TOUR H1: Beijing Half-Day Group Tour

At about 7:30am you will be picked up from your Beijing hotel by your English-speaking guide and driver. From there we will first make our way to the Beijing Ancient City Wall. Also known as the Ming City Walls Park, the Ancient City Wall is a section of the old Ming inner-city wall. The restored wall runs for around 2km, rising up to a height of around 15m and interrupted every 80m with buttresses. The park extends the former site of Chongwen Men (one of the nine gates of the inner city wall).

Next we will visit the Drum and Bell Towers. The bell and drum were originally used as musical instruments in China. Afterward, however, they were used for telling time. As early as in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220), there was 'a morning bell and a dusk drum'. Telling the time by bell and drum played an important role in helping people live and work regularly when there was no other means to keep track of the time. As a result, bell and drum towers became public architectures, and were widely constructed in almost every city throughout the country since the Han Dynasty. In the history of their construction, the bell and drum towers of Beijing are the largest and highest. Their layout is unique, in that they were placed fore-and-aft, not as the traditional sense of standing right-and-left horizontally. We will walk around the towers, and we will go up into the Drum Tower, which will give you a great bird’s-eye view of the city.

We’ll then walk to the nearby area of Houhai, which contains many places of historic interest and scenic beauty, and remnants of old-style Beijing residences, Hutongs and courtyards. Houhai is always a good place to view the recreational life of local Beijingers, and in the last 200 years, many governmental officers, celebrities, monks and nuns chose to build mansions, temples and nunneries in Houhai. Thus, Houhai’s attraction lies not only in its natural beauty, but also in the historical value of its architecture. The lakeshore is packed with young people chatting, drinking and generally relaxing as wood pigeons coo overhead. In recent years it has become famous for nightlife because it is home to several popular restaurants, bars, and cafes.

After our time in Houhai we’ll go on a rickshaw tour of the Hutongs in the area. Hutongs are courtyard homes grouped together around narrow alleys, and served as the lifeline and center of everyday life in old Beijing. The Hutongs were a critical component in the development and evolution of Beijing folklore and culture. Going on this Hutong tour, you will feel like you have traveled back in time to a far different China, one where there was still an emperor sitting in the Forbidden City, and where there was still enough time to enjoy the simple pleasures of common life.

Following your rickshaw tour you’ll be taken back to your hotel, arriving at approximately noon.