Wuhan University is the oldest and most beautiful campus in central China. Founded in 1893 as the Ziqiang Institute and rebuilt on its current site at Luojia Hill in the 1930s, the campus mixes Chinese palace architecture with American campus planning: yellow-tiled roofs over Western academic buildings, cedars and pines on the slopes, and views down to East Lake.
The cherry blossom avenues, planted in part by the Japanese during the wartime occupation and replanted with friendlier intent later, are the campus's claim to national fame. In the last week of March and the first week of April, the avenues are packed with selfie-taking visitors. Out of season, the campus is one of the most pleasant walks in the city — open to the public during the day, free to enter (book online for cherry blossom season).