Yueyang Tower
岳阳楼
One of the Three Great Towers of Jiangnan and the birthplace of Fan Zhongyan's line 'Worry before the world worries'. This three-storey, all-timber hipped-roof building overlooks Dongting Lake and is Yueyang's emblematic landmark.
Yueyang Tower stands on the west city wall of Yueyang, on the eastern shore of Dongting Lake. It began as a military review tower built by Lu Su of the Eastern Wu kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. It became famous in the Tang dynasty, and gained wide renown when Teng Zijing restored it in the Northern Song dynasty and asked Fan Zhongyan to write the Record of Yueyang Tower. The current building was rebuilt in 1880, the sixth year of the Guangxu era of the Qing dynasty. It is the only one of the Three Great Towers of Jiangnan to retain its original form: three storeys, three eaves, a hipped roof and an all-timber structure without a single nail. The scenic area is entered from the South Gate (Zhanyue Gate) and runs along a central axis past the Five-Dynasty Tower Exhibit (bronze models of the Yueyang Tower from the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties), the Twin Gentlemen Shrine (commemorating Teng Zijing and Fan Zhongyan), the main tower, the Three Drunkards Pavilion, the Xianmei Pavilion, the Huaifu Pavilion (commemorating Du Fu), Xiaoqiao's Tomb, Lu Su's Command Platform and more. The second floor of the main tower displays a carved screen of the Record of Yueyang Tower in calligraphy by Zhang Zhao, and the third floor has Mao Zedong's handwritten Du Fu poem Climbing Yueyang Tower. From the top you can look far across Dongting Lake to Junshan Island. Admission is 70 yuan, half price for ages 60 to 65 and for students, and free for those under 14 or over 65. Each day, 200 people may sign up to recite the Record of Yueyang Tower. Those who recite it within five minutes and score at least 95 can enter free that day. Opening hours: summer (May to September) 7:00 to 18:30, winter 7:30 to 18:00. Climbing the main tower stops 15 minutes before closing. Getting there: from Yueyang East railway station take bus 55 to Nanyuepo stop, or take a taxi for about 30 minutes. The scenic area exit leads straight to Bianhe Street. Note: the wooden staircase in the main tower is narrow, and in peak season there are queues to climb. Late afternoon light is against the front, so photograph the main tower in the morning. You can also view the lake for free from the city wall on Dongting North Road outside the scenic area.
Opening hours
May–Sep 07:00–18:30; Oct–Apr 07:30–18:00