Kunming
Green Lake Park: free entry, hours and how to get there
A small lake park in the old center, with willow-lined causeways where retirees dance, sing and play cards. It is less a sight than the city's living room. It suits anyone staying nearby, best before 9 am or in gull season.
- Entry
- Free
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- How to book
- No booking needed
- Children
- Free
- Seniors
- Free
Free. Black-headed gulls Nov–Mar.
Prices checked October 2026.
How to get there
- Metro Line 3 from Dongfeng Square to Panjiawan (潘家湾), two stops, or Line 5 to Huashan West Road (华山西路). The Military Academy on the west shore is about 1 km from either station, so plan on a walk of that length or use your map.
- Buses 1, 85, 124, 125, 139 and 235 stop at Yunnan University (云南大学) on Cuihu North Road, on the lake's north side.
- By taxi, show 翠湖公园 and 翠湖南路67号.
Before you go
- Come between about 7 and 9 am for the dancers, choirs and card games.
- Black-headed gulls winter here from about November to March. In 2026 the first birds reached Kunming in October, and the main flock was expected around mid-November.
- If you feed the gulls, use approved gull feed and scatter it on land, not on the water.
- Yuantong Temple and the Military Academy are both nearby, so you can walk between them.
Who should skip it
Do not cross town just for this park outside gull season; it is best as a stop near your hotel.
Close by, same day
- Yunnan Military Academy Museum · Free
- Yuantong Temple · US$1 ¥6
Going to several of these?
Tell us which sights and when. We’ll tell you what needs booking ahead and what’s worth skipping, and book the tickets that need a Chinese app.