Things to Do in Beijing
Imperial ghosts, alleyway kitchens, and a skyline built for emperors.
Top Things to Do in Beijing
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Plan Your Trip
Essential guides for timing and budgeting
Climate Guide
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View guide →Day Trips
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See packing list →When Should You Visit Beijing?
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Your Guide to Beijing
About Beijing
Beijing greets you with a scent. The sharp, dry perfume of old wood and incense hits you the moment you step into the Hall of Supreme Harmony within the Forbidden City, layered with the distant, metallic bite of city smog. This capital was built on a scale meant to humble. The 7.8-kilometer sprawl of the palace complex gives way to the human-scale chaos of the hutongs, those grey-brick alleyways behind the Drum Tower where life develops between bicycles and steaming woks.
Spend a morning tracing the dragon-carved marble of the Nine-Dragon Screen. Lose an afternoon in the labyrinth of Nanluoguxiang. The smell of grilling lamb skewers (chuanr) and the sizzle of jianbing crepes being spread on hotplates guides you more reliably than any map. The contrast is the point. The silent, cypress-shaded courtyards of the Temple of Heaven, where retirees practice tai chi at dawn, exist ten subway stops from the glass-and-steel canyons of Guomao in the Central Business District.
The only green there is the glow of a stock ticker. A proper bowl of zhajiangmian, the noodles thick and chewy under a dark, fermented soybean paste, costs about 25 yuan (roughly $3.50) from a no-name shop in Dongcheng. A Peking duck dinner at a century-old establishment like Quanjude will run you ten times that, easily.
The trade-off is the air quality. On still days it can sit heavy in your lungs and cloak the distant peaks of the Fragrant Hills in a milky haze. But on a clear autumn afternoon, when the light turns the yellow-glazed tiles of the Forbidden City roofs to liquid gold and the wind carries the sound of temple bells from Beihai Park, you understand why this city was chosen to rule an empire.
Travel Tips
Transportation: Beijing's subway is your lifeline. It's extensive, clean, and signs are in English. Buy a Yikatong transit card from any station kiosk. Loading it with 100 yuan (about $14) should last a few days of serious exploring. The real hack is using it for the city's shared bicycles. They're everywhere. For taxis, insist the driver uses the meter. Hailing one on the street is fine. Avoid the unlicensed cars that loiter outside tourist spots quoting inflated fares. The one exception to subway supremacy is a trip to the Great Wall. The public bus 877 from Deshengmen is cheap and direct to Badaling. For the less-crowded Mutianyu section, you're better off splitting a car with other travelers. This tends to be surprisingly affordable per person.
Money: Cash is officially king in the hutongs and at street stalls. that digital payments reign everywhere else. Before you arrive, set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with a linked foreign card. It's how you'll pay for everything from a museum ticket to a bubble tea. Small market vendors might only accept cash. Keep a few hundred yuan in small bills handy. A pitfall is assuming credit cards are widely accepted. They're not, except at international hotels and upscale restaurants. An insider trick: many larger banks and upscale hotel concierges can still exchange foreign currency. The rate is poor. Your best bet is to withdraw yuan directly from an ATM using a debit card that reimburses fees.
Cultural Respect: The etiquette is less about rigid rules and more about a certain reserved courtesy. In temples, speak quietly. Avoid pointing your feet at Buddha statues when sitting. When offered a business card or a gift, receive it with both hands. It's a small gesture that gets noticed. The major potential for offense is around political discourse. Conversations about Tibet or Tiananmen Square are best avoided altogether. To connect authentically, head to a public park like Ritan in the early morning. Simply watch the groups practicing ballroom dancing, sword routines, or belting out Peking opera. Better yet, tentatively join them. Your respectful curiosity will often be met with a delighted, if halting, attempt at conversation.
Food Safety: The golden rule for street food in Beijing is to follow the locals. The longest queue is usually the safest and tastiest bet. Look for stalls where the food is cooked fresh and hot right in front of you. The sizzling griddles for jianbing or the bubbling pots for malatang (spicy numbing soup) are good signs. Avoid pre-cut fruit sitting uncovered in the sun. Tap water is not for drinking. Not even for brushing teeth in most locals' opinions. Stick to bottled or boiled water. For an immersive and safe culinary dive, book a hutong food tour with a local guide for your first night. They'll lead you to the spots where the boiled tripe is crisp and the sugar-coated hawthorn berries (bingtanghulu) are well tart, bypassing any guesswork.
When to Visit
Beijing's calendar is ruled by two forces: the furnace of summer and the deep freeze of winter, with perfect, fleeting bookends. April through early June is likely your best bet. Temperatures are a merciful 15-25°C (60-77°F), the willows around the Summer Palace are green, and the skies have a fighting chance of being blue.
Hotel prices are climbing from their winter lows but haven't yet hit summer peaks. Late September through October is the other premium window, with crisp 10-20°C (50-68°F) days, golden ginkgo leaves lining the streets, and significantly thinner crowds after the National Day holiday in early October. Summer, from July to August, is when the city bakes.
Temperatures regularly hit 35°C (95°F) with oppressive humidity, and brief, heavy downpours are common. This is also when domestic tourism peaks, meaning the Forbidden City feels forbidden by the sheer mass of people. The upside? This is when you'll find the best deals on international flights. Winter, from December to February, is harshly cold, often dipping below 0°C (32°F), with a biting wind that whips through Tiananmen Square.
But it's also starkly beautiful, with fewer tourists and a chance to see the temples dusted with snow. Hotel prices tend to be at their absolute lowest, sometimes half of what you'd pay in autumn. The one season to be cautious of is late February through March; it's still cold, and the infamous spring sandstorms can roll in from the Gobi, coating everything in a fine, orange grit.
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