Yueyang Tower, along with Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan and Prince Teng Pavilion in Nanchang, is listed as one of the Three Great Towers in China. From the tower one can enjoy the distant view of the mists and ripples of Dongting Lake. Yueyang Tower has long enjoyed the reputation of being the "first tower under heaven" since Dongting Lake is known as the "first water under heaven."

It is said that the site was originally an inspection platform for Wu Kingdom general Lu Su to train his naval troops. The site was then built into a pavilion named Yueyang Tower in 716 during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). In 1045, during the Song Dynasty, Fan Zhongyan wrote the famous lines: One should be the first to bear hardship and the last to enjoy comforts; his words won the tower's great acclaim.

After many renovations, the current structure was rebuilt in 1867 during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) to cover an area of 240 square meters. With its length and width at three bays each, the Yueyang Tower resides on a wooden structure and has three stories. It is 19.72 meters high. The tower's roof is covered with yellow-glazed tile and eaves rising high. The roof's ridge is decorated with various animal figures with a color-glazed fluttering phoenix in each of the four corners. A round corridor is built on the second floor where one can lean on the balustrade and look far off into the distance. Lattice works on the windows and doors are delicate, and the colored drawings painted on columns, girders and frames are magnificent. 

Hanging in the main hall on the ground floor is a wooden screen inscribed by the calligrapher Zhang Zhao from the Qing Dynasty. The screen displays Fan Zhongyan's Remarks of the Yueyang Tower that remind visitors of his famous lines. Stored on the second floor are the works of famous poets and writers, including poems and antithetical couplets. On the third floor is a shrine with a statue of Lu Dongbin inside. In front of the tower are two three-foot iron caldrons with its rings cast in the Song Dynasty (960-1279), each weighing over 500 kilograms, Fairy Mei Flower Pavilion and Thrice Drunken Pavilion flank Yueyang Tower. The former pavilion was built in 1639 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It is said that a flagstone was excavated during its construction and the lines on the stone resemble withered plum blossoms. People believed those imprints were hand drawings made by immortals, which is how the pavilion got its name. The piece of flagstone is still erected at the center of the pavilion. The other pavilion was constructed in 1775 during the Qing Dynasty and used to offer sacrifices to the God of the Big Dipper. Other historic sites surrounding the tower include the Tomb of Lu Su, the Tomb of Xiao Qiao and the Yueyang Temple, to name a few.