Suggested Scenic Locations and Day Tours in Beijing

Below is a list of suggested scenic spots in and around Beijing and a short list of recommended one-day tours that are offered in English with price lists included. It is advisable to make reservations as soon as you can, as tour bookings are on a first-time, first-come basis.

The recommended tour operators can also custom tailor your trips before and after the Congress to other destinations throughout China. In addition to day tours, there are a number of night entertainment options to consider.   

Note: We only provide the information. For further information, participants are kindly requested to directly contact the Beijing CITS China.

Tian’anmen Square

Tian’anmen Square  is the largest  public square in  the world. It has  long been a gathering place for  locals and visitors  alike. On the north side of the square is Tian’anmen Gate, which contains the Rostrum overlooking the main square. It was from the balcony of the Rostrum on October 1, 1949 that Chairman Mao Zedong, proclaimed the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Mao gazes south from a huge portrait on the south side of the gate onto Tian’anmen Square. Behind the Rostrum lies the Forbidden City, also known as the Imperial Palace. 

 

The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City was home to 24 emperors beginning with its creation by Emperor Yongle in 1420. The last Qing emperor, Puyi, left the Palace in 1924. The complex comprises 170 acres consisting of 8,706 rooms in which an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people lived, including 3,000 eunuchs, as well as maids and concubines. Behind walls more than 30 feet high and within a 160-foot moat, complex rules and rituals dictated life in the Imperial Palace.  Strictly off-limits to ordinary Chinese people (hence the name) the gates today lead to a fascinating display of Chinese history in what is probably the best-preserved site of Classical Chinese architecture.

 

The Temple of Heaven                

The Temple of Heaven sits at the south of a line of procession along which some 1,000 eunuchs, courtiers, and ministers would travel from the Forbidden City. At the winter solstice, the emperor would express thanks for the lunar year. He would beg the gods of sun and moon, clouds and rain, and thunder and lightning to bless the coming harvest. Chinese philosophers considered heaven the source of harmony and spiritual authority. The architecture of the temple reflects that sense of order. The northern wall of the complex is curved in a half circle to symbolize heaven, and the southern wall of the complex is built as a square to symbolize earth. Whereas most imperial buildings have yellow roof tiles, the blue tiles here echo the color of the sky. The main buildings and altars are also built in tiers of three to create a surface of nine dimensions. Nine is a 

mystical number in Chinese tradition and also symbolizes heaven. The dominant feature of the complex is the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. Amazingly, the wooden pillars ingeniously support the ceiling without nails or cement.
 

The Great Wall

The Great Wall of China is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in northern Chinabuilt, rebuilt, and maintained between the 5th century BC and the 16th century to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire from Xiongnu attacks during various successive dynasties. Since the 5th century BC, several walls were built which together came to be known as the Great Wall. One of the most famous of these is the wall built between 220–206 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, but little of that wall remains. The majority of the remaining sections were built during the Ming Dynasty. The Great Wall stretches from Shanhaiguan in the east to Lop Nur in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia. The most comprehensive archaeological survey, using advanced technologies, has recently concluded that the entire Great Wall, with all of its branches, stretches for 8,851.8 km (5,500.3 mi). This is made up of 6,259.6 km (3,889.5 mi) of sections of actual wall, 359.7 km (223.5 mi) of trenches and 2,232.5 km (1,387.2 mi) of natural defensive barriers such as hills and rivers.
 

The Summer Palace 

The summer palace is one of the finest landmarks in Beijing. It has long been a royal garden and was considerably enlarged and embellished by Emperor Qianglong in the 18th century then later abandoned. Empress Dowager Cixi began rebuilding in 1888 using money that was supposedly reserved for the construction of a modern navy. Three quarters of the area is occupied by the lovely Kunming Lake. Enjoy a boat ride on the lake before walking the Long Corridor. This 728-metre corridor is decorated with 8,000 paintings including many from the emperor’s travels around the country. As cameras were not available, the emperor would have artists paint the scenes that caught his eye.
 

Hutong Tour 

Hutongs are narrow streets or alleys, most commonly associated with Beijing. Hutongs consist of narrow alleys formed by lines of siheyuan, traditional courtyard residences. Many neighborhoods were formed by joining one siheyuan to another to form a hutong, and then joining one hutong to another. The word hutong is also used to refer to such neighborhoods. Since the mid-20th century, the number of Beijing hutongs has dropped dramatically as they have been demolished to make way for new roads and buildings. More recently, some hutongs have been designated as protected areas in an attempt to preserve this aspect of Chinese cultural history.
  

Lama Temple

The Yonghe Temple , also known as the "Palace of Peace and Harmony Lama Temple", the "Yonghe Lamasery", or - popularly - "Lama Temple" is a temple and monastery of the Geluk School of Tibetan Buddhism located in the northeastern part of Beijing, China. It is one of the largest and most important Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the world. The building and the artworks of the temple combine Han Chinese and Tibetan styles.
 

Beijing National Stadium

Beijing National Stadium, also known as the National Stadium, or colloquially as the Bird's Nest, is a stadium in Beijing. The stadium was designed for use throughout the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. Located in the Olympic Green, the $423 million stadium is the world's largest steel structure. The design was awarded to a submission from the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron in April 2003, after a bidding process that included 13 final submissions. The design, which originated from the study of Chinese ceramics, implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof; giving the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's nest".


Beijing National Aquatics Center 

The Beijing National Aquatics Center, also known as the National Aquatics Center, better known as the Water Cube, is an aquatics center that was built alongside Beijing National Stadium in the Olympic Green for the swimming competitions of the 2008 Summer Olympics. Despite its nickname, the building is a cuboid (rectangular box), not a cube. Ground was broken on December 24, 2003, and the Center was completed and handed over for use on January 28, 2008. Swimmers at the Water Cube broke 25 world records during the 2008 Olympics.

Itinerary and quotation:                                    

Option 1---

Morning: Tian’anmen Square & Forbidden City  

Afternoon：Temple of Heaven

07:30 Breakfast at hotel 

08:30 Set off to Tian’anmen Square & Forbidden City 

09:30 Visit to Tian’anmen Square 

11:00 Visit to Forbidden City (Closed on Monday)

12:00 Lunch 

13:00 Temple of Heaven 

16:30 Return to hotel 

PAX	1person	2persons	3-5persons	6-9persons	10-15persons	16-29persons	30persons above
USD/person	265	155	120	85	70	65	55

Option 2---

Morning: Great wall 

Afternoon: Olympic Park “Bird Nest + Water Cube”

07:00 Breakfast at hotel 

08:00 Set off to the Great Wall 

09:00 Visit to the Great Wall 

12:00 Lunch 

13:30 Olympic Park “Bird Nest + Water Cube”

16:00 Return to hotel

PAX	1person	2persons	3-5persons	6-9persons	10-15persons	16-29persons	30persons above
USD/person	295	165	125	90	75	58	45

Option 3---

Morning: Tian’anmen Square & Forbidden City

Afternoon: Summer Palace 

07:30 Breakfast at hotel 

08:30 Set off to Tian’anmen Square & Forbidden City 

09:00 Visit to Tian’anmen Square 

11:00 Visit to the Forbidden City 

12:00 Lunch 

13:00 Summer Palace 

16:30 Return to hotel 

PAX	1person	2persons	3-5persons	6-9persons	10-15persons	16-29persons	30persons above
USD/ person	280	165	125	85	70	65	50

Option 4---

Morning: Summer Palace

Afternoon: Hutong Tour and Lama Temple 

07:15 Breakfast at hotel 

08:00 Set off to Summer Palace 

09:00 Visit to Summer Palace 

12:00 Lunch 

13:00 Visit to Hutong Tour 

14:45 Visit to Lama Temple 

16:00 Return to hotel

PAX	1person	2persons	3-5persons	6-9persons	10-15persons	16-29persons	30persons above
USD/person	275	165	130	95	80	65	55

Option 5---

Morning: Temple of Heaven

Afternoon: Summer Palace 

07:30 Breakfast at hotel 

08:30 Set off to the Temple of Heaven 

09:30 Visit to the Temple of Heaven 

11:30 Lunch 

12:30 Summer Palace 

16:30 Return to hotel 

PAX	1person	2persons	3-5persons	6-9persons	10-15persons	16-29persons	30persons above
USD/person	265	155	125	85	65	60	55

Option 6---

Morning: Tian’anmen Square & Forbidden City 

Afternoon: Great wall 

07:30 Breakfast at hotel 

08:30 Set off to Tian’anmen Square & Forbidden City 

09:30 Visit to Tian’anmen Square 

10:30 Visit to the Forbidden City 

12:00 Lunch 

13:00 Great wall 

16:30 Return to hotel

PAX	1person	2persons	3-5persons	6-9persons	10-15persons	16-29persons	30persons above
USD/person	305	180	135	100	80	65	55

Note: The payment above includes the transfer, tour guide, tickets and one lunch.

★You will get one bottle of spring water for free! 

★Considering the Beijing tourism rush season, your tour is suggested to be organized based on minimum of 10 people so that we can ensure the arrangement of transportation order and tour guide! 

★Optional Tour for the Night activity: 58USD/person 

A. The “Kung fu Legend”Performance

  

B. The Beijing Opera 

 

C. The China Acrobatics performance

 

D. Walking at Wang fujing walking-street at night. 

    

E. Beijing Quanju de Roast duck dinner at Quanju de restaurant. 

Culture Line---Luo yang (He Nan Province) 

Day 1: (BL)

Departure from Beijing to Luo yang by the Bullet train (G671/08:15-12:53), lunch time after arrival and visit Longmen Grottoes, overnight in Luoyang.   

 

   

Day 2: (BL) 

To Dengfeng by tour bus, visit Shaolin Temple, Pagoda Forest and Kongfu Show. Drive to Zhengzhou to take the Bullet train (G310/17:15-20:20) back to Beijing.  

  

     

Quotation:  

Number of tour group:	Price: （USD/person）	Hotel 4*:	Price difference of Single room: （USD/person）
Minimum of 10 people	330	Luoyang Peony Hotel	35
Price include:  1. Tour bus using in Luoyang ( Railway  Station transfer included)                2. Excellent English-speaking tour guide                3. Entrance tickets (Kung fu show included)                4. Lunch * 2 times                5. Accommodation for 1 night (breakfast included)                6. Bullet train for round trip! Remark:      1. Spring  water free for everyday!                2. Tip paid by yourself! (suggested 5USD/person/day)

Ancient City Line---Xi an (Shan Xi Province) 

Day1: (BD)

Upon arrival at the Airport or Railway station, you’ll be greeted by English speaking guide, then transfer to Hanyangling museum, the mausoleum of the fourth emperor in the Han dynasty，enjoy sightseeing of an underground museum set up on the burial pits excavation site, and visit the Great Mosque which was dated back to 742 AD in the Tang Dynasty, Dumpling Banquet dinner is served in the evening at De Fachang Restaurant. 

  

     

Day 2: (BLD)

TCW (Terra-cotta Warriors) Museum is the highlight of you trip, it’s famed as the Eighth Wonder in the world, impressive warriors, military science and excellent art will bring you back to the great Qin Dynasty , after lunch, more relaxed learning of Chinese painting and calligraphy is offered at Tang Art Museum, then head for the Big Wild Goose Pagoda which stands over 1,300 years from the Tang Dynasty, in the evening, Tang Dynasty Dinner and Show is scheduled for entertainment.

  

 

      

Day3: (BL)

Shaanxi History Museum is one of the four best museums in China, it has the collection of 370,000 pieces of relics from many ancient dynasties, you will focus on the selected exhibition of well presented objects, Xi’an City Wall is the best preserved and most complete on in the world, take a leisure stroll and a bike ride will be good option, after lunch, depart for Beijing by Plane or Bullet train in the afternoon. 

  

     

Quotation:  

Number of tour group:	Price: （USD/person）	Hotel 4*:	Price difference of Single room: （USD/person）
Minimum of 10 people	(By Bullet Train)  505	New World Hotel Ancient Capital Xian	85 (2 nights)
	(By Plane)  820
Price include:  1. Tour bus using in Xi an ( Railway Station/Airport  transfer included)                2. Excellent English-speaking tour guide                3. Entrance tickets (Tang Dynasty show included)                4. Lunch * 2 times + Dumpling Banquet dinner * 1 + Tang Dynasty dinner  * 1                5. Accommodation for 2 nights (breakfast included)                6.  Bullet train for round trip! / Flight tickets for round trip! (Tax fee  included) Remark:      1. Spring  water free for everyday!                2. Tip paid by yourself! (suggested 5USD/person/day)

★ Travel-accident Insurance suggested to buy additionally : (3-5days) 5USD /person  

★ Special Dietary Taboos or special religious requests need to be told in advance! 

Contact Inforamtion:

Beijing CITS China （Inbound Headquarters）

Outreach Sales Director  解丹 Ashlee

Tel：010-84015117 

Fax：010-84041005 / 65157609

Email：[email protected]

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