Attractions

Beijing, the heart of China, is always the first choice of travelers who are willing to know a time-honored and developed city of China. It has been the political, economic and cultural center of China for over 800 years from the Yuan Dynasty. The numerous royal buildings with long history endow Beijing with incomparable charm, not only the ‘Nation’s Best’ but also the ‘World’s Best’. On the other hand, as the host city of the 2008 Olympic Games, this oriental ancient city presented her best fashion fascination to the world.

With almost 500 years as China’s capital, Beijing presents a vast number of historical remains plus different sightseeing areas. Also, it has a lot of other exceptional sights. The city has hundreds of miles of ancient Beijing Hu Tongs (alleys), which are lined with housing in Beijing’s distinctive, traditional style. No trip to Beijing would be complete without seeing the Great Wall. Other sights worth seeing outside the city include the Summer Palace, the Temple of Heaven.

1. Forbidden City
To many, many people, Beijing is an ancient capital city in the east. Forbidden City is the right place for you to start your Beijing tour by unveiling its mysterious face. Consisting of over 9,000 rooms and spread over 250 acres, this large palace complex was built between 1406 and 1420, but was burnt down, rebuilt, sacked and renovated countless times, so most of the architecture you can see today dates from the 18th century and on wards during the Qing Dynasty. Wear comfortable shoes as you have to walk a lot! I highly recommend going with a guide. It really is helpful to have a guide explain the stories behind the site and tell you about the important historical parts in the forbidden city. Or if you are non-group tourists, I suggest you rent multi lingual guide recorder either at Meridian Gate ( southern gate of Forbidden city ) or the Gate of Divine Prowess (Northern gate of Forbidden City) and return it when you finish your tour of Forbidden City. After you visit the Imperial Palace and go out of the Gate of Divine Prowess, you can enter into Jingshan Park, climb a bit and overlook the panorama of the Imperial Palace. In the evening, especially in summer, Forbidden City is brilliant. Colored lights from all directions lighten Meridian Gate, the Gate of Divine Prowess, turret, palace wall and other main palaces.
How to get there:
URL: www.dpm.org.cn
Add: No.4 Jingshan Front Street, Dongcheng District 65132255
Opening Hour: 8:30-17:00
Time of finshing selling ticket: 15:00 pm
Travel Time: two hours
Entrance Fee: RMB 60
Take No. 1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 20, 52, 57, 22, 54, 120, 802, special No.1 bus and get off at Zhongshan Phongshan Park stop or Tian Am Men stop.
Take subway.

2. Great Wall
If you are in a rush, you can get the most out of your visit to Beijing by hiking one of the sections of the Great Wall. The Great Wall snaking across Beijing in its northern part is about 600 kilometers long. Along the total length of the Great Wall around Beijing, there are major eight sections including Badaling, Juyongguan, Huanghuacheng, Jiankou, Mutianyu, Gubeikou, Jinshanling, and Simatai. Most of the sections of Great Wall in Beijing are well-preserved and mainly the remains from the Ming Dynasty, an era of huge construction. For the climbing of the Great Wall, strong footwear is needed! In summer, please prepare for sunblock, sunglasses and water.
Badaling Great Wall:
Entrance Fees: RMB40 (Nov. 01 to Mar. 31); RMB 45 (Apr. 01 to Oct. 31)
Opening Hours: 06:40 to 18:30
Hiking Time: Two and a half hours
How to get there: Take Bus 919.
Or take tourist bus
No. 1 at Front Gate ( Qianmen );
No. 2 at Beijing Railway Station;
No. 3 at East Bridge;
No. 4 at Xizhi Gate or Beijing Zoo;
Juyongguan Great Wall:
Entrance Fee: RMB 45
Opening Hours: 07:30 to 17:30
Hiking Time : Two hours
How to get there:
Take tourist Bus Route as below:
Take No. 1 at Front Gate ( Qianmen )
Take No. 2 at Beijing Railway Station
Take No. 3 at East Bridge
Take No. 4 at Beijing Zoo or Xizhimen Gate top
Mutianyu Great Wall:
Entrance Fee: RMB35
Opening Hours: 07:30 to 17:30
Hiking Time: Two and a half hours
How to get there: Take Bus no 916
Simatai Great Wall:
Entrance Fee: RMB 35
Opening Hours: 08:00 to 17:00
Hiking Time: Two hours
How to get there:
Take the 970 bus out of Beijing to Miyun and hire a taxi from there.
Jinshanling Great Wall:
Entrance Fee: RMB 30
Opening Hours: 08:00 to 16:50
Hiking time: Two hours

3. Summer Palace
As the largest royal garden in China, Beijing’s Summer Palace is actually a parklike imperial retreat spread out over 10 square miles. The Summer Palace in northwest suburban Beijing is the largest and most complete imperial garden existing in China. Once a summer retreat for emperors, this 290-acre park is still a retreat for the tourists, who can relax here or walk around ancient pavilions, mansions, temples, bridges and huge lake. Summer Palace mainly consists of Longevity Hill (Washoushan) and Kunming Lake. Much of it is covered by Kunming Lake. With masterly design and artistic architecture and integrationg the essence of Chinese garden arts, the Summer Palace has a title of “Imperial Garden Museum”. It is an imperial garden most completely reseved with richest landscapes and concentrated buildings. The Summer Palace was added to the world cultural heritage list in 1998
How to get there:
Add: Yiheyuan (Summer Palace) Road, Haidian District 008662881144-209
Open Time: 6:30-20:30
Take busses No.726, 826, 718, 332, 331 or 737 and get of at Yiheyuan Dongmen
Entrance Fee: RMB 40 (low season) / RMB 50 (peak season)

4. Temple of Heaven
We recommend Temple of Heaven as a real highlight of Beijing. It is located in the southern part of Beijing, and has been one of the most holy places for the whole country for more than five centuries. It used as a complex of sacrificial buildings for the Ming and Qing emperors, and is the largest one in Beijing among several royal altars to Heaven, Earth, the Sun, the Moon and other deities or symbolic forces of Nature. If you go to the Temple of Heaven in the early morning, you can see groups of people practicing all types of kung fu and taiji. Many people contentedly entertain each other with music,songs or quietly playing cards. You can also practice with them if you are so inclined. This is another good activity for the jetlagged. What makes the temple unique is the century-old trees – line upon line of Chinese cypress, Chinese juniper and scholar trees. Some of the cypresses are more than 600 years old. Dr Henry Kissinger, when he visited the temple, stated that while the USA could recreate the Temple of Heaven if it desired, it could not create the trees!
How to get there:
Add: on the east of Tianqiao, Chongwen District 008667018866
Open Time: 6:00-21:00
Take 6, 20, 39 Buses
Travel Time: 1.5 hours
Entrance Fee: RMB 35

5. Tian’anmen Square
What is the symbol of Beijing? There are various answers. But Tiananmen Square is definitely on the top list. Located in the heart of Beijing City, it is the site for massive parades and rallies, which is the largest square of this kind in the world. This was the site when in 1949, from a rostrum on Tiananmen (the Gate of Heavenly Peace), Chairman Mao proclaimed the establishment of the People’s Republic of China. Tiananmen Square is surrounded by Tiananmen ( Gate of Heaven Peace ) on its north ; the Great Hall of the People on its west, the meeting place of national people’s congress of the People’s Republic of China; on the east of Tiananmen Square is the National Museum of China, and visiting the exhibition is like reading concise China General History; there are Monument to the People’s Heroes and Chairman Mao’s Mausoleum on the south.
At sunrise and sunset the raising and lowering ceremony of the Chinese National Flag is well worth the watching. The precision of the young troops is very well performed. Go there about 30 minutes early to have a good seat. Spend the time to see the people (soldiers, tourists and locals) makes the square a true highlight for the first time visitors.
How to get there:
Tiananmen Square: Free
Tiananmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace): RMB 15
The Great Hall of the People: RMB 15
Chairman Mao’s Mausoleum: Free
The National Museum of China: RMB 15
Open Time (Tiananmen Square): Whole Day
Travel time: 2-4 hours
Take No.1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 20, 52, 57, 22, 54, 120, 802, special No.1 bus and get off at Zhongshan Park stop or Tian An Men stop. Take subway.