Located on Longhua Road at the south of Shanghai Municipality, Longhua Park is famous for its ancient Longhua Temple, Longhua Pagoda, the Evening Bell-Striking Ceremony and peach blossoms.

First built in 242 during the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280), Longhua Temple is the oldest temple in Shanghai. Due to damages caused by several wars, most of the buildings at Longhua Temple were reconstructed during the reign of the emperors Tongzhi and Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Apart from its long history, Longhua Temple is also the largest temple in Shanghai. It occupies an area of over 20,000 square meters and its architectural proportion is about 5,000 square meters. Along the 194-meter-long axis are Maitreya Hall, Heavenly King Hall, Grand Hall, Hall of the Three Saints, Jade Buddha Hall, Abbot's Hall and the Sutras Keeping Hall, which contains the three treasures of the temple, including the Tripitaka (Da Zang Jing ), gold seals and Buddhist statues. Along the two sides are the Bell Tower and Drum Tower, both equipped with the same hexagonal windows and curved eaves. The whole courtyard was built strictly according to traditional Buddhist symmetry and relates to the Chinese concept of beauty.

A venerable copper bell, two meters in height, 1.3 meters in diameter and weighing five tons, resides in the three-storied Bell Tower. The Evening Bell-Striking Ceremony on December 31 is regarded as one of Shanghai's eight great attractions. Ringing in the New Year with the melodious, heavenly sound of the bell is an interesting and memorable experience.

The seven-storied, 40.4-meter-tall Longhua Pagoda stands in front of Longhua Temple; its brick body and wooden staircases make up the main structure of the pagoda. Each storey is smaller than the one below, and all of its levels are encircled by balconies and banisters. Bells in each corner of the octagonal eaves ring cheerfully as the wind passes through. Although Longhua Pagoda has been rebuilt several times, it has retained the style of the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

In late spring, when peach trees at Longhua Park are in full bloom and the temple fair (March 3 of the lunar calendar) is under way, Longhua comes to life.

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