Overview
Beijing is the capital city of the People’s Republic of China and the political, cultural and economic center of China. It boasts a glorious history of three thousand years and served as the capital since over 800 years ago. The city preserves the most magnificent imperial culture of China, including numerous historical relics as the Forbidden City, the Great Wall and the Temple of Heaven as well as modern architectures as the Bird Nest and the China Central Television Tower. In a word, Beijing provides the best of the modern and ancient China.
Why visit Beijing:
1. City of World Heritage Sites - Beijing preserves eight World Heritage Sites listed by UNESCO (the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, Ming Dynasty Tombs, Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian and Beijing Central Axis), ranking first among all the cities around the world. These places bring you all-round glamour of Chinese culture and history.
2. Transportation Hub of China - Beijing is the most important transportation hub for both the economy and tourism. It is always the first choice for international arrivals and transit. In addtion, the city serves as the high-speed railway network leading to all main cities.
3. Rich Cultural Experiences - Beijing offers a wealth of cultural experiences, from traditional Peking opera to nation wide various cuisine, including famous dishes like Peking duck. Visitors can engage with local customs and festivals, enhancing their understanding of Chinese culture.
4. Vibrant Modernity Meets Tradition - The city is always the gateway for the modern achievements. Besides historic sites, the Bird Nest, the China Central Television Tower and the 798 Art District show the glamour of new city.
5. Relexed life and Stunning Parks and Gardens: Beijing is home to beautiful parks and gardens, such as the Summer Palace, and Beihai Park, where visitors can relax amidst stunning landscapes, ancient trees, and serene lakes, providing a peaceful escape from the bustling city.
Top Beijing Attractions
1. The Forbidden City: the largest imperial palace that provide full picture of royal life in ancient China. See the Forbidden City tour.
2. The Great Wall: Some say, it's the top place on their bucket list. Standing on the giant dragon-like defensive wall leaves people incredible memory. The wall in Beijing is the best preserved and there are several sections can be visited with different views. See Great Wall tour.
3. The Temple of Heaven: It shows us Chinese ancient phylosophy of universe. Nowadays, besides magnificent towers, it's also a public park where locals do exercise.
4. The Summer Palace: You don't want to miss this massive imperial palace. It's also a huge park with lake, trees, hill, bridges and temples. The best time to visit is from April to September and it's much cooler then city center. See half day tour.
5. The Ming Tomb: A city-size valley serves as the cemetary area for deceased emperors as we believe their souls are still alive. This place is normally serves as part of day tour of Great Wall. See the Great Wall and Ming Tomb tour.
6. The Lama Temple: It's not an ordinary temple but reserved for emperors and Living Buddhas from Tibet. The most popular buddist temple in the city center.
7. The Hutong (Old city): Generations of locals lived there for hunderds of years and it's the place to see what the local's life looks like. Situated in the very center of city, life style is very relaxed. You may also see the only bar area. See the Hutong Half Day Tour.
How to plan a trip?
Beijing is the top transportation hub that bring most tourists to Beijing as their first stop. What impress people most is the huge size of city can provide almost all kinds of tours that other cities can offer.Most people spend two or three days in Beijing. From layover tour to multiple days tour, you find options fit for you.
For more days trip, pls visit here.
Some Important Things to Know Before Your Beijing Trip
(1) Beijing is suitable for travelling all year around while the best two periods of time to visit is March to May and mid-September to early November that you don't see many tourists and the weather is nice. (2) Beijing is the transportation hub that bring you to anywhere in China. (3) Beijing enjoys the 240-hour transit visa free policy, the visa could not be needed if your destination is beyond Beijing and to some cities like Shanghai, Xian. For more details obout the visa free policy, please visit here..
