Best Beijing experiences
Plan your Beijing tours? Beijing is an old and modern city, replete with must see attractions, traditional and modern architectures, striking landmarks, nice restaurants and bars. Here you may narrow down your visiting in Beijing with our guide to the best travel experiences in Beijing.
1. National Center for the Performing Arts (国家大剧院)
Add: To the west of the Great Hall of the People in the west of Tiananmen Square
Admission: CNY30
Opening hours: 1:30pm – 5:00pm (Tue – Fri); 9:00am – 5:00pm (Sat & Sun)
Last ticket selling: 4:30pm
Transport: Subway 1 and get off at (Exit C) at Tiananmen Square Stop
Tel: 0086 10 66550989
Bus routes 1, 4, 10, 20, 37, 52, 726, 728 and 802 all stop at Tian'anmen West
Travel tips: How to visit National Center for the Performing Arts
The National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), is one of the four most outstanding landmarks in Beijing. The other three are new China CCTV Tower, Water Cube (Beijing National Aquatics Center) and Bird's Nest (National Stadium). If you have a passion for modern contemporary architecture, the egg-shape theatre is absolutely worth your having a glimpse.
National Center for the Performing Arts
2. 798 Art District (789艺术区）
Add: Jiuxianquao Road and Jiuxianqiao North Road, Beijing
Admission: Free
Opening hours: 10:00am – 6:00pm
Transport: Take subway ride to Sanyuanqiao Station and change for Bus 401 and get off at the crossroad at Dashanzi
Travel tips: How to visit 798 Art District
798 Art District, 798 Art Zone, or Factory 798, the Beijing "Greenwich Village" or "SoHo", a part of Dashanzi in the Chaoyang District of Beijing that is home to a large artist community. It is located in a 50-year old disused and sprawling electronics factory complex with a functional Bauhaus-influenced design.
798 Art District (789艺术区）
3. Poly Art Museum （保利艺术博物馆）
Add: Inside Poly Plaza,14 Dongzhimen Nandajie, Beijing
Admission: CNY50
Opening hours: 9:30am – 4:30pm) Mon-Sat; Sunday closed
Transport: Bus 42,115,118,701 and 823 and get off Dongshi Shitiao Stop or Subway Line 2 and get off at Dongshi Shitiao
Tel: (0086)10-65001188-3250
Poly Museum is the first museum sponsored by a state-owned enterprise (Poly Group) in the Chinese mainland. It has two parts of exhibition - bronze and stone carvings. Most of the exhibits have been retrieved from abroad. In May 2000, the Poly Group retrieved three national treasures – the Cattle Head, Monkey Head and Tiger Head, all made of bronze. They were robbed out of China by western powers from Old Summer Palace (Yunamingyuan) over 100 years ago.
Poly Art Museum （保利艺术博物馆）
4. Nanluoguxiang （南锣鼓巷）
Add: just next to No. 108-2 Gulou Dongdajie ( East Drum Tower Street )
Admission: Free
Nanluoguxian means "Nanluogu" Allyway or Lane. It is an over-700 year old lane, one of Beijing's oldest hutongs. This hutong area is strewn with bars, souvenir shops, boutiques, restaurants, hostels and lost the real Hutong touch. This is a great place to end up late at night and to have some drinks when all the other bars are closed.
Nanluoguxiang （南锣鼓巷）
5. Forbidden City （故宫）
Add: No.4 Jingshan Front Street, Dongcheng District
Opening Hour: 8:30-17:00
last ticket selling ticket: 15:00 pm
Admission: CNY 60
Take Bus 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 Line 1 and get off at Tiananmen Square.
Opening Hour: 8:30-17:00
last ticket selling ticket: 15:00 pm
Admission: CNY 60
Take Bus 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 Line 1 and get off at Tiananmen Square.
Tel: 65132255
Travel Tip: How to visit Forbidden City
Former living place for the emperors in Ming and Qing dynasties, Forbidden City is the right place for you to start your Beijing tour by opening its mysterious face. The palace is composed of over 9,000 rooms. 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 (1644 – 19110.
Former living place for the emperors in Ming and Qing dynasties, Forbidden City is the right place for you to start your Beijing tour by opening its mysterious face. The palace is composed of over 9,000 rooms. 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 (1644 – 19110.
Forbidden City （故宫）
6. Temple of Heaven （天坛）
Add: on the east of Tianqiao, Chongwen District
Opening Hour: 6:00-21:00
last ticket selling ticket: 15:30 pm
Admission: CNY 35
Take Bus No. 6, 20, 39
Opening Hour: 6:00-21:00
last ticket selling ticket: 15:30 pm
Admission: CNY 35
Take Bus No. 6, 20, 39
Take subway Line 5 and get off at Temple of Heaven
Tel: 65132255
Travel tip:How to visit Temple of Heaven
Temple of Heaven has been one of the most holy places in China for over 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.
Temple of Heaven has been one of the most holy places in China for over 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.
Temple of Heaven （天坛）
7. Gubeikou Great Wall Hiking （徒步古北口长城）
Add: Gubeikou Town, Minyun County, Beijing
Opening Hour: 8:00am -6:00pm
last ticket selling ticket: 15:30 pm
Admission: CNY 20
last ticket selling ticket: 15:30 pm
Admission: CNY 20
Travel tip: How to hike Gubeikou Great Wall
Gubeikou Great Wall is mainly composed of two sections – Panlongshan Great Wall and Wohushan Great Wall. "Panlongshan" literally means "Coiled Dragon Mountain" while "Wohushan" literally means "Crouching Tiger Mountain". The two mountains faces each other with a valley in between from south to north, a strategic passage in the ancient times linking Inner Mongolia and Beijing. Now the valley has been turned into a fast developing Gubeikou Township under Miyun County of Beijing City.
Gubeikou Great Wall is mainly composed of two sections – Panlongshan Great Wall and Wohushan Great Wall. "Panlongshan" literally means "Coiled Dragon Mountain" while "Wohushan" literally means "Crouching Tiger Mountain". The two mountains faces each other with a valley in between from south to north, a strategic passage in the ancient times linking Inner Mongolia and Beijing. Now the valley has been turned into a fast developing Gubeikou Township under Miyun County of Beijing City.
Gubeikou Great Wall Hiking （徒步古北口长城）
8. Beijing Night Food Market （北京东华门夜市）
Add: Donghuamen (east of Wangfujing Street)
Opening Hour: 6:00pm -9:00pm
Admission: Free
Admission: Free
Travel tip: Beijing Night Food Market
Wangfujing Night Snack Street is often called by tourists while Donghuamen Night Snack Street by the local residents in Beijing. They both refer to the same night food market in Wangfujing area. This 100-meter long snack street is open from 6:00pm to 9:00pm every day. The night market is home to about dozens of stalls selling over 100 snacks from all over China. For adventurous dinners, it is a food paradise with such unique snacks as centipedes, lizards, deep fried crickets available to eat on a stick.
Wangfujing Night Snack Street is often called by tourists while Donghuamen Night Snack Street by the local residents in Beijing. They both refer to the same night food market in Wangfujing area. This 100-meter long snack street is open from 6:00pm to 9:00pm every day. The night market is home to about dozens of stalls selling over 100 snacks from all over China. For adventurous dinners, it is a food paradise with such unique snacks as centipedes, lizards, deep fried crickets available to eat on a stick.
Beijing Night Food Market （北京东华门夜市）
9. Panjiayuan Flea Market（潘家园古玩市场）
Add: No.18, Huaweili Road, 100 meters west of Panjiayuan Bridge in the southeast of Beijing
Opening Hour: 8:30am to 6:00pm (Monday to Thursday); 4:30am to 6:00pm (on weekends)
Admission: Free
Admission: Free
Travel tip: How to visit Panjiayuan FLea Market
Panjiayuan Flea Market, or Panjiayuan Market, or Panjiayuan Antique Market, or whatever names you call, is a must visit for those who are interested in something really Chinese. It is a big market place for selling and collecting Chinese folk handcrafts, maybe the largest in Asia! What you will see are jewelry, ceramics,calligraphy, teapots, ethnic clothing, Buddha statues, paper lanterns, Cultural Revolution memorabilia, PLA belts, Ming- and Qing-style furniture, old pipes, opium scales, and painted human skulls and etc.
Panjiayuan Flea Market（潘家园古玩市场）
10. Beijing Roast Duck （北京烤鸭）
The local flavor of Beijing. Climbing the Great Wall, enjoying Beijing Opera and savoring Beijing Duck are the three "musts" for those visiting Beijing for the first time, which you cannot miss. The traditional method of preparing Beijing Duck has a history of over a hundred years and boasts a great reputation to this day. If you ask which is the best Beijing duck house ( restaurant ) in Beijing, different people will offer you difserent answers. Actually it is quite a personal taste of which one is the best. However, the Beijing roast duck restaurants below are normally considered to be the top 7 in Beijing.
Beijing Roast Duck （北京烤鸭）
11. Beijing Opera Show （京剧）
Beijing ( Peking ) opera is a national treasure with a history of over 200 years. It can date back to the 55th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty(1790) when the four big Huiban opera Troupes entered the capital and mixed with Kunqu opera, Yiyang opera, Hanju opera and Luantan in Beijing's thearetical field at the time. With over half a century of mixture and combination of various kinds of opera there came the present Peking ( Beijing ) opera, the most impressive kind of opera in China. It is very colourful bright and extremely noisy and bears absolutely no resemblance to western opera.
Beijing Opera Show （京剧）
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