Yesterday, despite heavy rain, hundreds of locals and tourists flocked to the site to either enjoy its beauty again or to see it for the first time. Couples, young and old, strolled along the promenade and sat by the lotus ponds that dot the lake while cyclists rode on the wide bike paths around the lake's edge.

For one local family, the city would not be the same without West Lake, or Xi Hu in Putonghua. 'It's like a psychological thing, we just love it,' said Li Hui, 41, who was at the lake yesterday with her husband Shao Min, 43, and their teenage daughter.

'If there wasn't a West Lake, Hangzhou could not call itself Hangzhou. It doesn't matter where along the lake we go. Every time we come here, we just feel calm and happy.'

She hoped the heritage listing would ensure the lake's protection.

'I was worried about too much development, but the government has promised that after the listing there won't be any more commercial developments.'

Li said about six years ago the government leased some of the scenic spots to private clubs, upsetting locals who believed the lake should be free to the public. 'Now, I hope they will reduce this and give the space back to the public.'

Every night, the lake plays host to a live one-hour performance called Impression West Lake, directed by Zhang Yimou , which features singing and dancing.

Wu Huilan, marketing spokeswoman for Impression West Lake, said the listing was good but it would not change much for her. 'We love West Lake, no matter if it's listed or not. But now it is listed, we will hopefully try to protect it more.'

For Hangzhou artist Zhu Renmin, the lake stirs up many childhood memories. The 62-year-old painter and sculptor grew up during the 1950s on one of the lake's islands, where his grandfather, famous artist Pan Tianshou, looked after him.

As president of the West Lake culture association, Zhu is passionate about the lake's future and welcomed the heritage listing.

'I'm very glad because there will be more limitations on the lake, not only domestically but internationally,' he said. 'Tourism is booming now around the lake but that is a burden and there are too many private businesses like hotels and restaurants. The skyline around the lake must be limited, especially skyscrapers on the eastern side of the lake.

'West Lake is not about the water, it's about the mountains, the art, the culture that is created around it.'

While Zhu fears too many tourists may harm the area, a manager of one of the tourist shops, Luo Lijin, welcomes more visitors. 'The more, the better,' she said in her shop, which sells traditional Hangzhou foods such as hickory nuts, lotus root powder, dried bamboo shoots and West Lake leaves that can be made into a soup.

The other sites added to the World Heritage List are the Ningaloo Coast in the state of Western Australia, Japan's Ogasawara Islands, the Saloum Delta in Senegal and Kenya's Rift Valley lake system.

Five facts about West Lake

Formerly named Wulin Waters, Golden Buffalo Lake, Qiantang Lake and Xizi, it was later renamed because of its location west of Hangzhou

Its surface area covers 6.38 square kilometres at an average depth of 2.27 metres, with a maximum depth of 5.5 metres

The scenic area adjoining the lake covers almost 60 square kilometres, with more than 60 cultural relics

Scientists believe that the lake, within the area of the Yangtze River Delta, was originally a bay that was cut off from the ocean some 12,000 years ago by sedimentation and beach formation

The fundamental layout of West Lake occurred during the Wuyue kingdom (907-960) when Hangzhou served as the small coastal kingdom's capital.

Source: Hangzhou municipality website