Top 5 Tourist Attractions in Beijing

 

Beijing, the heart of China, is a city for all seasons. It is a great fusion of old and new that holds a finest collection of various scenic spots and historical and cultural sites.

No matter what time you are in Beijing, you can always find something that is nearby or a little far from the city center. Anyhow, following top 5 attractions are highly recommended not only to help you plan your Beijing vacation but also to give you a better understanding about the whole city.

 

1. The Great Wall

Undoubtedly, one of the world’s greatest wonders and country’s most famous historic structures enlisted in the World Heritage Directory. Hiking the Great Wall is a must for many who visit Beijing. If you are one in the list, make sure to pack some comfy durable footwear beforehand with sunblock, sunglasses and water especially if its summer. But, if you doubt your physical strength by the time you arrive there, you can still enjoy the gorgeous scenery and mountains around by taking a cable car up to the Great Wall.

However, in any way you will get to see numerous towers and parapets with specular views over the surroundings, which becomes particularly beautiful during spring and autumn.

From the continuous line of the wall, there are some eight sections; Badaling, Juyongguan, Huanghuacheng, Jiankou, Mutianyu, Gubeikou, Jinshanling, and Simatai are those well-preserved major sights you can visit near Beijing city for further exploration.

 

2. The Forbidden City

A must-see attraction situated in the very heart of Beijing, especially in the evenings and during summer where it glows with colored lights from all directions.

Forbidden City or the “Imperial Palace Museum” is a great symbol of centuries-old history of China’s imperial dynasties.  Besides being a world heritage site, it also became the largest collection of wooden building complex in the world listed by UNESCO.

This is built between 1406 and 1420 on 250 acres with 980 buildings and 9999 rooms to reflect the status of the emperors in the past. There are some interesting stories about the important historical parts in the Forbidden City. Hence, taking a professional guide with you is highly recommended to unveil its mysterious face. Last not least, remember to wear your most comfortable shoes as you have to walk a lot.

 

3. Temple of Heaven

A real highlight of Beijing not only for being the most sacred place for more than five centuries but also the largest building for religious worship in China spread over an area of 270 acres.

Once this was used as a complex of sacrificial where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasty held the solemn ceremony to pray for a good harvest. Nowadays it serves as a park where locals usually drop by to do their morning exercises and groups of people practice all types of kung Fu and Taiji.

Moreover, it’s now an ideal resort for many people to entertain each other with music and enjoy activities such as cycling, playing cards, flying kites, etc. If you ever go to the Temple of Heaven, be sure to visit the beautiful temple buildings, halls with lovely architecture and colorful decorations and the temple’s echo wall, which echoes to even the quietest of voices.

Among the 60,000 century-old trees, the grandfather tree, makes the temple more unique with its history more than 600 years old. The amazing old temples and shrines are established in two sections, one rectangular, and the other semi-circular, which shows that the heaven is high and round and the earth is low and square.

Just involve personally and experience the beauty of this heavenly temple larger than the Forbidden City.

 

4. The Summer Palace

Once a summer retreat for emperors now a park like imperial retreat for both locals and tourists.  Summer Palace is the existing largest and best-preserved royal garden in China and a fine example of elegant Chinese gardening art. Getting here is an easy 30 minutes ride from the center of Beijing.

The Summer Palace is mainly comprise of four parts as the court area, front and rear area of longevity hill, and Kunming lake area. It has over 3,000 man-made ancient structures, lake and beautiful gardens as well as a large collection of valuable cultural relics that boasts a 700-year-old history.

Taking a ride aboard the small pleasure craft that leads to one of the palace’s temples, strolling past the traditional riverside shops on Suzhou Market Street, or around the ancient pavilions, temples, bridges and huge lakes are some popular things to do while you are here to relax and enjoy the magnificent views of this Royal garden.

Further, catch performances of traditional Chinese plays and music at China’s biggest royal opera theatre in summer place, which ranked amongst the world heritage sites by UNESCO.

 

5. Olympic Sites

Thanks to the Summer Olympics held in 2008, Beijing has become more well known among millions of visitors all over the world to flock for the modern elements. The buzzing metropolis played its role perfectly by building impressive structures, which left everyone in awe. The National Stadium and the National Aquatics Center are the most popular of these that make history along with the unforgettable Olympics in Beijing.

The National Stadium, fondly referred as the Bird’s Nest is a modern marvel for architecture-lovers. Since the Olympics, this amazing structure, built in the shape of the nest of birds, has been used to host large athletic and cultural events and performances.

Its unique design and impressive architecture built at a great cost with the influences of traditional Chinese ceramic, where you can especially witness its splendor if you visit in the evenings. I have to admit it glows against the night sky with vibrant light displays. On the other hand, it is where the fastest man in the world, Usain Bolt broke two world records.

 

 

 

Its neighboring attraction, the National Aquatics Center, also called the Water Cube, is well worth a visit. Its attractive design, which looks like a huge blue box, combines both advanced technologies and Chinese traditional values.

Besides being the site of Olympic swimming events, it’s now being popular as a fun water park to go for leisure swimming and stroll in the various places inside the park such as Tornado Rides, Bulletbowl, AquaLoop, Speedslide, Kid’s Pool, Ride House, Pipeline, Wave Pool, Spa Pool, Lazy River and Passion for Stage.

 

By the way, your vacation should not miss these international representative buildings, as it will add more unforgettable memories to your Beijing trip.

There are so much to do and see in Beijing but it always depends on your time, budget, and personal taste. As one of the top travel agencies in China, we offer 5 choices of Holidays in Beijing based on our tourism experience.

So, travel with Expats Holidays and stand a chance to visit all the well-known attractions and world heritage sites Beijing possesses, while we guide you to the very core of this grand city.