Hangzhou: the lake is free, the bookings aren't
Hangzhou quietly rewrote its own rulebook on 1 December 2025: Lingyin Temple and the Feilaifeng scenic area abolished their ¥75 combined ticket and went free — but reservation-only, with slots released seven days ahead and no same-day booking. West Lake itself has no gate ticket at all; the only unavoidable charge for the classic one-yuan-note view is a ¥20 island landing fee that comes attached to a boat ticket. Book Lingyin the moment your dates are fixed and the rest of the city unfolds for almost nothing.
Free entry since 1 December 2025 — no gate ticket and no temple 'incense fee' anymore, but a real-name, time-slot reservation is mandatory: book at least 1 day ahead (up to 7 days out; slots released daily at 8:00) via the 'Hangzhou Lingyin Feilaifeng' Alipay/WeChat mini-program. Same-day booking is not accepted. Open 7:30–17:30 (last entry 17:00). Foreign visitors may reserve with a passport number. Daily caps: 35,000 on weekdays, 50,000 on weekends, 65,000 on public holidays.
Source:
杭州西湖风景名胜区管委会（官方通告及高频问答）；杭州灵隐寺官网寺院公告 MAJOR 2025 POLICY CHANGE: the old structure — ¥45 Feilaifeng gate ticket plus ¥30 Lingyin Temple 香花券 (¥75 total) — was fully abolished on 2025-12-01 and replaced by free entry + reservation; there is no longer any peak/off-peak price split at this site. ⚠️ CONFLICT: some 2026 third-party guides (incl. a Ctrip write-up) still quote a ¥30 temple 'incense fee' — the temple's own announcement ('杭州灵隐寺免香花券的通启', reported by 南方都市报) confirms it was abolished; only voluntary donations remain, so refuse anyone charging it at the gate. No-show rule: a reservation you neither use nor cancel can block rebooking for 30 days. One reservation covers the whole area — no separate booking for the temple itself. Reservation-exempt (with original certificate): seniors 70+, disabled-certificate holders, Zhejiang 30-year teachers, blood-donation honour certificate, military/firefighter certificates, 戒牒/皈依证 holders. From 2026-01-01 even park annual-card holders must reserve.Reviewer notes (conflicts, traps, old values)
The lake and its causeways, parks and open views are completely free — there is no gate ticket. The famous paid extras: Three Pools Mirroring the Moon island landing fee ¥20 (never sold alone — it comes only with a boat ticket: ¥55 leisure boat or ¥70 luxury/painted/new-energy boat, round trip; tickets sold 8:00–16:00), Leifeng Pagoda ¥40, Yue Fei Temple ¥25, City God Pavilion ¥30. Nine official piers offer the island run; hand-rowed boats ¥150/hour and punt boats ¥180/hour per boat.
Source:
杭州市西湖游船有限公司（经《杭州日报》数字报纸发布）；杭州市文化广电旅游局；杭州市人民政府《收费公园名录》 ⚠️ The ¥20 island fee is never sold standalone — private touts offering '¥30 to the island' have no landing rights; only the 9 official piers' boats include it. Island visit is unlimited-time on the island; return pier can differ from the departure pier. Evening Song-style painted-boat cruise from Five Park pier is ¥90/person (1.2–1.5 m children half price). Loop-line public boats cost ¥6–8 per segment, ¥70 full loop. Boat operating hours are seasonal (island boats 8:00–17:00 Apr–Aug per operator notices; ticket sales end 16:00) — confirm at the pier.Reviewer notes (conflicts, traps, old values)
¥40 per adult, buy on site (no reservation). Hours follow three season boundaries: 8:00–20:00 from May 1 to Oct 31; 8:00–19:00 from Mar 16 to Apr 30; 8:00–17:30 from Nov 1 to Mar 15 (last entry ~30 min before closing). Discounted ¥20 for visitors aged 6–18, full-time undergraduates and below, seniors 60–69, and provincial/model workers; free for children under 6 or under 1.2 m, seniors 70+, serving soldiers, 'three dependents' of martyrs, Zhejiang teachers with 30+ years' service, and disabled visitors. Hong Kong/Macao/Taiwan youth with student documents get the same discounts; foreign passport holders pay the full ¥40 — no foreigner discount exists.
Source:
雷峰塔景区官网《门票价格及政策》；杭州市人民政府《收费公园名录及开放信息公示》 ⚠️ This site has THREE hour boundaries (Mar 16 / May 1 / Nov 1), not the single 'Apr 1' split common elsewhere — on 2026-10-17 it is in the 8:00–20:00 window, but from Nov 1 it drops to 8:00–17:30. Official price confirmed identically by the scenic-area website and the Hangzhou municipal government's paid-parks list. Elevator inside the pagoda; sunset is the classic 'Leifeng Sunset' moment. Park IC card not accepted.Reviewer notes (conflicts, traps, old values)
Hangzhou attraction tickets at a glance
Official published prices. Where a season boundary exists it is named in the catch column — boundaries differ from site to site across China, and an official "off-peak" window can still be a crowded one.
| Attraction | Ticket (official) | The catch |
|---|---|---|
| Lingyin Temple & Feilaifeng | Free — advance booking only | Book 1+ day ahead (up to 7); no same-day slots |
| West Lake scenic area | Lake free; island ¥20 + boat ¥55–70 | The ¥20 island fee is never sold alone |
| Leifeng Pagoda | ¥40 adult | Closing time moves: 17:30 / 19:00 / 20:00 by date |
| Songcheng show | ¥280 show incl. park | Official channels; OTA bundles are promos |
Lingyin stopped selling tickets in December 2025 — entry is now free but needs a real-name, time-slot reservation at least one day ahead (up to seven days out, released daily at 8:00), and a no-show you failed to cancel can block rebooking for 30 days. If anyone at the gate still quotes you a ¥30 "incense fee", it was officially abolished — refuse it.
Getting around
The lake is a loop: walk or cycle the causeways for free, take one of the nine official piers' boats to the Three Pools island (¥55 leisure / ¥70 painted or new-energy boat, round trip, tickets 8:00–16:00), and time Leifeng Pagoda for sunset. Lingyin and Feilaifeng sit northwest of the lake, a short bus or taxi from the city.
Songcheng and its show are south of the river — a evening commitment rather than a day trip. Xixi National Wetland Park is the quieter alternative west of the city if you have a spare half-day.
Leifeng Pagoda closes at three different times depending on the date — 20:00 from May 1 to Oct 31, 19:00 from Mar 16 to Apr 30, 17:30 from Nov 1 to Mar 15 — so check today's window, not just the 8:00 opening. Songcheng's standard prices are ¥280/¥310 on official channels; cheaper Ctrip bundles are promotions, not the rate to budget around.
A day count that works
- Day 1: West Lake at dawn, island boat, Leifeng Pagoda at sunset, lakeside dinner.
- Day 2: Lingyin and Feilaifeng in the morning (booked ahead); Grand Canal or Hefang Street in the afternoon.
- Day 3: Songcheng evening show, or Xixi Wetland Park for a slower day.
Hangzhou guides on this site
The first Hangzhou guide is in production — the fact library for all 4 documented sites above is already verified.
The full attractions index shows which guides are live and which are in production.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I still need to pay ¥75 for Lingyin Temple?
- No. Since 1 December 2025 the Lingyin–Feilaifeng scenic area is free — the old ¥45 gate ticket and ¥30 temple fee were both abolished. But entry now requires a real-name, time-slot reservation at least one day ahead (up to seven days, released daily at 8:00), and there is no same-day booking. Foreign visitors can reserve with a passport number.
- Is West Lake free?
- The lake, its causeways and parks cost nothing — there is no gate ticket. The paid extras are optional: Leifeng Pagoda ¥40, Yue Fei Temple ¥25, City God Pavilion ¥30, and the ¥20 Three Pools island landing fee, which is only ever sold inside a boat ticket (¥55–70 round trip).
- How do I see the classic West Lake view without a tour?
- Take an official-pier boat to Three Pools Mirroring the Moon (the view on the one-yuan note), then walk the Broken Bridge and Bai Causeway, and finish at Leifeng Pagoda for sunset. Ignore private-boat touts offering island trips without landing rights — only the nine official piers' boats include the island fee.
Page last reviewed: 2026-10-17.