Emperor Qian Long(1736- 1795) of the Qing Dynasty visited Yangzhou every time on the way of his six inspection tours to the south of the Yangtze River. As his majesty took delight in the scenery of mountains and waters, the local officials and salt merchants spared no money in recruiting crackajack workmen and going in for large-scale nstruction, excavating ponds and pilling up rockeries. They had built gardens beautiful and tasteful one after another on either bank of the Slender West Lake. Thus a splendid view rises before us from the Slender West Lakc to Pingshan ll. “Peach blossoms and weeping willows on either mbankment are mirrored in the lake, pavilions and towers stand erect all the way to the hill.” Today, it is here that Yangzhou pre-sents”Emperor Qian Long’s Water Itinerary” tour program.
Cruising has always been a distinctive featurc of Yangzhou travel. The cruise starts from the front of the two quiet and elegant hotels which used to be Qian Long’s imperial garden and temporary palace. Tourists may get on boat at the imperial pier right before the gate of the hotel to sail westward, following the emperor’s footprint to view and admire the pretty scenery of parkland, to listen to the interesting anecdotes about Qian Long, to taste delicacies of imperlal feast after cruising and to expe-rience the style of imperial life!