The palace area is located in the south of the villa, with numerous palace buildings and neat layout, which is the epitome of the Forbidden City. Including four groups of buildings: Gong Zheng, Song Hezhai, Wanhe Song Feng and Dongfang. The main hall is the place where the Qing emperor handled government affairs, rested and held important ceremonies when he was in the villa. Song Hezhai, which means "ROY Song prolongs life", was built in Qianlong period for the queen mother to live in. Wanhe Song Feng was the place where the Qing emperors read the memorial and read books. It is a transitional building between the palace area and the lake area, and its shape is similar to the humorous garden of the Summer Palace. The East Palace, located in the easternmost part of the palace area, was originally the place where the Qing emperor held a celebration ceremony, but was later destroyed by the war.
Garden scenic spots are divided into lake areas, plain areas and mountainous areas. To the north of the palace area is the lake area. The lake area combines the beauty of southern gardens with the beauty of northern gardens, and transplanted the landscape of Jiangnan gardens to the Great Wall. The lakes in this area are collectively called "color lakes" with a total area of 57 hectares. The plain area is located in the east of the Lake District, covering an area of 53 hectares. Wanshu Garden in the area has not been built, but only a few yurts have been set up according to Mongolian customs. Emperor Qianlong often called political and religious leaders of ethnic minorities here to have picnics. The western and northern parts of the plain area are mountainous areas, covering an area of 422 hectares, accounting for four-fifths of the total area of the summer resort. Towering mountain peaks are like natural barriers, which block the invasion of the northwest cold wind and are an important factor in regulating the climate of the mountain villa. During the Kanggan period, more than 40 buildings were built in mountainous areas.
There are 12 temples with different architectural styles around the summer resort, which were built by the Qing government at that time by means of religion to unite ethnic minorities in Mongolia, Xinjiang and Tibet. Eight of them were directly managed by the Qing government, so they were called "Waiba Temple". Temples are divided into Tibetan temples, Chinese temples and Sino-Tibetan temples according to architectural styles. These temples combine the essence of Han, Tibetan and other national architectural arts, and are magnificent and extremely royal.
The summer resort is different from other royal gardens. It inherits and develops the traditional gardening concept of China classical gardens, that is, "the beauty of human beings enters nature, conforms to nature and transcends nature". According to the topography, site selection and overall design, with the help of natural topography, along the mountains and rivers, let nature take its course, and at the same time, it is a brilliant milestone in the history of China gardens, a masterpiece of China classical garden art, and enjoys the reputation of "the epitome of China's geographical features" and "the highest model of China classical gardens".