can sit outside, enjoy the wind from the lake, and spend a leisurely time. ✅In addition to books, Jiangnan Bookstore will be transformed into a commercial form that combines bookstore, catering, cultural creativity, cultural exhibition and cultural interactive experience, becoming a new cultural landmark in Jiading New City with rich heritage and creativity. Therefore, many people come to the bookstore to read books and drink coffee. ✅Jiangnan Bookstore also actively introduces and uses new technologies, such as AI virtual people and other technologies, to help everyone find the books they want more quickly and suitably. 📝Note tips: Seats by the window are always in high demand, with a high probability of being full. 📍Detailed address: Building 3, No. 2755 Huyi Highway, Jiading District 🚉Traffic strategy: 🚇Take Metro Line 11 to Baiyin Road Exit 1 and then take a taxi or bus. 🅿️: There is a parking lot at the entrance of the bookstore, with few parking spaces, you can park nearby.

Every day, being trapped in the office building, I really feel like I'm going to grow grass🪴. Let's get in touch with nature on the weekend~ 🌈 Yuanxiang Lake Park Recommended reason: Although it is an artificial lake, it has a very Japanese sea atmosphere. You can camp on the lakeside lawn, and you can run or cycle around the lake🚵‍♂️. The most important thing is that the surrounding buildings are first-class, basically built around the lake. Surrounding attractions: 🌈 Poly Grand Theater: A work of the famous architect Tadao Ando, the interior is open for visits only on the second Sunday of each month from 10:00-14:00. However, the exterior of the theater is also very photogenic~ 🌈 Jiading Library: Basically one socket per seat, many people come to study on weekends. If you want a spot, it's best to arrive before 11:00 in the morning. 🌈 Jiangnan Bookstore: If you're tired from walking in the park, you can order an afternoon tea, sit by the table next to the floor-to-ceiling window, and enjoy the beautiful scenery. 🎈 Other tips: Transportation: 2 kilometers away from Baisilu Station on Line 11, you can ride a shared bicycle or drive directly. Food: The shopping district is far away, and the food options are scarce. However, there are stalls in the park with reasonable prices, such as grilled sausages for 3.5 yuan Time: Open all day, but it's better to come in the evening. The sunset is beautiful, and the lights will be on at night.