Beijing Tour Packages and Vacations

The Great Wall of China

As you first look upon the Great Wall, it is impossible not to be awestruck by this man-made structure. Construction started in the 7th century BC, with additions and rebuilding continuing until the 16th century AD. The Great Wall was built to keep out the warring invaders of the north, but additional sections were extended eastward for nearly 6,700 kilometres. The Badaling section is the most well-preserved section of the Wall. You can climb to its top and walk for a mile in either direction: the Great Wall snakes ahead through the mountains as far as you can see.

The Forbidden City (the Palace Museum)

In the heart of the capital lies the Forbidden City, built during the Ming dynasty in 1406. The Forbidden City is actually a city-within-a-city; with 9999 rooms spread over 250 acres. During the Ming and Qing dynasty, 24 emperors made their homes in the Forbidden City and forbade commoners from entering. The Emperor's Palace has been transformed into a museum that holds many treasures of the Imperial Family.

Tian An Men Square

Known as the Gate of Heavenly Peace, it is located across the street from the main entrance to the Forbidden City.

The Temple of Heaven

This masterpiece of Ming architecture is one of the most photographed buildings in the world due to its elegant beauty and symmetry. Built-in 1420, it was the place where Ming and Qing emperors (Sons of Heaven) prayed to heaven for a good harvest. Music plays softly through the day in a 660-acre park surrounding the temple.

The Summer Palace

Built-in 1750, the Palace overlooks tranquil Kunming Lake. There you can stroll along corridors where royal families spent their summers hundreds of years ago.

The Ming Tombs

Large stone animals and human figures line the famous Sacred Way, the entrance to the burial grounds. Set into the hillside is a complex of tombs of 13 emperors from the Ming dynasty.

Something special on tours to China is a Hutong, an ancient city alley or lane typical of Beijing, where Hutongs run into several thousand. Surrounding the Forbidden City, many were built during the Yuan (1206-1341), Ming (1368-1628) and Qing (1644-1908) dynasties. In the prime of these dynasties the emperors, in order to establish supreme power for themselves, planned the city and arranged the residential areas according to the etiquette systems of the Zhou Dynasty. The main buildings in the Hutong were almost all quadrangles - a building complex formed by four houses around a quadrangular courtyard. The quadrangles varied in size and design according to the social status of the residents. The big quadrangles of high-ranking officials and wealthy merchants were specially built with roof beams and pillars all beautifully carved and painted, each with a front yard and back yard. However, ordinary people's quadrangles were simply built with small gates and low houses. Hutongs, in fact, are passageways formed by many closely arranged quadrangles of different sizes. Today, one can enjoy a walking tour of some of the districts which still contain Hutongs.