On the first day of your Beijing trip, you'll be greeted by one of our representatives at Beijing airport and taken to your hotel. Once you've received a Beijing city map, it’s off to the city centre - a journey which will take about an hour.

China Travel Plan offers three hotels in Beijing based on the price in proportion to the quality of the accommodation:  
- A mid-class hotel in the city centre
- A cosy courtyard hotel in a historic Chinese suburb, a 'hutong'
- A luxurious 4 star hotel with swimming pool, lobby bar and every comfort you’ll need to relax and unwind at the beginning of your China trip.

More information on these options and the prices for each can be found at the bottom of this page. The rest of the first day of your Beijing trip is free to spend as you wish.

Around 08:30 in the morning on day two of your Beijing trip, a car with an English-speaking guide will be waiting for you at your hutong hotel. The first stop of the day will be the Lama Temple of the Tibetan Lama Buddhism (entrance fee 25 Yuan). The scent of incense and sandalwood will follow you during your visit to the red temple houses and curled wood pagodas, a really atmospheric start to your China trip. 

After visiting the Lama Temple, you’ll continue this Beijing trip with a visit to the Temple of Heavenly Peace (entrance fee 35 Yuan). The temple is set in a city park filled with pine trees and picnic spots. You'll have about 1.5 hrs to explore the temple before continuing on with your Beijing city tour.

At around 12:30 your driver will drop you off near Tian'anmen Square. You’ll say goodbye to your chauffeur, but your guide will stay with you until later in the afternoon. He’ll help you to decipher menus and help you order lunch.

After lunch, you will visit the famous Tian'anmen Square, which is a highlight of any China holiday. Tian’anmen means ‘Gate of Heavenly Peace’ and it is the largest urban square in the World. The square is bordered by buildings of parliament and the mausoleum dedicated to Mao Zhedong, China’s communist leader during the 60’s who personally lead the country’s Cultural Revolution.

The next part of your Beijing city tour will take you to The Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was the secluded home of Chinese emperors for many centuries. Strolling through the empiric living quarters dating back to the 18th century, you'll feel as though you're walking through the set of the movie ‘The Last Emperor’. The city is filled to capacity with Chinese tour groups in the morning, which is why we’ve planned this excursion for the afternoon when it's usually far less crowded. The Forbidden City closed its Gates at 16:00 and it will take you about two hours to see the entire city (entrance fee 60 Yuan). Once you’ve seen enough, your guide will help get a taxi back to your hotel. 

On day three of your Beijing trip, you'll be picked up from your accommodation early in the morning and drive to Jinshanling, where you'll find a quiet part of the Great Wall of China. Much of the walk is uphill, but there's plenty of downhill too. Large parts of the wall have not been restored so caution is advised at all times. There are three points along the wall where you’ll pay an entrance fee of approx 50 Yuan. After your Great Wall of China experience, a mini bus will be waiting to take you back to Beijing.

If this 10km hike is a bit more than you would like to take on, you can also go on our trip to the Great Wall at Mutianyu instead. Our Mutianyu trip takes you to the Great Wall, the Olympic Park (the birds-nest stadium), and the Ming Dynasty Tombs. At the Great Wall at Mutianyu, you can go on a cable car up to the top and take a toboggan down - it's great fun! Please ask your travel specialist for more information on our Mutianyu trip.

Please note: Recently the Simatai section of the Great Wall has been closed for renovation and is unavailable for clients to hike. The hike that we offer will still depart from Jinshanling and continue onto the point of closure at Simatai and then continue back to Jinshanling. Even with the closure of the Simatai section we still feel that the Jinshanling segment is the best place to experience the stunning landscapes in the mountainous area of the Luanping County.

It's the last day of your Beijing trip and after three nights in one of our friendly hotels, we can arrange for you to take the night train to begin your Xi'an trip to see the Terracotta Army. If overnight trains are not your thing then please let us know and we can arrange a domestic flight to get you from Beijing to Xi'an instead. 

If you do decide to take the train at this point in your China holiday, you’ll have the rest of the day to spend in Beijing. You can use the Metro system to get around Beijing as it is cheap, easy and it is an efficient way of getting around.
 
We recommend visiting the historic hutong neighbourhoods during your trip to Beijing. The best streets to visit can be found behind Guloudajie Street, which is near the impressive Bell and Drum Towers.