The name of Erhai Lake (Erhai Hu) literally means "Ear Sea" because it is shaped like an ear. As it is also 1,972 meters above sea level the lake is also known as the "plateau pearl". Looking down from the Cangshan Mountains in the west, the lake resembles a huge silver mirror under the sun.

At the southern-most end of the lake is Erhai Park, which used to be a lonely miniature peninsular on the lake and a hunting resort for the King of the Nanzhao Kingdom. The park that exists today was built in 1976 and includes an arboretum (with camellia, azalea and rare snow lotus), a zoo, a children's playground, and a public swimming pool. Winding paths weave through the hills in the park. The spot best for a good view of the Lake from the park is Guanertai, a pagoda that overlooks the surrounding scenery.

How to get Erhai Lake :The Erhai Lake park can be reached by taking bus No. 6 from Xiaguan. The Lake can also be easily reached by foot or bike from the ancient city in less than 15 minutes.
Opening Hours:: 7am-9pm

The Erhai Lake Tour:
This tour of Erhai Lake is a great way to explore the entire Dali area. The tour starts from the Xiaguan Erhai Lake Docks (Erhaihu Matou) where you board a rather nice passenger ferry at around 9am in the morning. The boat cruises Erhai lake and takes in various destinations on the lake mostly along the eastern shore, including Jinsuo Island, Little Putuo Island, Guanyin Ge and Nanzhao Fengqing Island. Lastly, the ship stops on the western bank of Erhai Lake near Butterfly Springs. There, you'll transfer onto a waiting bus to continue your trip to the Butterfly Springs, the ancient city of Dali (Gucheng) and the famous Three Pagodas and possibly a few other spots (this varies from tour to tour). Lastly, the bus goes back to Xiaguan at around 4:30pm.

The tour costs RMB180 and can be booked at travel agencies throughout Xiaguan. The price includes boat fare, admission, bus fare, lunch, a Bai "three cups of tea" on the boat and a Chinese speaking guide.

You can also choose to do an half day tour which stops on the western banks of Erhai Lake near Butterfly Spring with no included lunch, but this half day tour only costs around RMB90.

Hiring private boats
There are a lot of private boats for hire near the Xiaguan docks in Erhai Lake Park. These private boats are not large and typically hold up to 20 people, usually providing trips to Jingsuo Island, Little Putuo Island, the Guanyin Ge and then back to Xiaguan. For such a trip (3-4 hours in total), a boat can be hired for RMB150, but the boatmen can be bargained to as low as RMB120 in off-season. If you show up with large groups of 5-10 people, then the boatmen will charge around RMB50 per person. These prices are negotiable. You can even hire the boat to the northwestern banks of the lake near the Butterfly spring, but the fare may be as high as RMB300. Please note when hiring private boats, entrance fees to local sites are not included.