Best time to visit Beijing
The best time to visit Beijing is during March-May and Sept-Oct when rain is infrequent and the temps are more mild. We were there in mid-May and had no rain, the heat was bearable and there was hardly any air pollution!
- Visa Info: If you are a U.S citizen, you’ll need to apply for a Chinese visa which can only be done from the Chinese embassy in Washington D.C, or you can fly to Hong Kong and go to the Chinese Visa Center where you can get a fast-track visa in 2 days. The good news is U.S. citizens are issued a 10 year visa, giving you plenty of time to see all that China has to offer!
Getting to Beijing
If you get your visa in Hong Kong, one way to get to Beijing is by the bullet train. This is a direct route that goes over 200 mph and gets to Beijing in about 7 hours. Going this route allows you to see a lot of the countryside but can also be tedious. However, it’s a perfect option if you have a lot of work to get done. Alternatively, you could fly directly to Beijing from Hong Kong, a much faster route. If you decide to take the train make sure to get to the station early, it takes awhile to go through immigration. We learned the hard way when we almost missed our train!
How to travel around Beijing
Beijing has extensive public transportation options including buses, trains, and taxis. We used Didi (China’s version of uber) the most often because it is an extremely affordable and convenient option to get around the city.
- Note-While having some small bills is a good idea especially if you want to buy something from a street vendor, most of China is cashless. Two apps you’ll need to have set up on your phone before you get to China are:
- WeChat-You can also order a Didi on here as well.
- Alipay-important to have as a backup payment method as sometimes our payment on WeChat wouldn’t work.
- Note-All Google products are blocked in China, this includes Google Maps. However, if you can get around the firewall using a VPN on your phone, you can get it to work somewhat but it’s not very accurate, so use it with caution.
Other useful info:
- Most Important: Research e-sim or other travel sim cards that will allow you to access the internet in China. Our Hong Kong sim cards routed our traffic through Hong Kong so we were able to use Google. Unfortunately our Express VPN didn’t work.
- Be prepared for squat toilets everywhere. It’s helpful to bring your own tissues/hand sanitizer as well.
- English is not commonly spoken, use Google Translate (downloaded app) to communicate if needed. Just make to download it for offline use before you enter China.
- Bring your passport everywhere with you. It’s checked multiple times and will be needed to get into the Forbidden City as well as Tiananmen Square.
- Do not drink the tap water. Most hotels will provide bottled water for you, this includes brushing your teeth!
- Tipping is not necessary
6 Days in Beijing
We spent a total of 6 days exploring this vibrant, modern city which included taking a trip out to the Great Wall of China. Below is our itinerary!
Day 1: Arrive in Beijing
Where we stayed: Legendale Hotel Beijing
We arrived in Beijing at around 7pm and after taking a Didi from the train station, checked into our hotel. We chose this hotel due to the great location, which is in walking distance to the Forbidden City. It was a little too excessive for our tastes, but had a nice indoor pool/sauna and the rooms were amazing.
Activity:
- We quickly walked to Qing-Feng Steamed Dumpling Shop , before it closed for some delicious (and cheap!) dumplings and beer. This is a little hole-in-the-wall shop that is easy to miss but you’ll notice the big yellow characters on the outside.
- We spent the rest of the night walking around the area and getting to know our surroundings. You’ll notice everyone is out on their bicycles enjoying the night.
Day 2: Forbidden City; Jingshan Park
We woke up early to meet our tour guide at 9 to tour the Forbidden City. If you want to grab a quick coffee and bite to eat, we stopped at Pacific Coffee on the way. The forbidden city was truly amazing. We walked around for 6 hours and there was still SO much to see.
- We went with this tour company found on Getyourguide but signed up for just the tour of the Forbidden City.
- We highly recommend seeing the Forbidden City with a guide, the tour lasted about 4 hours and our guide, Peter, taught us a lot about the history.
- Things to note:
- We went in the morning and still took the group (around 10 of us) about 45 minutes just to get past the ticket counter.
- The guide gave us all earpieces so that we could still listen to him talk while exploring the city on our own nearby.
- We left the tour before they headed to Jingshan park so that we could spend more time exploring on our own.
- We noticed that the Forbidden City was super crowded in the morning, but completely emptied out by around 3pm, so if you’re looking to enjoy it in more peace and solitude, we suggest going later in the afternoon. (Be mindful that it closes at 5pm in May).
- Things to note:
Jingshan Park
Jingshan Park is located directly behind the Forbidden City. It was built in 1179 during the Jin Dynasty and is a great place to walk around. You’ll need to pay 2 RMB/person to get in.
The main attraction here is the amazing view of the Forbidden City from the hilltop which is about a 10 min walk up.
- The viewpoint gets extremely crowded during the afternoon with people pushing to get a good photo. We suggest doing this activity early in the morning when it’s less busy, and you can enjoy a nice peaceful view of the surrounding city.
On the way back to the hotel we stopped on Donghuamen St. (right outside of the Forbidden City) to get a bamboo milk tea as well as some tasty mini cakes.
Next was dinner at: Quanjude Roast Duck for some amazing pecking duck, a must have in Beijing. This restaurant is located in the Wangfujing Walking Street and was a 10/10.
Day 3: Tiananmen Square; Beihai Park
The next day after breakfast we set off for Tiananmen Square. Being one of the largest squares in the world, it took a while to walk around, but it’s definitely not a place to miss as it’s the site of so many important historically significant events.
- Things to note:
- In order to visit Tiananmen Square you’ll need to make an advanced booking online. There are morning, afternoon or evening time slots.
- If you want to see the flag raising ceremony, you’ll need to go at sunrise.
- Booking is done through WeChat, but since it’s all in mandarin, you can ask your hotel front desk to help you book a slot.
- You’ll be going through a few security checkpoints, so only bring with you what’s necessary.
- Must bring passport with you.
- In order to visit Tiananmen Square you’ll need to make an advanced booking online. There are morning, afternoon or evening time slots.
Beihai Park
After Tiananmen Square we walked to Beihai Park, one of the oldest imperial parks in China. With beautiful landscaping, the park covers 168 acres and has a massive lake in the middle. You’ll have to pay CNY 10 to get in, but it’s a great way to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and enjoy a serene afternoon. We decided to rent a boat and sail around for a bit.
Day 4: Great Wall of China-Jinshanling
After doing a ton of research, we chose to visit the Jinshanling section of the Great Wall (see photo) due to the fact that it’s harder to get to and would be less crowded. The last thing we wanted was to be admiring the wall in a hoard of other tourists. This location met our expectations and then some. Originally we were going to stay the night at one of the hotels outside of Jinshanling, but decided it would be easier/cheaper to just hire a driver for the day. Any private car that you hire will charge the same whether it’s a one-way or round trip because of it’s distance from the city (3 hours)
**There is a bus that takes you to Jinshanling but it only runs on Sundays.
- Pros of choosing the Jinshanling section of the Great Wall:
- We spent a good 6 hours walking on the wall, it was so impressive and completely empty, we maybe passed 10 people the entire day.
- The photo opportunities are amazing.
- You can see both restored sections as well as wild sections of the wall and will pass a few watchtowers.
- Things to note:
- Make sure you bring water, sunscreen, and sunglasses as it can get hot fast.
- There will be a few vendors selling refreshments if needed.
- You can purchase tickets for the Great Wall at the ticket counter when you arrive. The entrance fee is 65 yuan.
- If you walk towards the Simatai section you will soon reach the “wild” section of the Great Wall.
- There’s an option to take a cableway up to the Great Wall from the entrance, however to walk up it only takes about 15 minutes so we don’t recommend wasting your money.
Day 5: Arrive at Houhai Lake-Xicheng District
Where we stayed: Blossom House Houhai
After our time in the main city center we wanted to make sure to check out other areas of Beijing. We moved locations to the Houhai Lake area after hearing good things about it. Xicheng district is more local, you’ll see a lot of traditional Hutongs (narrow alleyways), and there’s a vibrant nightlife scene. If crowded alleys and loud music aren’t your thing, maybe avoid coming here at night. There’s also tons of great street food to try!
Activity:
- Since we arrived in the late afternoon we spent this day just walking around the lake.
- We grabbed dinner at Mr. Shi’s Dumplings which was not really a local place as it was filled with mostly foreigners, however the food was delicious.
One thing we noticed while staying here is that everyone is super active at night. As we walked around the lake, (11pm on a weeknight) there were people (some with their kids) having a ballroom dance class, playing sports, walking their dogs etc.
Day 6: Prince Gong Mansion; Luogu Lane
Our last day, we set off to explore Prince Gong’s Mansion which is one of the best preserved Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) mansions that also functions as a museum. The gardens were beautiful, however we didn’t expect it to be so busy, especially since we went in the morning on a weekday. If you can tune out the excess noise and crowds, it’s an interesting place to check out. It costs 40 Yuan per person to get in.
We took a break at Sugar Coffee (Tangfang coffee) which had amazing rooftop views overlooking the lake. They also serve cocktails and beer which really hit the spot, and was the perfect place to rest our feet for a bit and watch the crowd’s below.
We ended the day at Luogu Lane in the Dongcheng district which is a historic alley (hutong) with cafes, shops and bars.
Conclusion
While it might be better suited for a multi-city itinerary, Beijing is a city steeped in history and deeply rooted traditions, rewarding travelers with plenty of amazing things to see, to learn, and to taste. Like every Asian capital city you can feel it’s significance and will admire it’s grand palaces, parks, and temples. Although it’s not easy to travel there, the trip will be well worth it.