The Bailongtan (White Dragon Pool) Scenic Area is located on Longtan Shan (Longtan Mountain), near the Yanshan stretch of the Great Wall, roughly 100 kilometers from downtown Beijing.

Considered by many to be one of Beijing's "16 classic landscapes," the area takes its name from a poem by the Northern Song Dynasty poet Suzhe, and it's easy to see how its beautiful mountains, rivers, stones, pools and woods inspired the poet's fancy. In addition to the natural features, there are four halls and 18 pavilions to explore, some of them dating back to the Song (960-1276 AD) era.

Emperors, imperial officials and Confucian literati often came to Bailongtan to get away from the busy capital; a small imperial palace was built here as a stopover en route to Chengde's famous Summer Resort.