Beijing Two-day Private Tour

TOUR ITINERARY Tour code: GWA-BJ-201 Day 1: After a morning pick-up from your hotel, we will drive to the political center of China, Tian’anmen Square. The largest public square in the world, Tian’anmen Square has been the site of the most important developments in China’s political and cultural history. It was the stage for the May 4th movement (where in 1919 Chinese students protested the transfer of Shandong province from Germany to Japan), the protests following the death of premier Zhou Enlai, and of course the political turmoil of 1989. The square is flanked on the east by the National Museum of China, on the west by the Great Hall of People (home of china’s legislative bodies), to the south by the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall (where his body lies in a crystal coffin), and of course to the north by the Gate of Heavenly Peace, with its distinctive portrait of Mao Zedong. The center of the square is marked by the Monument to the People’s Heroes, a ten-story obelisk built in dedication to those who died fighting for Chinese Revolution. After walking across the square we will enter the Forbidden City, the largest surviving palace complex and the former home of the emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasty. The Forbidden City is one of the greatest attractions in the world. Built by the third Ming emperor between 1406-1422, the Forbidden City served as the official residence to the Emperor of China until the last emperor, Puyi, was forced to evacuate in 1924. Consisting of 980 buildings and with 8,707 bays of rooms, the Forbidden City is the best example of classical Chinese architecture in the world, and is a wonder to behold. After taking time to explore the Forbidden City, we will drive to the Temple of Heaven park. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. The Temple of Heaven park is best known for the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, an iconic building famed for its magnificent triple-gabled circular roof. You will also have an opportunity to walk the same imperial walkway that the same emperors walked hundreds of years ago in their holy rites. After touring the Temple of Heaven, we will conclude our day with a visit to the Summer Palace. Having the largest royal park and being well preserved, the Summer Palace is ranked amongst the most noted and classical gardens of the world. In 1998, it was listed as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Like most of the gardens of Beijing, it could not elude the rampages of the Anglo-French allied force of 1860 and was destroyed by fire. In 1888, Empress Dowager Cixi embezzled navy funds to reconstruct it for her own benefit, changing its name to Summer Palace (Yiheyuan). She spent most of her later years there, dealing with state affairs and entertaining. Highlights not to be missed are climbing longevity hill, viewing Cixi’s extravagant Marble Boat, and talking a walk down Suzhou jie, a canal meant to resemble the beautiful river city of Suzhou. After viewing the Summer Palace we will take you back to your hotel for some much needed rest!

Day 2: We hope you had a good sleep, because today will be another full day excursion! After a morning pickup at your hotel we will drive directly to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. As one of the best-preserved parts of the Great Wall, the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall used to serve as the northern barrier defending the capital and the imperial tombs. First built in the mid-6th century during the Northern Qi, Mutianyu Great Wall is older than the Badaling section of the Great Wall. In the Ming dynasty, under the supervision of General Xu Da, construction of the present wall began on the foundation of the wall of Northern Qi. In 1404, a pass was built in the wall. In 1569, the Mutianyu Great Wall was rebuilt and till today most parts of it are well preserved. Compared with other sections of Great Wall, the Mutianyu Great Wall possesses unique characteristics in its construction. Watchtowers are densely placed along this section of the Great Wall - 22 watchtowers on this 2,250-meter-long stretch. The Mutianyu Pass consists of 3 watchtowers, one big in the center and two smaller on both sides. Standing on the same terrace, the three watchtowers are connected to each other inside and compose a rarely seen structure among all sections of Great Wall. While Mutianyu does get its fair share of visitors, it does not get as packed as Badaling, allowing you to have a peaceful time exploring the wall. After walking around on Mutianyu, you have the option of coming down via walking, taking a cable car, or taking a toboggan ride (lots of fun and highly recommended!). After meeting our minibus in the parking lot, we will then head back to the city center in the afternoon to the Olympic Green. The Olympic Green was the center of the event that captivated the world for two weeks in August of 2008. The highlights include the Bird’s Nest (officially known as the Beijing National stadium) and the Water Cube (the Beijing National Aquatics Center). The stadium gets its nickname from its outward design, which originated from the study of Chinese ceramics, implementing steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof, thus giving the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's nest". The Bird’s Nest hosted the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, athletic events, and football final of the 2008 Summer Olympics, from 8 August to 24 August 2008. Since the Olympic end, the Bird’s Nest has been used to host events from opera to a ski park. Despite its nickname, the Water Cube is not a cube but a cuboid, (a rectangular box). The outer wall of the building is based on the Weaire–Phelan structure, a structure devised from the natural formation of bubbles in soap foam. The complex Weaire–Phelan pattern was developed by slicing through bubbles in soap foam, resulting in more irregular, organic patterns than foam bubble structures proposed earlier by the scientist Kelvin. The Water Cube hosted the swimming, diving, and synchronized swimming events during the Olympics, and was the sight of Michael Phelps’ record breaking Olympic triumph. After touring the Olympic park we will drive you back to your hotel. We know that you will treasure this two -day trek through the best that China has to offer!

Tour Inclusions：

1. Professional local guide and driver;
2. Private air-conditioned car or van for transportation;
3. Admission of the first gate.