City: Beijing
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The 10 Best Historical & Heritage Tours in Beijing, China
Welcome to a capital city whose story goes back at least 3000 years. In Beijing, you'll find a wealth of history, both ancient (the Hall of Preserving Harmony, Summer Palace, Forbidden City) and more recent (Chairman Mao Memorial Hall, Tiananmen Square). For the best market experience, choose the Dirt Market over the touristy Silk Market. A visit to the Great Wall, the longest manmade structure in the world, is absolutely essential.
Restaurants in Beijing
1. Beijing Private Tour to Beijing Panda House and Mutianyu Great Wall
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 6 reviews
With the combination of the Great Wall at Mutianyu section and checking out the cute pandas in Panda House, this tour is definitely perfect for you or even with your family. Mutianyu is the most popular section among all the others on the Great Wall, and the pandas in Beijing will let you or your family have a good time and don't need to fly all the way to Chengdu. Tour includes tasty local lunch, all entrance fee, cable car round trip, an English-speaking guide and transport by private vehicle.
Inclusions: Bottled water, Lunch, Professional guide, Hotel pickup and drop-off (For hotels with the 4th ring road of Beijing City), Private tour, Transport by private vehicle, Entrance fee to Panda House and Great Wall, Cable car round trip or ski lift up and toboggan ticket
Exclusions: Gratuities, Food and drinks, unless specified
Reviewed By latoyaj632
My daughter and I had the pleasure of having Qing as our tour guide. We had a great experience. Qing was very knowledgeable and added funny commentary to engage my 9 year old daughter, whom is not interested in History (yet)! We learned a lot about Chinese history and culture, with the added benefit of being allowed to take ample time to take a multitude of pictures. Qing has hosted this tour for many years, so she provided us with tips to take the most flattering shots in this historical venue. I would definitely recommend Qing when taking this tour. We will remember this experience forever.
2. Beijing Private Tour: 2-Hour Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City Quick Explorer
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 14 reviews
With limited time in Beijing, avoid the crowds and take a 2-hour walking tour through the Tian'anmen Square and Forbidden City.Choose from several times available and learn the stories behind the masterpieces with the direct entry.Your guide will meet in your hotel's lobby and lead you to discover the highlights of the Forbidden city.After the 2 hours guided tour, you will have your own time to explore more of the Palace or your guide will give suggestions on where to go to your next destination and how.Entrance fees and free hotel pick up with one way transfer is included.
Inclusions: Bottled water, Professional guide, Hotel pickup, Private tour, One-way private transfer to The Tian'anmen Square, Entrance fee
Exclusions: Gratuities, Hotel drop-off
Reviewed By Lover_of_food2b
Anson was our tour guide. He spoke great English and had tons of knowledge about the neighborhoods we were walking in, which was also the location of our hotel. He gave us a variety of food choices, all delicious, but did give us the option to be more adventurous. We opted out of eating anything too exotic. We were so impressed with Anson, we signed up for a tour at the Forbidden City and requested him. He is extremely knowledgable about the history in China and tells it in a way that keeps things interesting.
3. Forbidden City Private Tour with Skip-the-Line Access
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 78 reviews
Private guide pick you up from lobby of your hotel. Special lane through Tiananmen security, skip long entrance lines. Guide is hand-picked for their experience and knowledge with incredible details about the history, architecture and culture of the palace . A remarkable ancient architectural masterpiece of China. More than 15 carefully selected spots in the Forbidden city will be visited with the help of your knowledgeable tour guide. The mysterious palace of the ancient emperors is waiting for you to explore.
Inclusions: Hotel pick up ( No Private Vehicle ) , Private knowledgeable guide, Attractions entrance fee
Exclusions: Hotel drop off , Gratuities ( Recommend for excellent service ), Transport fee
Reviewed By FelipeS2097
This tour is amazing. Leos agency is super trustfull and kind. He arranged everything, so I didn't have to worry about anything. Totally recommend his tours.
4. Full-Day Small-Group Great Wall Hike: Simatai West to Jinshanling
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 223 reviews
As the most popular hiking trip of Great Wall around Beijing, it will show you both untouched and restored sections of the Great Wall at Simatai West and Jinshanling within 3 hours. We will reach the Wall by Kylin Tower at Simatai West, and then walk westward to Jinshanling. We will get off the wall at Shalingkou at Jinshanling, or you can walk another 30 minutes if you feel energetic and then get off the wall at Zhuanduokou . The unrestored wall, the watch towers, the beacon towers snake on the mountain from east to west. You will have chance to meet local farmer friends, try local home-made food and learn local community development. It is the best place for keen photographers along the wall. Regarding fitness it is a medium-level hiking for all ages.
Inclusions: 1. air-con vehicle with experienced driver, 2. personal English-speaking hiking tour guide, 4. unlimited bottled water; snacks on the Wall; lunch in a local farmer’s restaurant, 5. a certificate of completion for hiking on the Great Wall of China
Exclusions: 1. travel insurance, 2. chairlift, 3. personal expenses
Reviewed By tamaletown
I had booked with this organisation after much research on what is possible for a multi day trek on the Great Wall. As I was travelling on my own, safety was important, and on that front, they certainly delivered. I had both a driver and a guide. The driver was truly excellent, and the car (a new model Volkswagen Passat) was sparkling clean and high quality. My guide Peter spoke excellent English and was extremely knowledgeable about the Wall’s history, etc. This was a huge advantage, compared to other independent hikers I saw who were simply zipping along without the context and amazing history. So for these reasons, I would definitely recommend this company. They are certainly not cheap, but it would be far more affordable if you don’t do it solo. Also, I wanted to get away from the teeming hoards of people that you see photos of near Beijing. Success! We were definitely on a more remote section of the wall, and there were sometimes hours between sightings of other trekkers. Which was great. Three things let it down, that made me give four stars and not five. Perhaps these are unavoidable. First, the accommodation is very basic. For the price you pay, I would have expected better. Having said that, we were staying quite off the tourist trail, so there probably weren’t a lot of options. They also own one place that we were at for two nights. You can read my review of that place under “Great Wall Inn” in Gubeikou. Second, I had thought this three day / two night trek would be tough, as it is certainly written up that way. It most decidedly is not. If you are an experienced hiker (as I am), and have a modicum of fitness, the reality is these are half day walks strung out to give the appearance of full day treks. I would rate the walking as moderate. Of course, that is for someone who is very experienced. I certainly saw a lot of people suffering in some areas, including my guide. So I know it is all relative. Which brings me to my third point. My guide simply did not have a level of fitness to match my own, so I was often waiting for him on the steeper sections, and also carried gear/ food for him, to assist him on two of the days. Although we joked about it, and he let me go ahead at times, the reality is this was a limiting factor for how far we could go. He was definitely setting the pace, not me. Again, this likely wouldn’t be a problem for most clients. My last little complaint was that I am a coffee fiend, and China is not the place to get a decent coffee. But even so, I would have been happy to have instant Nescafé, which would have tasted like manna from heaven compared to the instant crappy version we had. Again, my guide was not a coffee drinker, and when we were getting food at a grocery store for the trek, he insisted we didn’t need any Nescafé, as he had some coffee for me. Big mistake. So if you go, make sure you bring your own coffee option with you, if coffee is important to you. Ha ha. I hope that helps! I am glad I went with this company, and can I say that this itinerary is certainly worthwhile for getting a good Great Wall experience.
5. Private Great Wall Hiking from Jiankou to Mutianyu
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 59 reviews
Exploring unrestored and untouched section of the Great Wall of China from Jiankou to Mutianyu can grant magnificent views of the Great Wall stretching beyond the horizon in the east and west. Lunch, entrance ticket and private transfer are all inclusive.
Inclusions: Lunch, Transport by private vehicle, Professional guide, Hotel pickup and drop-off, Entrance fee
Exclusions: Gratuities, Souvenir photos (available to purchase), cable car ticket/toboggan tickets
Reviewed By simonelafleur
I had a great time in Beijing! The tour was well organized, Violet was a great tour guide! She was always on time, she speaks English very well and she told me a lot of informations about the sights. The booking process on WeChat was very easy - the agency is very flexible which was just perfect for me. I would definitely recommend the travel agency and the tour! Violet, thank you very much for everything and hope to see you again next time when I‘m in Beijing! :)
6. Private All-Inclusive Day Tour: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Mutianyu Great Wall
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 351 reviews
This private day highlight tour will show you 3 most popular and must see attractions in Beijing, including Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and Mutianyu Great Wall. Private transfer, entrance fee, round way cable car or toboggan tickets on the Great Wall and lunch are inclusive. Come and enjoy this wonderful day trip to get to know some interesting stories about this amazing city.
Inclusions: Local taxes, Bottled water, Lunch, Driver with private car, Professional guide, Hotel pickup and drop-off, Round way cable car or toboggan
Exclusions: Gratuities, Souvenirs
Reviewed By Saschant
When life gets back to normal and you want to explore Beijing Jerry will take care of you. He was great, informative and caring. Anything we wanted he looked after us. Even helped with some extra “post” after too much shopping. I traveled with my mother as a catch up and just wanted an easy trip and this was awesome. Jerry is the best !!
7. Half Day Private Tour to Summer Palace in Beijing
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 26 reviews
Breeze past the long entry lines to enjoy your half day pre-booked tour of the Summer Palace. Follow your tour guide to visit huge emperor's summer garden. Including the longevity hill, South Lake Island, Suzhou Street. Learn about the ancient history, culture and itions that helped shape the Summer Palace through your guide's engaging commentary.
Inclusions: Professional guide, Hotel pickup and drop-off, Entrance ticket, Gasline, Parking and Toll fees
Exclusions: Gratuities, Lunch
Reviewed By 761sidneyg
Sherry did a fantastic job showing us some of the best and most important sights in Beijing. She had already booked tickets in advance and was able to help navigate us through various gates and QR codes, which made the tour much smoother, and she was extremely knowledgeable, interesting, and friendly. Seeing these sights was at least twice as enjoyable because she was there to explain them and make conversation with us. I strongly recommend a tour with Sherry. We had a great time at Christmas because of her.
8. Morning Mubus to the Mutianyu Great Wall (7:40am Departure)
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 416 reviews
The benefits of traveling with Mubus include: -A direct bus transportation service to the Mutianyu Great Wall. -You will be provided with more sightseeing time (5 hours). -Professional guide service on the bus to teach you how to travel the Great Wall. -No any shopping stops to waste your precious travel time. -Enjoy a special treatment of "free ride on internal shuttle to uphill and downhill”. -Enjoy a buffet lunch at “picturesque” viewing platform of Mubus Family. Morning Mubus Timetable: 07:40-08:00: Bus departs from meeting point. 08:00-09:30: Driving time to the Mutinayu Great Wall (1.5-2 hours). 09:30-14:30: Arrive at Mutianyu Great Wall and Sightseeing time on your own(5 hours). 14:30-15:00: Bus departs from Mutianyu Great Wall. 16:00-16:30: Arrive at meeting point and end the tour.
Inclusions: Return bus transportation;, English-Mandarin speaking guide on bus., Internal shuttle for uphill and downhill; , Great Wall admission ticket (Option), Buffet lunch at Mubus Family viewing platform (Option), Great Wall round trip cable car (Option)
Exclusions: Gratuities
Reviewed By noahkotler
Had a great experience with Mubus. Our tour guide Tony was very informative and funny. PS the wall was not crowded in January which was perfect.
9. Private Mutianyu Great Wall Trip with English-Speaking Driver
Overall Ratings
4.9 based on 521 reviews
This private Great Wall trip with an English-speaking driver can make your trip easier and enjoyable. You will be not lonely as you can talk with the driver.Once you arrive the Great Wall,the driver will help you buy the tickets ,explain how to climb the Wall,where to wait for you. The entrance tickets and the shuttle bus ride between car parking and entrance included. The cable car tickets and toboggan is not included.
Inclusions: Transport by private vehicle, Hotel pickup and drop-off, Airport pickup and drop-off, English speaking driver, Bottled water, Entrance fee
Exclusions: Lunch, Gratuities, Cable car/toboggan tickets, Tour guide
Reviewed By simonelafleur
I had a great time in Beijing! The tour was well organized, Violet was a great tour guide! She was always on time, she speaks English very well and she told me a lot of informations about the sights. The booking process on WeChat was very easy - the agency is very flexible which was just perfect for me. I would definitely recommend the travel agency and the tour! Violet, thank you very much for everything and hope to see you again next time when I‘m in Beijing! :)
10. Morning Mubus Tour to the Mutianyu Great Wall
Overall Ratings
4.9 based on 892 reviews
The benefits of traveling with Mubus include: -A direct bus transportation service to the Mutianyu Great Wall. -You will be provided with more sightseeing time (5 hours). -Professional guide service on the bus to teach you how to travel the Great Wall. -No any shopping stops to waste your precious travel time. -Enjoy a special treatment of "free ride on internal shuttle to uphill and downhill”. -Enjoy a buffet lunch at “picturesque” viewing platform of Mubus Family. Morning Mubus Timetable: 07:20-07:30: Bus departs from meeting point. 07:30-09:30: Driving time to the Mutinayu Great Wall (1.5-2 hours). 09:30-14:30: Arrive at Mutianyu Great Wall and Sightseeing time on your own(5 hours). 14:30-15:00: Bus departs from Mutianyu Great Wall. 16:00-16:30: Arrive at meeting point and end the tour.
Inclusions: Return bus transportation;, English-Mandarin speaking guide on bus., Internal shuttle for uphill and downhill;, Great Wall admission ticket (Option), Buffet lunch at Mubus Family viewing platform (Option), Great Wall round trip cable car (Option)
Exclusions: Gratuities
Reviewed By chrisy245
A competent introduction for western tourists who are not familiar with the last two dynasties that are Ming and Qing, and are looking for whirlwind tour of the forbidden city.
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