This is a packed course that takes you around Beijing's three major World Heritage Sites in one day.
If you want to take your time or can't walk for long distances, please choose our "Two World Heritage Sites" course.
Palace Museum
It was registered as a World Heritage Site in 1987!
Formerly known as the Forbidden City, a total of 24 successive emperors lived within the palace from 1421 when the Ming Dynasty moved its capital from Nanjing to Beijing until the fall of the Qing Dynasty.
It is also known as the setting for the film "The Last Emperor," which depicts the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, and Jiro Asada's "Sora no Subaru," which was also made into a TV drama.
A Japanese guide will explain the highlights.
Badaling Great Wall
It was registered as a World Heritage Site in 1987!
Located about 73 km northeast of central Beijing, the Badaling Great Wall is approximately 7,600 m long.
At the entrance, the trail splits into a gentler "Women's Slope" and a steeper "Men's Slope." Along the way, you can see beacons and soldier's barracks, and take in the view of the Great Wall stretching endlessly along the edge of the mountain, allowing you to experience the grandeur and majesty of the wall at a pace that suits your physical condition.
Summer Palace (Iwaen)
It was registered as a World Heritage Site (cultural heritage) in 1998!
It had been used as an "Imperial Garden" since the Ming Dynasty, but was later converted into a villa by Emperor Qianlong to celebrate his mother's 60th birthday, and was renamed Qingyi Garden.
It was destroyed by British and French troops during the Second Opium War in 1860 (the 10th year of the Xianfeng era), but reconstruction began in 1884 to serve as a retirement home for Empress Dowager Cixi, and it was renamed the Summer Palace. The cost of renovating the Summer Palace was enormous, and it is said that Empress Dowager Cixi's misappropriation of naval funds was one of the reasons for China's defeat in the Sino-Japanese War, but another theory is that it may have been a public works project to combat the recession.
The vast grounds include the artificial lake "Kunming Lake" and "Wanshou Mountain," a mountain made up of piled-up soil dug from the lake. The gardens, which are modeled after Hangzhou's West Lake and the gardens of the Jiangnan region, are lined with various palaces, including the "Le Shou Hall," the residence of Empress Dowager Cixi, the "Ren Shou Hall," where government affairs were conducted, and the "Yulan Hall," and atop Wanshou Mountain stands the "Foshan Pavilion," the symbol of the Summer Palace. The "Long Corridor," built along Kunming Lake, is 728 meters long, and its beams are decorated with 14,000 paintings of flowers, birds, the wind, the moon, history, and classics.
Gourmet food: Zhajiang noodles
A popular dish among the Beijing people.
The thick handmade noodles are mixed with curries, celery, meat miso, etc.
