Beijing Travel Guide, China

A Quick Glimpse on Beijing and what it Offers the First Time Visitor

The city of Beijing has a storied past and the creation of Beijing as a city can be traced back to 1075 BC. That was the year when King Wu declared Beijing a city. After that the city has assumed a number of names like Ji the Zhongdu and Dadu and then finally named Beijing again when Emperor ChengZu chose that name and made it official in 1421. The city was known to the outside world by the name Peking but by 1949, the city reverted back to the original name Beijing.

The city of Beijing or simply Jing is China's center. The nation's political economic, cultural and educational centers converge in the area. The city also plays a crucial role on the nation's international trade and communications. Nevertheless, what the city is now is nothing compared to its rich past. The city is considered as one of the six ancient cities of the country and it plays an important role in the development of ancient China. The other ancient cities of China include Xian Luoyang Kaifeng Nanjing and Hangzhou. This unique status of the city, a modern city and at the same time a city rich in history and tradition, helps make Beijing a tourist-friendly destination. It's a city that is just waiting to be discovered and learned at the same time. And the best time to discover Beijing? It's the time of autumn.

The city of Jing has four seasons, but among these seasons, the late spring and autumn stand out. And if visitors need to select just one time of the year it is suggested that autumn should be it. Old timers recommend that the best months to visit Beijing are during the months of May, September and October. This is the time when people can enjoy the abundant sunshine and the blue skies of the city. If winter is the favorite of the visitor then of course he can visit Beijing during that time and experience skiing at Beihai and sightseeing at West Hill.

A visit to Beijing is never complete without a pilgrimage to the Tiananmen Square. This is considered as the largest square in the world. When inside the square, the landmarks to visit include the Tiananmen Tower and the Monument to the People's Heroes. Another notable sight inside the square is the Mao Zedong Memorial Hall. At the end of the square is the Tiananmen Tower that was built in the time of  the Ming Dynasty.

The city of Beijing may be rich in history and an old city but the visitor can also enjoy the many modern amenities of the city. A number of modern shopping malls and modern buildings dot the city as well. Examples of buildings that feature modern architecture are the new Poly Plaza building, the Beijing Olympics Media Center and the CNOOP buildings. The first time visitor should also check out the new Beijing Opera House that was designed by the French architect Paul Andreu and this building is located at the back of the Great Hall of the People.

The city of Jing is a friendly city full of people using bicycles as their one way of transportation. And that alone is a sight to behold for the first time visitor of the city. The presence of these bike-riding people with their smiling faces, the many historic sites and historic buildings, plus the modern buildings makes a trip to Jing a truly enjoyable and learning experience.

email to a friendAsk our travel experts a question about Beijing
ask now

Things about Beijing you may be interested in

• Beijing Guide Books
• Beijing Reviews
• Beijing Travel tips

1 1 1 157

37 404 88 Not Found

Please forward this error screen to 2a brokerage.linkadage.com's WebMaster.

1ac The server cannot find the requested page:

• 
  17 brokerage.linkadage.com a4 /engine.php?LinkUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.travelgrove.com%2Ftravel-guides%2FChina%2FBeijing-Travel-Guide-c311641.html&Key=48SK-M2A6-H4EM&OpenInNewWindow=1 (port 2 80 73 )
• 107

0

 

+ list your site

 

ReviewsTravel TipsWrite a reviewWrite a travel tip

 

 

Read our members' reviews about Beijing

• New Arrival 10 Inch Android 3.0 Tablet PC
  review by ChinaWholesale posted more then 30 days ago
  This is a news about new arrival Tablet PC. It is said that, HTC is developing a 10 inch Tablet PC and will introduce to 4G LTE of AT & T’s network later this year. Now it is not clear about the details of the tablet PC. The news show that the tablet is likely called...
• About Bird's Nest Stadion, Beijing
  review by ccts posted more then 30 days ago
  Bird’s Nest, which is also known as the National Stadium, is one of the finest Olympics architecture. Located at the southern part of the Olympic Green in Beijing, the Bird’s Nest is the largest steel structure architecture in the world with using 110,000tons of steel which were all...
• What you should see in Guilin Yangshuo
  review by ccts posted more then 30 days ago
  China Travel Yangshuo Yang shuo is located at the bank of Li River, 60 kilometers away from Guilin city. The unique karsts physiognomy breeds the special landscape of Yangshuo. There are more than 20thousand strange peaks dotted, 16rivers winding through, over 110scene sites scattered. It...

view all

 

Read our members' travel tips about Beijing

• The Temple of Heaven
  travel tip by tomtum posted more then 30 days ago
  Bigger than the Forbidden city, this park and religious complex is one of the main attractions of Beijing. Originally built during the Ming and Qing Dynasty, as the worshiping place of the emperor, the park is now a social center for...
• The Ming Tombs in Beijing
  travel tip by sunnybeach posted more then 30 days ago
  It was built originally for the emperor Zhu Di and his empresses, holding the name of Changling, than later mausoleums of other 12 emperors and their empresses were built around the main tomb. Interestingly the tomb of the first emperor...
• Tiananmen Square
  travel tip by erato posted more then 30 days ago
  Tiananmen Square is the larges public square in the world. Its name means Gate of Heavenly Peace and is one of the symbols of Beijing. You surely remember the confrontations between demonstrators and soldiers in 1989. You may have...

view all

 

 

Community

Members Who Have Been to Beijing

See who has been to Beijing and ask them a question (membership required)

papillon ask a question add to friends

email-meta ask a question add to friends

zdanko ask a question add to friends

Jackie ask a question add to friends

 

show all

 

Community Galleries About Beijing

Browse our members' Beijing galleries to get a better impression of the place

view gallery

view gallery

view gallery

 

show alladd gallery

 

 

the best travel deals provided by TravelZoo...