Beijing

故宫博物院

The Forbidden City is the monumental palace complex at the heart of Beijing's historic central axis. Its courtyards, ceremonial halls and residential compounds reveal how imperial ritual, administration and daily life were organised during the Ming and Qing dynasties. The scale becomes clearer when the visit is treated as a northbound sequence rather than a checklist of isolated halls.

798艺术区

Galleries in old factories. Half a day, best on weekdays.

后海

Rent a bike, get lost on purpose, end at the Drum Tower.

故宫

Closed Mondays. Book on the official account up to a week ahead, and go in through the south gate.

天坛

Go at opening for the park rather than the temple: locals dancing, kites, tai chi.

颐和园

Kunming Lake, the Long Corridor and a hill of temples. Bring a whole afternoon.

慕田峪长城

Less crowded than Badaling, with a cable car up and a toboggan down.

中国国家博物馆

The National Museum of China occupies the eastern side of Tian'anmen Square and surveys Chinese history, archaeology, art and modern national development on an exceptional scale. The permanent galleries are too extensive for a single exhaustive visit, so the museum works best when approached with two or three priorities.

景山公园

Jingshan Park rises immediately north of the Forbidden City on Beijing's historic central axis. The compact former imperial garden is best known for Wanchun Pavilion, where the palace roofs, Drum and Bell Towers and modern skyline can be read together as one urban composition. The climb is short but steep, and the visual reward is strongest in clear weather.

北海公园

Beihai Park is an imperial garden organised around a broad lake west of Jingshan. Jade Islet and the White Pagoda form its best-known silhouette, while painted corridors, temple compounds, rockeries and quieter northern-bank gardens reward a slower circuit. The park shows how water, islands and borrowed views were composed across successive dynasties.

北京钟鼓楼

The Bell and Drum Towers mark the northern end of Beijing's historic central axis. These monumental timekeeping buildings once regulated the rhythm of the imperial capital through evening drums and morning bells. Climbing the towers places their architecture in context: dense hutong roofs spread below, while the central axis continues south toward Jingshan and the palace city.

什刹海

Shichahai links Qianhai, Houhai and Xihai with one of central Beijing's largest surviving historic neighbourhoods. Lakeside paths, hutong lanes, former residences, temples and mansion gardens reveal several layers of urban life rather than a single ticketed attraction. Its character changes sharply between quiet mornings, active afternoons and brightly lit evenings.

798·751园区

798·751 occupies a large former industrial complex in northeast Beijing, where Bauhaus-influenced factory buildings now contain galleries, design studios, cultural institutions, cafés and event spaces. The district is useful for understanding the contemporary city: industrial heritage, international exhibitions and commercial creative culture coexist within a walkable network of lanes and courtyards.