Fairy Lake (Xianhu) Park

This article was originally published on June 21, 2010, in the Shenzhen Daily.
The information was accurate at that time, and may be outdated now. Use with caution.

The front gate of Fairy Lake Park features a statue of a "fairy" (xian).

Many of you will know of Xianhu ("Fairy Lake") Botanical Gardens as the site of Shenzhen's largest Buddhist temple, Hongfa Si. We'll talk about that another day, but today let's focus on the rest of the park--and what a park it is.

The park's several zones provide a full day of walking and sightseeing, well worth the 20rmb admission fee

I recommend getting on the shuttle bus just inside the front gate. For 2rmb you can ride to the foot of the temple steps; from there, a smaller tram will take you to several other parts of the park.

Heading down to the lake from the end of the shuttle line, through the palm and bamboo gardens, you can rent a pedal-boat and ride around on the lake itself.

A short walk south from the boat rental area, along the lake, is the well-marked tree planted by Deng Xiaoping, the "Father of Shenzhen."

A tree in the "Petrified Forest" in front of the Paleontological Museum

Farther north (walking or via tram) is the excellent paleontological museum (additional fee). Though it lacks English interpretation, the bones speak for themselves. In front of it the building a selection of petrified trees is on view.

Superb examples surround the pond in the Bonsai Garden

Other fascinating garden areas include the bonsai garden (in a temple-like structure along the lake) and the aquatic plants gardens (both seen as you walk from the boating area to the paleontological museum), and in a domed building to the west of the museum, a cacti and succulents garden.

Well to the west (across from the boats) is an area showing traditional Chinese medicinal plants.

Numerous buses go from the city to the front gate, including 218 and 382.

I've also written an article about Hongfa Temple; you can learn more about it there.

GPS Info:

• Main gate = 22.56860, 114.16951

---

Map:

View Larger Map