Yuyuantan is a large public park on the western side of central Beijing, spread around a series of lakes fed by the moat system and overlooked by the Central Radio and Television Tower, whose concrete shaft and observation pod rise directly behind the trees. It is a working city park - rowing boats on the water, pensioners with kites, fitness groups at dawn - but for three or four weeks in spring it becomes something else, because Yuyuantan holds the largest collection of flowering cherry trees in the capital.
The blossom season
The cherries at Yuyuantan descend largely from plantings made from the 1970s onwards, including trees presented as a gift from Japan, and the collection now runs to thousands of trees across many cultivars. Because the cultivars flower at different times, the display is staggered: early single-flowered sorts open first in late March, the heavy double-flowered varieties follow into mid-April. The park holds a cherry blossom festival each year, with a modest admission charge during the festival period and the busiest weekends of the year in the first half of April.
Seeing it without the crowds
Go early. The gates open in the morning and the light is best in the first two hours, when the paths along the west lake and the groves on the northern side are close to empty; by late morning on a Saturday the main walks are shoulder to shoulder and the photography becomes a group activity. The classic view is blossom in the foreground with the television tower behind. The park also has good autumn colour, a lotus season in July and August, and an ice rink in the depths of winter, so it is worth visiting outside the cherry weeks if you prefer quiet.
Practical notes
Yuyuantan is well served by metro - the park's own station is on line 16 and several other stations sit within a short walk - and it is easy to combine with the Military Museum or the Capital Museum in the same part of the city. The blossom dates shift by a week or two from year to year depending on the winter, and Beijing's spring weather is unreliable: a wind storm or a late cold snap can strip the trees within days. Check locally before committing a morning to it.
