Top places in Beijing
The Forbidden City
The Forbidden City is the Imperial Palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty and was the home of the Emperor and his household as well as the ceremonial and political center of the Chinese Government. As the world’s largest surviving palace complex, the Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987 by the UNESCO.
It remains as the geographical center of Beijing.
To reach the Tiananmen Square and The Forbidden City by subway, you have to take line 1 and stop at Tiananmen West/East Station. The opening time is during the period April to October from 8:00am to 5:00pm and to November to March from 8:30am to 4:30pm.
Website: http://www.dpm.org.cn
The Summer Palace
The Summer Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill and the Kunming Lake. Serving as a refuge from the infamous Beijing heat, the Imperial Family often retreated to the Summer Palace. In December 1998, UNESCO declared the Summer Palace a World Heritage Site. Today it is not only a popular tourist destination, but it is also an outstanding expression of the creative art of Chinese landscape garden design.
The Summer Palace is located in North-West of Beijing, in the Haidian District. To reach the Summer Palace, you have to get the subway line 4 and get off at BeiGongMen or XiYuan station.
Opening time: April to October from 6:30am to 6:00pm and November to March from 7:00am to 5:00pm. The price for entrance ticket is 20yuans or 30yuans and the price for through ticket is 50yuans or 60yuans depending on the period.
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com/
The Temple of Heaven
The Temple of Heaven is a complex of Taoist buildings visited by the Emperor of the Ming and Qing Dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for a good harvest. Constructed from 1406 to 1420, the Temple of Heaven was registered in 1998 on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Most notable structures include the Temple of Sun, the Temple of Earth, the Temple of Moon, and the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest, the Imperial Vault of Heaven, and the Circular Mound Altar.
Depending on the season, see below the Opening time and the price ticket. November to March from 6:00am to 5:00pm; April to October from 6:00 am to 5:30 pm. To reach The Temple of Heaven, you have to take subway line 5 and get off at TianTan Dong Men Station.
The Lama Temple
The Lama Temple, also known as the Yonghe Temple, was built in 1694 and is one of the largest and most important working Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the world. The building and the artworks of the temple combine Han Chinese and Tibetan styles and contains five main halls that are separated by courtyards.
Chaoyang Park
Chaoyang Park in Beijing covers approximately 289 hectares with a construction started in 1984. The park attracts visitors with its flower gardens, fairground rides including a roller coaster, basketball courts, cycles, boats and its annual Beijing Pop Festival held each September. The majority of land in the park is used as green space for the city and it is open all days of the year if you want to enjoy a walk in the gardens.
Beihai Park
The Beihai Park was built in the 10th century and is nowadays the biggest park in the city of Beijing. This imperial garden is situated northwest of the Forbiden city and involves 69 hectares with lakes and different types of plants. Beihai Park reminds the scenic spots and architecture from various regions of China such as Hangzhou and Yangzhou. Important places to see in the park are the Bai Tai stupa and the Nine Dragon Wall.
Beijing Olympic Site
The National Sport Stadium also known as Bird’s Nest is located in the Beijing Olympic Green. You have the possibility to visit this stadium during the period of March to October from 9:00am until 6:00pm, and from November to February from 9:00am until 5:30pm.
The price of standard admission is 50yuans/person.
Website: http://www.n-s.cn/
The Water Cube or The National Aquatics Center contains an Olympic swimming-pool, with a swimming-pool known as warm-up area and a water park. The construction of the Water Cube has been completed in 2008. The Water Cube is located in the Beijing Olympic Green and is parallel to the National Stadium. You have the possibility to visit but also to swim or to enjoy the water park too. The opening time for visits is Monday to Sunday from 9:00am to 21:00pm; for swimming is Monday to Friday from 13:00pm to 21:00pm.
*For more information about the swimming time on week-ends, please call:
(010)-8437-8912; and for Water Park, please call: (010)-8437-8086).
The standard price ticket to visit is 30yuans/person (for students, its half price), to swim is 50yuans/person and to access to Water Park is 200yuans/person.
Website: http://www.water-cube.com/
It is relatively simple to have access by public transport to the Bird’s Nest or Water Cube.
By subway, you have to take line 10 and go to Bei Tu Cheng to transfer later to line 8 to stop in Olympic Green.
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