Beijing Travel Guide

Beijing Universal Studios is a highly anticipated theme park destination, including Universal Theme Park, Beijing Universal CityWalk, and two resort hotels. It features brand new selected Attraction and includes popular entertainment facilities and attractions from Universal Theme Parks around the world.

▲Universal Studios Beijing: Blending Chinese cultural elements to create a unique experience, it has seven theme Attraction, 37 rides and entertainment facilities and landmark attractions, 24 performances, 80 Dining and 30 retail stores.



▲Minion Land: It is a colorful world full of joy! At this moment, these naughty Minions are walking around the streets, ports and city centers, having fun all over the world without restraint! At the same time, Gru is also recruiting soldiers for the Minions Army, so hurry up and sign up at Gru's house!

▲The Wizarding World of Harry Potter™: Here you can leave the ordinary world behind and experience the wonderful rides and endless magical adventures, which will lead you step by step into a thrilling and interesting magical world!

▲Transformers Metrobase: This is a Cybertron-style base, which is transformed by Transformers the size of a city. If you are ready to become an agent, then accept Optimus Prime's recruitment, join the Beijing Nest Force, fight side by side with the Autobots, and fight against the Decepticons to protect the earth!

▲Kung Fu Panda Land of Awesomeness: This is an ancient place like a paradise, and also a legendary place that combines the beauty of nature and craftsmanship. Come here to explore your own Kung Fu!

There's also Jurassic World Isla Nublar, Hollywood, and Waterworld waiting for you to explore!

▲The Universal Studios Grand Hotel

The Universal Studios Grand Hotel is located at the entrance of Universal Studios Beijing and offers Hollywood-themed accommodation and the privilege of Early Park Admission via the Universal Studios Beijing VIP Experience entrance; NUO Resort Hotel is a 5-minute walk from the entrance. Guests can enjoy a well-equipped fitness center, indoor swimming pool, and spa center (NUO SPA). Guests can also enjoy Early Park Admission via the Universal Studios Beijing VIP Experience entrance. Both hotels combine themed features with high-end facilities to create an immersive vacation experience.

The Badaling Great Wall is renowned as one of the Nine Strategic Passes under heaven, combining majestic cliffs with picturesque greenery to form the most spectacular section of the Ming Dynasty fortifications. Living up to the Chinese saying "He who has never been to the Great Wall is not a true hero," this remains the premier choice for most Chinese visitors to experience the Wall.

The fortress gate exhibits a trapezoidal shape, narrower on the east and wider on the west, featuring two gate towers. The eastern arch bears the inscription "Juyong Waizhen" (Frontier Town of Juyong), while the western gate displays "Beimen Suoyue" (Key to the Northern Gate). North of the fortress stretches the 12-tower Northern Wall section, while to the south lies the less crowded Southern Wall with 7 watchtowers. If time permits, we recommend exploring the Southern Wall first before tackling the more popular Northern section.

▲ Walk Through Six Centuries of Golden History: A Visual Feast of Vermilion Foliage Blanketing the Great Wall

▲ As night descends, the Badaling Great Wall transforms into a gilded dragon winding through shadowed peaks, its illuminated battlements whispering tales of millennia - where imperial splendor meets enduring mystery beneath constellations of golden light.

▲ Cloaked in winter's crystalline mantle, the Badaling Great Wall becomes a silver serpent coiled between snow-draped peaks, its ancient stones gilded by dawn's golden rays

The Forbidden City, also known as the Imperial Palace, was the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and is also the symbol of ancient China. When you are in the majestic and orderly high walls and deep courtyards, you can truly feel its former glory.

▲The long history has left behind large-scale precious buildings and countless cultural relics, which have also become the main attraction of visiting the Forbidden City today.

▲Classic attractions: The Forbidden City Corner Tower is a polygonal building with a convex plane on all four sides. It is located in Dongcheng District, Beijing. The roof has three layers. The upper layer is a hip roof with vertical and horizontal intersections. It is composed of a gable roof with flowing water on two slopes and a hip roof with four slopes. Because there are nine main ridges on this roof, it is called the Nine-ridge Hall.

▲Sundials are divided into two types according to their installation principle: equatorial and horizontal. The sundial installed using the equatorial principle is called an equatorial sundial. The key points of its production are that it must have a time plate, a latitude arc and a gnomon. When operating, the time plate must be parallel to the equatorial plane of the earth, the gnomon must be in the same direction as the earth's axis, and the shadow cast by the gnomon on the gnomon is the desired time.

▲The Treasure House is located in the Ningshou Palace area. It has a rich collection of treasures, including Buddhist supplies, ornaments, daily utensils, and treasures for appreciation. Among them, the red coral lion about 14 cm high, the Dongzhu court beads about 130 cm long, and the gold "Fengtianzhibao" seal are all rare treasures.

▲The Clock and Watch Museum is located in the Fengxian Hall in the palace. Most of the clocks on display are British products, but there are also clocks from other countries such as France and Switzerland. In addition to the timing function, these clocks are decorated with figures, birds, beasts, flowers, etc., which can also make various different movements. They are very delicately made. Among them, the copper-plated gilded writing clock, the copper-plated gilded enamel gourd-top fishing and woodcutting farming clock, and the copper-plated gilded rotating flower running man rhinoceros carrying clock are very rare.

The National Museum of China is an institution that, on behalf of the country, collects, studies, displays and interprets representative material evidence that fully reflects China's fine traditional culture and advanced socialist culture. It is a national palace of history, culture and art and a cultural living room.

The National Museum of China currently has more than 1.4 million collections, covering ancient cultural relics, modern and contemporary cultural relics, rare books and ancient books, and artworks. Among them, there are 815,000 pieces (sets) of ancient cultural relics, 340,000 pieces (sets) of modern and contemporary cultural relics, more than 240,000 pieces (volumes) of rare books and ancient books, and a total of nearly 6,000 first-class cultural relics. In recent years, especially since the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the National Museum of China has increased its efforts to collect representative material evidence reflecting contemporary advanced culture, and publicly collected cultural relics collections from the society, collecting an average of about 50 sets of ancient cultural relics and more than 1,000 sets of modern and contemporary cultural relics, physical objects and artworks each year.

The exhibitions of the National Museum of China include three series: basic exhibitions, special exhibitions, and temporary exhibitions, forming a three-dimensional exhibition system covering theme exhibitions, basic exhibitions, special exhibitions, and temporary exhibitions. Among them, "Ancient China", "Road to Rejuvenation" and "Road to Rejuvenation in the New Era" are the basic exhibitions of the National Museum, and are also important positions for promoting Chinese traditional culture, advanced socialist culture, and cultivating and practicing the core socialist values. The special exhibitions are mainly based on the collection of cultural relics, including more than ten special exhibitions such as ancient Chinese bronzes, Buddhist statues, jades, porcelains, modern classic works of art, and African wood carvings. Temporary exhibitions include two categories: self-planned exhibitions and introduced exchange exhibitions, covering historical culture, fine cultural relics, archaeological discoveries, classic works of art, regional culture, international exchanges and other aspects, with an average of more than 40 exhibitions held each year.

The National Museum of China has rich research resources, a solid research foundation and strong research capabilities, and is the industry leader in the development of the domestic museum industry.

Since 2018, in accordance with the principle of "not seeking to collect but to exhibit, open cooperation, mutual benefit and win-win", we have established strategic cooperative relations with many cultural and museum institutions, institutes, universities and colleges at home and abroad, jointly carried out academic research, held high-quality cultural relics exhibitions, convened seminars, launched postdoctoral research workstations, and took the lead in establishing two international organizations, the BRICS Museum Alliance and the Silk Road Museum Alliance, striving to play a greater role and make greater contributions in promoting the core socialist values, enhancing cultural confidence, promoting exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations, and building a socialist cultural power.

Prince Kung's Palace Museum near Houhai, is the largest palace from the Qing Dynasty. It was once the residence of Minister Heshen during the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. Heshen is a famous corrupt official in Chinese history. After Prince Gong moved in, it was renamed Prince Gong's Mansion. Prince Gong's Mansion is a relatively well-preserved palace from the Qing Dynasty. There are more than 30 different types of buildings here. At one point, the garden in the mansion was one of the most exquisite mansion gardens in Beijing.

The Temple of Heaven is a unique altar for emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Here, people worship the heavens, ask for rain, and pray for a better harvest. It is a famous ancient building in China. The Temple of Heaven is divided into two parts: the Inner Altar and the Outer Altar. Well-known structures such as the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest and the Echo Wall are located in the Inner Altar. While visiting the Temple of Heaven, tourists get to experience the grand praying ceremony of ancient emperors and observe the ingenious designs such as the Echo Wall and the Triple Sound Stones. The wisdom of the ancient craftsmen will not fail to impress you.

Situated in the Haidian District northwest of Beijing, the Summer Palace is a Unesco World Heritage site that used to be the palace and garden of the emperors of the Qing Dynasty. It is the largest and most well preserved royal park in China. Construction of the palace began in 1750 and it served as a residential and entertainment area for the royal members. The palace underwent two major reconstructions after suffering damages during invasions by the Anglo-French Allied Forces and the Eight-Power Allied Forces during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Summer Palace can be divided into three sectors: a political activity area centered at the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity; an empress living area concentrated around the Hall of Jade Billows and Hall of Joy and Longevity; and a tour route concentrated along the long corridor, rear hill, and the west sector.

The Mutianyu Great Wall, located in Mutianyu Village, Bohai Town, Huairou District, Beijing, is 73 km from downtown Beijing and enjoys the reputation of "the most spectacular section of the Great Wall." Stretching 5,400 m, it is the longest section of the Great Wall in China and one of the sixteen major attractions in Beijing. Constructed in 1368 during the Ming Dynasty under the supervision of General Xu Da on the ruins of the Northern Qi Dynasty's Great Wall, the Mutianyu section represents the essence of the Ming-era Great Wall. It connects Gubeikou to the east and Juyong Pass to the west, serving as a crucial military stronghold for defending the capital throughout history. Notable features include Zhenguan Tower, Dajiao Tower, and the "Eagle Flies Backward" view. The wall remains well-preserved, showcasing its ancient charm, and holds profound historical and cultural significance. In 1987, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. In 2000, the Huairou District government designated it as a scenic area. On May 25, 2006, the Mutianyu Great Wall, along with other sections, was listed as part of the sixth batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level by the State Council of China, while also being incorporated into the fifth batch—the Great Wall. In 2011, it was rated as a AAAAA-level tourist attraction by the National Tourism Administration.

Bathed in sunlight, it resembles a giant dragon winding through the verdant mountains, exuding a serene yet majestic historical charm.

The Mutianyu Great Wall resembles a stone dragon, winding through the mountains adorned with vibrant fall colors, presenting a magnificent historical panorama.

Under the cover of night, it resembles a luminous dragon, silently guarding the mountains while emanating a mysterious and solemn aura.

The Shichahai Scenic Area encompasses three lakes—Qianhai, Houhai, and Xihai—along with their surrounding neighborhoods. It stretches from the north side of Di'anmen Outer Street in the east to Xinjiekou North Street in the south, Xinjiekou Huokou in the west, and the Bell and Drum Towers in the north. This picturesque waterfront district is one of Beijing's most iconic historic quarters, dotted with former residences of notable figures, princely mansions, and other cultural relics. The area also boasts diverse local cuisine and vibrant nightlife, with Houhai Bar Street being a legendary hub for evening entertainment.

Take a cruise this summer

Upon your first visit to Shichahai Scenic Area, you'll immediately be captivated by the vast shimmering lake. The lakeside offers a refreshing retreat in summer when lotus flowers bloom, perfect for enjoying the scenery on a cruise. Numerous piers line the lake, including Dreamlike Jiangnan Pier and Lotus Market Pier at Qianhai, as well as Wild Duck Island Pier and Willow Shade Ferry Pier at Houhai – all offering delightful cruise experiences.

Enjoy pedal boats and rowboats at your own pace, or opt for a guided sightseeing tour on a traditional punt boat that circles the lake in about 1 hour. The boatman will also provide a guide to the attractions in Shichahai Scenic Area.

Ice skating on the lake in winter

In winter when the lake freezes over, cruises are suspended but visitors can still enjoy the winter scenery. Once the ice reaches sufficient thickness, the Shichahai Ice Rink (Qianhai section) opens on the lake, offering skate and ice bike rentals.

Explore ancient architecture

The ancient architecture around Shichahai Scenic Area preserves the authentic charm of old Beijing. Attractions include the Temple of Huishui, Deshengmen Arrow Tower, Prince Chun's Mansion, Guanghua Temple, Yinding Bridge, and the Bell and Drum Towers.

Among the most famous is Prince Gong's Mansion, the former residence of Heshen, located on Qianhai West Street. Besides marveling at the opulent home of the Qing Dynasty's corrupt official Heshen, the mansion also houses over 10,000 "fu" (blessing) characters. The "Fu" character stele, personally inscribed by Emperor Kangxi, is so renowned that visitors are willing to queue for a long time just to see it.

If interested, you can also detour to Yandai Xiejie to visit the Great Qing Post Office, which marks the birth of modern postal service in China. At the post office, you can stamp beautifully designed postmarks as souvenirs—just remember to purchase postcards from the post office first for stamping.

Try some authentic Beijing snacks

If you're in the mood for casual snacks, grab a candied hawthorn stick and lean against the marble railings of Shichahai Scenic Area while enjoying the view of cruises gliding across the lake. For authentic Beijing street food, head to Huguo Temple Snack Street west of Mei Lanfang Memorial Hall, where you'll find delights like Guan's Chicken Wings, imperial cheese, and shoe sole pancakes—all bursting with hutong flavors. Don't miss the Quanjude Roast Duck restaurant in Lotus Market either.

Nightlife & bars

As night falls, the lively atmosphere begins. Melodies drift from the numerous bars surrounding Shichahai Scenic Area, where some talented bar singers truly shine—each performance carrying stories of Beijing's migrant dreamers. Notable bars like Hutong Sketch and Jiadingfang offer perfect spots to unwind. Grab a seat, enjoy the performances, and you might just hear the passion of these northern drifters echoing through every note.

Nearby attractions

Shichahai Scenic Area borders Nanluoguxiang to the east and Beihai Park to the south, with Jingshan Park, the Palace Museum, and Tiananmen Square located just a bit further south. A typical itinerary involves visiting the Palace Museum or Tiananmen Square during the day, then unwinding at Shichahai's bars in the evening. If you prefer lakeside views over imperial landmarks, combine Beihai Park with Shichahai for your excursion. For those focused on shopping and street food, continue your adventure from Shichahai to neighboring Nanluoguxiang.

Tiananmen Square is located in the center of Beijing, with a length of 880 meters from north to south and a width of 500 meters from east to west, covering an area of 440,000 square meters. It can accommodate up to one million people for grand gatherings. Along the central axis of Beijing, there are the national flagpole, the Monument to the People's Heroes, the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall, and the Zhengyang Gate Tower standing from north to south in the square.

On October 1, 1949, the founding ceremony of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China was held in Tiananmen Square, marking the birth of the People's Republic of China. From then on, a new chapter in Chinese history was opened. On the day of the founding ceremony, 300,000 military and civilian personnel gathered in Tiananmen Square. Since then, Tiananmen Square has become an important venue for the Party and the state to hold major celebrations, grand gatherings, and foreign affairs receptions.

Beijing Wildlife Park is located on the banks of the beautiful Yongding River. It raises more than 200 species and more than 5,000 rare wild animals from all over the world on more than 3,600 acres of land. It is a national 4A-level Attraction that integrates wild animal domestication and breeding, scientific research, popular science education, and leisure tourism.



▲Beijing Wildlife Park is 42 kilometers away from the city center and has more than 80 theme animal venues and pavilions. The park is divided into three major animal tourist areas: self-driving tourist area, walking tourist area, and beast experience area.

▲The self-driving tour area covers an area of more than 1,200 mu, with a 10-kilometer tour line and seven animal exhibition areas, exhibiting more than 60 species and more than 800 animals. There are two ways to visit the self-driving tour area, self-driving tour and small train tour.

▲The beast experience area has eight exhibition areas, exhibiting 8 kinds of beasts, totaling more than 100 animals. Each exhibition area is designed based on the animals' wild living environment, and the animals live in an open natural environment.

▲The walking tour area has a total route of 2 kilometers. There are more than 300 animals of more than 20 species that can interact and be fed by tourists. There are more than 30 animal venues, which highlight the open concept and have the characteristics of novel venue design, diverse viewing angles, less visual obstacles, and mutual contact between people and animals.

Yonghe Temple was once the residence of Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty. At that time, Emperor Yongzheng was the prince and had not yet stepped up to the throne. It is also the place where Emperor Qianlong, the son of Emperor Yongzheng, was born. Nowadays, the temple is a well-known monastery of Tibetan Buddhism in Beijing. The incense often burns brightly. There are also many precious cultural relics in Lama Temple, such as the 500 Arhat Mountain carved out of sandalwood, the giant Buddha niche carved out of silkwood, and the 18-meter-high Buddha carved out of white sandalwood.

The Beijing Zoo is huge and includes many rare animals. It is a must-see attraction. The Beijing Zoo enjoys a long history; it was founded over a hundred years ago. The three areas of the Beijing Zoo include the eastern, southern, and northern areas. The main gate is in the east area. The aquarium is in the north area. Rare animals from China include giant pandas, snub-nosed monkeys, Siberian tigers, white-lipped deer, and red-crowned cranes. Rare animals from other parts of the world include chimpanzees from Africa, kangaroos from Australia, leopards from South America, manatees from Mexico, and bison from Europe.

Jingshan Park is situated on the central axis of old Beijing. It was an imperial garden during the Ming and Qing dynasties. The park's central peak was once the highest point of the old city. The building at its summit, called the Wanchun Pavilion, is must-see for visitors to Jingshan Park. From here you can enjoy views of the whole of the center of Beijing, and photograph the whole of the Forbidden City. This is also where the last emperor of the Ming dynasty, the Chongzhen Emperor, committed suicide by hanging.

The Ming Tombs is the general name for the tombs of the thirteen emperors of the Ming Dynasty. It is located in the northwest suburbs of Beijing. It is one of the largest existing imperial mausoleum complexes in the country and contain many emperors' tombs. The mausoleum area is surrounded by mountains, and there is a meandering river in front of the mausoleum. The mountains and rivers are beautiful and the scenery is special. Here you can visit the architecture, scenery, and understand the funeral specifications of ancient emperors.

The Ming Tombs is a unified whole, and each tomb is self-contained. Each tomb is built in front of a mountain, and the specifications of the tombs are similar. The distance between the tombs is as little as half a kilometer and as much as eight kilometers. Except for Siling, which is located in the southwest corner, the other tombs are arranged in a fan shape around Changling. Among the Ming Tombs, only "Changling", "Dingling", "Zhaoling" and "Shenlu" are currently open.

Shenlu

The Divine Road is located at the southern end of the Ming Tombs. It is the passage leading to the Ming Tombs area, with a total length of about 7 kilometers. It is also the first attraction of the Ming Tombs. It consists of a stone archway, Dahongmen, stele pavilion, stone statues, and Dragon and Phoenix Gate. The southernmost end of the Divine Road is the stone archway, which is the largest and earliest existing stone arch in my country.

The stone statues are located on both sides of the kilometer-long shrine starting from the two hexagonal stone pillars in the north of the stele pavilion and ending at the Longfeng Gate. 24 stone beasts and 12 stone figures are neatly arranged, with vivid shapes and fine carvings. They are the most representative of ancient Chinese cemeteries. The rare and exquisite stone carvings are also major attractions of the Shenlu.

Changling

Changling is located at the southern foot of the main peak of Tianshou Mountain. It is the joint burial mausoleum of the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Chengzuwen, Emperor Zhu Di (reign name Yongle), and his queen Xu. Among the Ming Tombs, it has the largest scale of construction, the earliest construction time, and the ground buildings are also relatively well preserved. It is the ancestral tomb among the Thirteen Tombs and one of the main tourist spots in the tomb area.

Dingling

Dingling is located at the foot of Dayu Mountain and southwest of Changling. It is the tomb of Emperor Shenzongxian Zhu Yijun (era name Wanli), the 13th emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and his two queens are also buried there. The main buildings include Lin'en Gate, Lin'en Hall, Baocheng, Minglou and underground palace. It is the only excavated tomb among the Ming Tombs. Its a underground palace that can be visited by tourists.

Zhaoling

Zhaoling Mausoleum is located at the eastern foot of Dayu Mountain. It is the burial mausoleum of the twelfth emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Muzongzhuang Emperor Zhu Zaihe (reign name Longqing), and his three queens. There are complete Lin'en Gate, Lin'en Hall and its east and west side halls, square city, Ming Tower, Baoding, etc. Zhaoling is the first cemetery among the Thirteen Tombs to be repaired and restored on a large scale.