The Three Gorges ship lift，characterized by large scale，high technical difficulty，various types of mechanical and electrical equipment，difficult maintainance，and high safety protection level of the operating system，is prone to shutdown failures. As a result，ensuring normal navigation operation became a challenge for this ship lift after its completion. This paper comprehensively reviews the challenges the Three Gorges ship lift has been faced with in navigation conditions，operation and maintenance of equipment and facilities，and ship traffic organization since its trial navigation in September 2016. Then，it systematically outlines the main experience obtained in the operation and reconstruction of equipment and facilities，real ship tests，and supporting facility construction. Moreover，the defects in the navigation operation of the Three Gorges ship lift are pointed out，and future work is suggested.