Lizhiwan Bay [Photo/Liwan district]

Lizhiwan Bay (Lizhi Bay) is a millennium-old tourist resort nestled in west Guangzhou's Liwan district.

It is said that Lu Jia, a famous official of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24), planted lychee trees along the bay when he visited the Nanyue Kingdom as a diplomat over 2,000 years ago, thus the region took the name Lizhiwan Bay. The region is home to celebrities, renowned gardens and Lingnan cultural symbols including Xiguan Mansion, Xiguan Xiaojie (refined young ladies of old Xiguan), the Five Cherished Produces of Xiguan and the Cuisines of Xiguan.

The city restored the historical view of the bay between 2009 and 2010. Citizens and tourists have since been able to once again witness the picturesque scenery of Guangzhou's "bay of green water lined by red lychee trees".

The main sceneries and cultural relics of the area include Liwan Lake, the Temple of Might and Benevolence, the Wenta Pagoda, the Chen Lianbo Mansion, the Liwan Museum, the Old Residence of Jiang Guangnai, the Xiaohuafangzhai and the Exhibition Hall of Thirteen Hong's Historical Annals.

Lizhiwan Bay also hosts a temple fair on the third day of the third lunar month, and a dragon boat race on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.