Must-see! First-time Beijing itinerary: 5 days of non-stop fun
Hey Besties🥰, let's take a spontaneous trip to Beijing! Witness the romantic autumn scenery of the thousand-meter ginkgo avenue at Yuanmingyuan Park🍁, journey through history at the National Museum of China and the Forbidden City, conquer the majestic Great Wall, explore the picturesque Summer Palace, and watch the flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square, feeling that deep-rooted patriotism and romance unique to our nation! This super detailed, pitfall-free 5-day Beijing itinerary is for you, if you're heading to Beijing in May~
Daily Itinerary
Day 1: First Encounter with History and Culture🎇
Tiananmen Square👉The first must-see stop in Beijing! Watch the five-star red flag rise in the morning light, and feel the surge of pride🚩. Remember to check the flag-raising time in advance and arrive early to get a good spot.
National Museum of China👉This is the nation's cultural treasure trove, home to countless historical gems. Walking through it is like traveling through time and conversing with history. It's truly amazing👍.
Qianmen Street👉A street full of old Beijing charm, with antique buildings and a dazzling array of time-honored shops, taking you back in time. When you're tired of shopping, you can sample all kinds of authentic Beijing snacks to satisfy your taste buds😋.
Temple of Heaven👉The place where ancient emperors offered sacrifices to Heaven and prayed for good harvests. Its unique architectural style and profound cultural heritage make it a must-visit. Taking photos here is also super atmospheric, creating stunning pictures in an instant📸.
Day 2: Exploring the Past and Present of the Forbidden City🏯
Forbidden City👉This ancient palace bears the weight of 600 years of history across two dynasties and three centuries. Every brick, tile, and red wall tells stories of the past. Strolling along the stone paths of the Forbidden City, you can almost see the figures of ancient emperors and officials, truly a journey through time. Remember to plan your route in advance, or you'll easily get lost🧐.
Jingshan Park👉Exiting through the Shenwu Gate of the Forbidden City, Jingshan Park is just across the road. Climb to the top of Jingshan Hill for a panoramic view of the Forbidden City and Beijing. The bird's-eye view of the Forbidden City is especially spectacular, making it the perfect photo spot📷.
Beihai Park👉Here you'll find beautiful lakes and mountains, with pavilions and towers scattered throughout. Rowing a boat on the lake, feeling the breeze on your face, is truly relaxing🚣.
Prince Gong's Mansion👉The former residence of Heshen, with exquisite architecture and elegant gardens. Come here to soak up some "good fortune," and maybe you'll have good luck when you return home🍀.
Day 3: Imperial Gardens and Modern Landmarks🌳
Summer Palace👉This large imperial garden is breathtakingly beautiful! With lakes, mountains, long corridors, and ancient pavilions, every step is a picturesque scene. You can choose to take a boat tour and admire the beauty of the Summer Palace from the water, which offers a unique perspective🚢.
Old Summer Palace👉Once the "Garden of Ten Thousand Gardens," although it has gone through many changes, you can still feel its former glory. Walking through the ruins of the Old Summer Palace, you can almost hear the sighs of history, which is truly moving.
Tsinghua University/Peking University👉China's top universities, with beautiful campuses and a rich cultural atmosphere. If you have the opportunity to visit, be sure to experience the academic atmosphere📚. Remember to book in advance.
Bird's Nest/Water Cube👉The iconic buildings of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The Bird's Nest and Water Cube are brilliantly lit at night and are very beautiful. Come here to take photos and experience the charm of modern architecture💪.
Day 4: Experiencing Beijing's Artistic and Ancient Charm🎨
Lama Temple👉One of the largest Tibetan Buddhist temples in Beijing, with flourishing incense. Come here to pray for blessings and experience the profound Buddhist culture🙏. Remember to follow the temple rules and keep quiet.
Confucius Temple👉The highest institution of learning in ancient times, with antique buildings and a rich cultural atmosphere. Walking here, you can almost hear the sound of reading aloud, giving you a deeper understanding of the ancient education system📖.
Ditan Park👉The place where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshipped the "God of Earth." The park has a tranquil environment and is a good place for a relaxing stroll. In autumn, the ginkgo leaves in Ditan Park turn golden yellow, which is very beautiful🍂.
Nanluoguxiang👉Here you'll find all kinds of specialty shops, food, and bars, full of artistic atmosphere. Stroll the streets, sample the food, and experience Beijing's nightlife. It's truly enjoyable🥂. However, be aware that things here can be pricey, so spend wisely.
Day 5: Challenging the Great Wall, Encountering the Animal World🏞️
Badaling Great Wall👉"He who has never been to the Great Wall is not a true man." How can you come to Beijing and not climb the Great Wall? The Badaling Great Wall is majestic and scenic. Climbing along the Great Wall, admiring the surrounding scenery, is truly rewarding. However, climbing the Great Wall is physically demanding, so remember to wear comfortable shoes👟. You can take the 877 bus directly to the foot of the Great Wall, which is very convenient.
Beijing Zoo👉Here you'll find all kinds of adorable animals, including giant pandas, golden monkeys, elephants, giraffes, and more. Come here to get up close and personal with the animals and experience the wonders and beauty of nature🐼. Remember to book your tickets in advance.
Shichahai👉A famous historical and cultural district in Beijing, with ancient hutongs, courtyards, and beautiful lakes. In the evening, take a stroll along Shichahai and admire the sunset. It's truly romantic🌅. However, be careful not to buy things randomly in Shichahai, Nanluoguxiang, and Beiluoguxiang, as there aren't many authentic Beijing snacks in the hutongs.
Beijing Attraction Booking Guide📱
Many popular attractions in Beijing require advance booking, and ticket release times vary, so be sure to do your homework and set your alarms to join the waitlist!
- Forbidden City: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 8:00 pm (closed on Mondays). If you want to visit the Forbidden City, be sure to set your alarm⏰, or you'll miss out!
- National Museum of China: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 5:00 pm
- Chairman Mao Memorial Hall: 6 days in advance, tickets released at 12:00 pm (closed on Mondays)
- Tiananmen Tower: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 5:00 pm
- Great Hall of the People: 3 days in advance, tickets released at 5:00 pm
- Temple of Heaven: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 9:00 pm
- Prince Gong's Mansion: 10 days in advance, tickets released at 9:00 pm
- Lama Temple: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 8:00 pm
- Water Cube: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 12:00 am
- Beijing Zoo: 2 days in advance, tickets released at 12:00 am
- Badaling Great Wall: 10 days in advance, tickets released at 8:00 pm
- Mutianyu Great Wall: 2 days in advance
- Science and Technology Museum: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 12:00 am
- Natural History Museum: 3 days in advance, tickets released at 11:00 am
- Peking University: 7 days in advance for non-working days, 1 day in advance for working days, open from 8:00 am - 11:00 am and 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
- Tsinghua University: 7 days in advance, tickets released at 8:00 am (closed on Mondays)
Beijing Travel Tips📌
- Always carry your ID📄. Many attractions in Beijing have strict security checks, and you may not be able to enter without ID.
- Traffic in Beijing can be congested, especially during rush hour🚗. Prioritize the subway for convenient and fast travel, followed by buses.
- The climate in Beijing is dry, so remember to drink plenty of water and moisturize💧.
- Beijing has a wide variety of food, but tastes may vary. Try different snacks to find what you like😋.
- Choose accommodation near subway stations for easier travel. Check hotel reviews and prices online in advance to find cost-effective options🏨.
Social Media Captions📝
1. 📍Beijing
"Bei is the Bei of Beiping, Jing is the Jing of Kyoto." This city, full of historical charm and modern vibes, is truly captivating😍.
2. 📍Beijing·Forbidden City🏯
"Every brick, tile, and red wall tells of two dynasties, three centuries, and six hundred years." Experience the weight of history in the Forbidden City, as if traveling back in time👘.
3. 📍Beijing·Shichahai
"Sunset🌅 returns to the mountains and sea, the mountains and sea hold deep meaning." The sunset at Shichahai is truly beautiful and mesmerizing🌇.
Besties, what are you waiting for? Pack your bags and head to Beijing for an amazing journey🎉!
It is worth seeing, understanding the places where I have lived in the past, understanding and understanding, in order to save different treasures, I carefully designed 99 windows with different patterns, reflecting smartness, and also reflecting the black side of the Qing Dynasty Wangfu
Very good, I like this tour guide very much, there is no nonsense, it is all traditional culture! Very humorous, the whole process is thoughtful! I have seen this tour guide online for a long time, Zhang Weiwei! Very good, I will bring friends to book your group in the future!
The Prince Gong's Mansion is not only a royal palace, it also hides the rise and fall of the Qing Dynasty, the fate of the characters, it is also the epitome of the Qing Dynasty culture. The Prince Gong's Mansion is too large and should be visited in sections. The first road is to the garden. The attractions here include the back cover building (treasure place), the Fuzibei (need to queue to touch the Fuzi), the Xiyangmen, the Bat Hall, the Grand Theatre. The second road west to the mansion, the attractions are Xi Jinzhai (and the bedroom), the light room (meeting office). The third road to the central part of the palace, the attractions are Yin'an Palace (Wangfu Zhengdian), Jialetang (Former Hexuan residence). The fourth road to the east of the palace, the attractions have Yishen and Duofu. Due to the large number of tourists, it is recommended to enter the park early. The area of the palace must be maintained to maintain physical strength in order to watch it seriously. Want to understand the history and life of the Qing Dynasty court, here is worth paying attention.
Travel through a century of splendor, explore the luxurious imprint of half of the Qing Dynasty history - In-depth tour experience of Prince Gong's Mansion As the largest and most complete Qing Dynasty palace in Beijing, Prince Gong's Mansion is like a three-dimensional historical scroll. From the luxurious residence of the powerful minister Heshen to the political stage of Prince Gong Yizhen, this mansion witnessed the vicissitudes of the Qing Dynasty from prosperity to decline. Walking through it, it seems that you can hear the whispers of history between the red lacquer columns. Architectural Art: The Pinnacle of the Northern Palace Through the majestic Western Gate, three roads and five courtyards unfold in sequence. Although the Yin'an Hall does not have the grandeur of the Jinluan Hall in the Forbidden City, the nine ridge beasts on the roof silently indicate the noble status of the owner. The 111 rooms in the rear building can be called the ceiling of ancient mansions, especially the golden nanmu columns of Xijinzhai, which are the same as those of the Ningshou Palace in the Forbidden City. Heshen's crime of "excessive extravagance" is footnote here. The caisson painting of the Grand Theater is still as gorgeous as ever after a hundred years. If you close your eyes and concentrate, you can still hear the lingering sound of Peking opera actors. Garden Aesthetics: Concentrated Freehand Landscapes from the North and South Cui Jin Garden cleverly uses the "mirror-drawing" technique to frame the blue waves of Shichahai into the courtyard wall. The bat pond in front of the Yuetai Platform is shaped like a bat with wings spread, echoing the Kangxi imperial calligraphy of the word "Fu" in the rockery Miyun Cave. The most surprising thing is to find 9,999 bats of various shapes in the garden - from the window lattice carvings to the pond shape, the ancients' ingenuity of "hiding blessings in the garden" makes people smile. Cultural Decoding: Immersive Experience of Life in the Royal Palace The wild history and anecdotes told in the electronic interpreter make the building vivid: the windows of different shapes in the treasure house are actually Heshen's "jewelry classification labels", and the Taihu stones in the Peony Garden hide the prototype of the creation of the Grand View Garden in "Dream of Red Mansions". It is recommended to collect special bat-patterned stamps in the cultural and creative store and bring good luck home. Practical tips: - It is recommended to arrive before 8 am in the peak season to avoid the crowds of tour groups - Exit B of Beihai North Station on Metro Line 6 and walk along Liuyin Street for 10 minutes - The combined ticket is 40 yuan, including the rental of the audio guide, and the tour lasts about 2.5 hours - After leaving the park, you can check in at the former residence of Soong Ching Ling, and the experience of rowing boats in Shichahai will add more elegance This living museum of "half of the history of the Qing Dynasty" has both the solemnity and majesty of royal buildings and the poetic interest of literati. When the fingertips brushed the lines of the white marble railings of the bat pool, I suddenly understood the profound meaning of the ancient saying "a Prince Gong's Mansion, half of the history of the storm" - what is sealed here is not only the past glory, but also the back of a dynasty, silently telling the eternal aesthetic code between the carved beams and painted buildings. --- This review combines architectural analysis, historical anecdotes and immersive experience, uses scene-based description to enhance the sense of picture, and shows the unique charm of the palace through detailed excavation. It not only meets the needs of tourists to obtain practical information, but also enhances the reading experience with literary language, which is in line with the characteristics of Ctrip platform that high-quality reviews must be both practical and appealing. The cultural insights at the end of the article can trigger readers' emotional resonance and stimulate their interest in sightseeing.
From the private residence of the powerful minister Heshen, to the residence of Prince Yonglin of Qing, it was finally recorded in the annals of history as Prince Gong Yixin, and then changed hands several times during the Republic of China. Nine hundred million taels of silver in its heyday, but the mansion was sold off in its decline. After all, there is no way to escape "fame and wealth pass like the wind, and people die in vain." All the past are just dreams for others, from greed to power, a brick in Prince Gong's palace. Every tile tells the story of the rise and fall of that dynasty. 🏛️ The changes in the royal palace and the decline of the Qing Dynasty • Heshen's Residence Period: Heshen's power was overwhelming and his mansion was extravagant, reflecting the prosperity of the mid-Qing Dynasty • Period of Prince An's Mansion: After the fall of Heshen, the mansion was transferred to Prince Qing Yonglin, witnessing the change of imperial power • Prince Gong’s Mansion period: Yi Xin’s move in marked the establishment of the name of Prince Gong’s Mansion and was also a reflection of the late Qing Dynasty. • Republic of China period: With the demise of the Qing Dynasty, Prince Gong’s Mansion also experienced a transformation from private property to public management, bringing an end to an era.
Located on the west bank of Qianhai and the south bank of Shichahai, Prince Gong's Mansion was the largest princely mansion in the Qing Dynasty. It was successively the residence of Heshen and Prince Qing Yonglin. In the first year of Emperor Xianfeng’s reign in the Qing Dynasty (1851), Prince Gong Yixin became the owner of the house, and the name Prince Gong’s Mansion came from this. ✅Three Wonders and One Treasure of Prince Gong’s Mansion 👍🏻The first unique monument with the word "Fu" This white marble archway with Western architectural style is located on the central axis of the garden. It is the main entrance of the garden. It was built by Prince Gong Yixin. Its shape imitates the Dafahai in the Old Summer Palace, and its shape is elegant and exquisite. The lintel is engraved with "静涵太古" on the outside and "秀挹恒春" on the inside, which has a thick and ancient artistic conception, summarizing the gardening style of the entire garden. It can be regarded as a "masterpiece" in Prince Gong's Mansion.
🎉This visit to Prince Gong's Mansion in Beijing was really rewarding and worthwhile! Entering Prince Gong's Mansion, it's like traveling back to the Qing Dynasty. Every building exudes the charm of history. The three-way layout of the mansion, the solemn Yin'an Hall in the middle road, the Duofuxuan in the east road, the Baoguang Room in the west road and other buildings, with carved beams and painted buildings, and fine wood carvings, show a very high level of architectural art. The garden is even more amazing, with pavilions, towers, rockery and ponds scattered in an orderly manner, and winding paths showing the graceful beauty of Jiangnan gardens. Here, you can feel the atmosphere of the royal garden and the elegance of the literati garden. Of course, the most unmissable thing is the "Fu" stele written by Emperor Kangxi. Many tourists line up to pray for blessings and get lucky. Prince Gong's Mansion also has many cultural exhibitions, displaying calligraphy, paintings and other works from the Qing Dynasty, which immerse people in a deep cultural atmosphere. The only drawback is that there are too many tourists, and it is a bit crowded to take pictures and visit. But this also illustrates the charm of Prince Gong's Mansion from the side. I strongly recommend everyone to come to Prince Gong's Mansion and experience the unique charm of "One Prince Gong's Mansion, half of the history of the Qing Dynasty"!
Wang Gong's Mansion is the largest Wangfu in the Qing Dynasty, and it was once a mansion of Hexuan. The architectural style here is unique and magnificent. The building of the mansion is solemn and solemn, and the garden landscape is picturesque. Walking in it, it seems to feel the prosperity and glory of the year. Every architectural detail contains a deep historical and cultural heritage, which makes people wonder about it. 🎑 Pavilions and rockery in the garden are scattered, one step at a time, and the scenery is beautiful. Especially the famous bat pool, which is shaped like a bat, means that it is full of blessings. There is also a big theater building, which is well preserved, so that people can imagine the lively scenes of the royal nobles enjoying the opera performance here.