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Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: 1 Wenjin St, just west of the north gate to the Forbidden City
Situated on the site of a former 10th-century palace, Beihai Park is a top Beijing attraction that boasts countless reconstructed historic buildings, lush gardens and Beihai Lake, which features winter ice skating and pedal boats in the warmer months. This peaceful park close to Tiananmen Square and home to the Round City, a palace built by Kublai...
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: 137 Xizhimenwai St, Beijing
A great chance to visit China's famous cuddly giant pandas, plus other indigenous animals such as golden monkeys, milu deer and northeastern tigers. Just a few miles west of the city center, Beijing Zoo has been around since the 18th century and is an urban oasis of cultivated flower gardens with stretches of natural scenery. There is an extra 5...
Dixia Cheng / Underground City
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: 62 W Damochang St
The Underground City has also been called the Underground Great Wall since they had the same purpose: military defense. This complex is a relic of the Sino-Soviet border conflict in 1969, a time when Chairman Mao Zedong ordered the construction of subterranean bomb shelters in case of nuclear attack. The tunnels, which were built from 1969 to...
Forbidden City / The Imperial Palace
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: Xichang'an St, north side of Tiananmen Square, Beijing
Even if you are in Beijing for only one day, you should not miss the Forbidden City. So called because it was out of bounds to all but the emperor and his court for 500 years, the imperial places are set among a huge complex of largely wooden palaces that housed 24 emperors. With stunning architecture and historical motifs from the Qing and Ming...
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: Mutianyu, 90km (55 miles) northeast of Beijing, Huairou County
A little further but much less crowded than Badaling, Mutianyu is in many ways a better option for visiting the Great Wall of China. Wear comfortable shoes and be ready for a day of walking up and down the rollercoaster-style staircase that makes up this serpentine section of the wall, built during the Ming dynasty. (Also see listing for Badaling.)
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: Badaling, 70 km (44 miles) northwest of city center
One of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Great Wall of China lies in the mountains to the north of Beijing. Although credit for the wall's construction is normally attributed to Qin Shi Huang who reigned during the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), the first fortifications to keep out Mongol invaders were built at this site as far back as the 5th...
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: Changping, 50km (31 miles) northwest of Beijing
A must-do for all history buffs, the Ming Tombs are often combined with the Great Wall as a one-day tour. There are 13 Ming Dynasty imperial tombs in this 40sq km (15 sq mile) necropolis, situated at the base of the delightfully named Mountain of Heavenly Longevity. Built between 1409 and 1644, three of the tombs are open to the public, but only...
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: 19 Xinjian Gongmen, 12km (7 miles) northwest of city center, Haidian
A lovely day outside the city can be spent at this exquisite palace where the later Qing rulers (notably, the Dowager Empress Cixi) relaxed in idyllic splendor while their empire collapsed around them. Built from 1749 to 1764, the Summer Palace is set around the lush Kunming Lake and is a popular spot for Beijingers to get some fresh air....
Tian Tan Gongyuan / Temple of Heaven Park
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: Yongdingmennai St, southeast of Tiananmen Square
A couple of kilometers southeast of Tiananmen Square lies a simple quiet park that hosts the magnificent Temple of Heaven, a round Taoist construction built between 1406 and 1420 – at the same time as the Forbidden City. Each year the Ming and Qing emperors would lead processions here to perform rites and make sacrifices to bless the next harvest....
Category: Best Attractions & Activities - Beijing Attractions & Activities
Address: Qianmen St, immediately south of the Forbidden City
The largest plaza in the world is situated in the heart of Beijing. To the north lies the Gate of Heavenly Peace and the Forbidden City, and in the south of the square, the haunting mausoleum of Mao Zedong, where the late chairman's preserved body lies. You can visit this macabre attraction free of charge (no photos, no bags). Tiananmen Square is,...
