China
Beijing has been the seat of Chinese emperors, and then of modern China, for most of the last eight centuries, and it wears that history on a grand scale.
At its heart stands the Forbidden City, the vast walled palace of the Ming and Qing emperors, with Tiananmen Square at its southern gate and the hill of Jingshan Park behind it. To the south, the round blue-roofed Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests rises over the parkland of the Temple of Heaven; to the northwest, the Summer Palace spreads its pavilions and covered walkways around a lake; and in between, the grey-brick alleys of the hutongs still hide courtyard homes, noodle shops and lakeside bars. An hour or two north of the city, the Great Wall runs along the mountain ridges, restored and family-friendly at Mutianyu and wild and steep at Jinshanling. This guide books the tours and tickets worth booking, explains the real-name advance reservation system that now governs the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and most major sights, flags the Monday closures that catch people out, and shows how to fit the city and the Wall into a first trip.
Great Wall at Mutianyu
The best-loved stretch of the Great Wall for a first visit: a restored ridge of watchtowers in wooded hills about 70 kilometres from central Beijing, with a cable car, a chairlift and a toboggan ride down. Reached here on a good-value shared bus day trip.
Temple of Heaven (Tiantan)
The vast imperial park where emperors prayed for good harvests, crowned by the round, triple-roofed Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. The park is open daily from early morning, but the halls are closed on Mondays again from September 2026.
Summer Palace (Yiheyuan)
The imperial retreat of lakes, pavilions and painted walkways in northwest Beijing, centred on Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill. Book one to seven days ahead with your passport; in the low season the separately ticketed spots close on Mondays. Seen here on a private half-day tour.
Tiananmen Square
The immense public square at the centre of Beijing, in front of the Gate of Heavenly Peace and the Forbidden City. Entry is free but requires a real-name reservation one to seven days ahead, and the dawn flag-raising ceremony needs its own booking.
The best-loved stretch of the Great Wall for a first visit: a restored ridge of watchtowers in wooded hills about 70 kilometres from central Beijing, with a cable car, a chairlift and a toboggan ride down. Reached here on a good-value shared bus day trip.
The vast walled palace of the Ming and Qing emperors at the heart of Beijing, now the Palace Museum. Real-name tickets must be booked one to seven days ahead with your passport, and it is closed on Mondays. Seen here on a top-rated guided group tour with entry included.
The vast imperial park where emperors prayed for good harvests, crowned by the round, triple-roofed Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. The park is open daily from early morning, but the halls are closed on Mondays again from September 2026.
The imperial retreat of lakes, pavilions and painted walkways in northwest Beijing, centred on Kunming Lake and Longevity Hill. Book one to seven days ahead with your passport; in the low season the separately ticketed spots close on Mondays. Seen here on a private half-day tour.
FreeThe immense public square at the centre of Beijing, in front of the Gate of Heavenly Peace and the Forbidden City. Entry is free but requires a real-name reservation one to seven days ahead, and the dawn flag-raising ceremony needs its own booking.
Beijing’s grandest Tibetan Buddhist temple, a working lamasery of incense-filled halls and courtyards in the northeast of the old city, by Yonghegong metro station. Booked here with the neighbouring Confucius Temple, with tickets or a guide.
A self-paced, roughly six-kilometre hike along the dramatic, partly restored Great Wall at Jinshanling, a couple of hours from Beijing, on a small-group trip with transport, entry, cable car and water included, and a sunset option.
A small-group evening walk through the old alleys to hidden local restaurants for hotpot, noodles, beef buns and spring pancakes, with beer and soda along the way and a stop at a craft brewery. Beijing’s best-reviewed food tour.
A private half-day walk through the old hutong lanes around the Drum and Bell Towers and the Shichahai lakes, past Yandai Xie Street and Yinding Bridge, with snacks and a dim sum lunch along the way.
Beijing’s most-reviewed tour: an all-inclusive private day that combines Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Great Wall at Mutianyu, with hotel pickup, entry tickets, lunch and the cable car or chairlift and toboggan.
Hotels we would book ourselves, from splurges to good-value bases.
$$$$Wangfujing (Dongcheng)
Central Beijing’s grandest all-suite hotel, on a lane off Wangfujing a short walk from the Forbidden City, with an indoor pool, a full spa, three restaurants and some of the most spacious rooms in the city.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Dongcheng hutongs (Yanyue Hutong)
A 14-room boutique hotel set around a traditional courtyard on Yanyue Hutong in the old city, decorated with contemporary and antique art, with a rooftop terrace and free bicycles, about 15 minutes on foot from Wangfujing.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Sanlitun (Chaoyang)
A stylish five-star base in Sanlitun, Beijing’s liveliest district for shopping, dining and nightlife, a minute’s walk from Tuanjiehu metro, with an indoor pool, a spa and a Michelin-starred restaurant.
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$$Dongsi (Dongcheng)
A smart, good-value hotel tucked into Lishi Hutong in the old city, with free breakfast, a gym and two metro stations within walking distance, about two kilometres from the Forbidden City.
Rates on Expedia →
$Tianqiao (Xicheng)
Our budget pick: a large, practical hotel on Nanwei Road in the south of the old city, four minutes on foot from Tianqiao metro and close to the Temple of Heaven, with free breakfast and a gym.
Rates on Expedia →The practical primer for a first visit to Beijing: the real-name reservation system for the Forbidden City and other sights, the Monday closures, how many days to plan, getting around by metro and how to fit in the Great Wall.
Where to stay in Beijing: Wangfujing beside the Forbidden City, the hutongs of the old city, lively Sanlitun and the area around the Temple of Heaven, with the best hotel in each for every budget.
