Why this route
This route splits Hangzhou into two clean halves. Day 1 is entirely a West Lake day: it opens at Duanqiao Canxue, follows the Bai Causeway to Gushan Hill, breaks for lunch at the Louwailou restaurant on Gushan Road in the West Lake scenic area, then strings together Quyuan Fenghe, Spring Dawn on Su Causeway and Viewing Fish at Flower Harbour before finishing at Wushan square and the West Lake Music Fountain. Because every stop belongs to the same lake landscape, the day reads as one continuous circuit rather than a checklist of separate sights.
Day 2 shifts the theme from lake scenery to heritage and city life: the morning pairs Feilai Feng with LingYin Temple, Yuhu Bay and the Six Harmonies Pagoda each take an hour in the middle, and Hefang Street closes the route. The split also balances pacing. Day 1 carries nine stops but only four are timed — Gushan Hill at one to two hours, with Quyuan Fenghe, Viewing Fish at Flower Harbour and Wushan square at an hour each — so the untimed causeway strolls flex around them. Day 2 holds five stops, every one timed at one to two hours, giving the second day a steadier, more structured rhythm after the first day’s long circuit.
Day by day
Day 1 — the West Lake circuit. The morning starts at Duanqiao Canxue and moves onto the Bai Causeway; neither stop carries a set duration, so they flex around the timed sights. Gushan Hill follows with one to two hours, and the midday slot belongs to the Louwailou restaurant on Gushan Road in the West Lake scenic area. The afternoon continues through Quyuan Fenghe (one hour), the Spring Dawn on Su Causeway stretch, and Viewing Fish at Flower Harbour (one hour). Wushan square takes another hour, and the day closes with the West Lake Music Fountain.
Day 2 — peak, temple, bay, pagoda and street. Feilai Feng opens the day with one hour, followed by LingYin Temple at one to two hours — tied with Hefang Street for the day’s most generous allowance. Yuhu Bay takes an hour, the Six Harmonies Pagoda another hour, and Hefang Street finishes the itinerary with one to two hours.
Trade-offs
Day 1 is the heavier day, and the cleanest cut is Wushan square: dropping its hour lets a behind-schedule traveller go straight from Viewing Fish at Flower Harbour to the West Lake Music Fountain. The schedule also flexes at the untimed stops — Duanqiao Canxue, the Bai Causeway and Spring Dawn on Su Causeway carry no duration — and Gushan Hill’s one-to-two-hour range can be taken at the low end if the Louwailou lunch runs long.
On day 2, LingYin Temple can absorb its full two hours; if it does, trim Yuhu Bay or the Six Harmonies Pagoda (each one hour) rather than cutting Hefang Street short. Travellers who want a lighter plan — anyone pacing a short trip or moving with small children — should simplify day 2 to Feilai Feng, LingYin Temple and Hefang Street, dropping both Yuhu Bay and the Six Harmonies Pagoda.