Beijing Travel Forum

I'll be traveling through Beijing on my way from Frankfurt to Guam. I arrive around noon one day and will leave at 1:45pm the next day. Is there anything meaningful that can be seen in Beijing in that short of time? Tiananmen square, the Forbidden City, the zoo, and the Great Wall all come to mind. I've never been there so I don't know the logistics of getting from the airport, to a hotel, find a transportation source, overnight, check out, and get back to the airport in time to make the flight. Any experiences and advise would be helpful.
Thanks.

I live in Beijing.

If you arrive beijing after 4 pm I think there would not be enough time for you to see great wall or forbidden city or the zoo, it would soon be dark.

The Tiananmen Square would be ok and at night there are lots of light.

If you could get out the airport before 12 I think you could see forbidden city just near tian an men Square. but that will be in a little bit hurry.

Wish you have good time there

any question pls contact me with Lizhekb@gmail.com in case I am not here

Wow, that was a quick reply...thanks! I would be arriving into PEK about 11;40am but I think that by the time I get my luggage and travel to a hotel, it would be 2 or 3pm. Yes, I wish I had more time but this is a business trip.

for the transportation, you should take taxi cause you don't have so much time.

The taxi will charge you about 100RMB to Tiananmen Square. no more than 110 RMB.

after you visit Tiananmen Square, if you like go to a bar I recommand you to go Houhai, the TAxi charges no more than 50 RMB. there you could find Quanjude Beijing Duck.

For hotel, I recommand you stay near the Tiananmen Square, so the next morning if you get up early you could visit Fobbiden City, but you only have 2.5 hours. the forbidden city opens at 8:30,and you should go to Airport before 11 am.

Maybe you could put you luggage at the airport, so you dont have to carry it with you and begin you tour immediately and check it out the next day when you have to leave Beijing.

Arrive at 11:40 you may out of the airport at 12:30 hopefully get in a cab. and arrive at Tiananmen Square before 2pm. dont forget your lunch : )

just checked the Fobidden city close at 4 pm

The Great Wall is an hour drive north of Beijing, so you would have to leave your hotel very early in the morning to see it and then get back for your flight. The Forbidden City is HUGE and is tough to see in less than 1-2 hours. Tienanmen Square is the easiest of the three, since it is a public square and doesn't have the opening hours restrictions of the others. What you could do is do Tienanmen early in the morning and then enter the Forbidden City as soon as it opens. In the afternoon of the first day, you could either do a sprint to the Great Wall and try to get there before it closes, or do the Temple of Heaven, which is another very interesting thing to see in Beijing. In the evening, take a walk through one of the hutong neighborhoods, to see waht a traditional Beijing neighborhood looks like before the wrecking balls eliminate what's left of the older buildings. The night market off of Wangfujing Avenue is another interesting, if touristy, evenight sight to see.

Mate, most tourist attractions are in the Dong Cheng district. In the afternoon of your first day you could visit the Temple of Heaven or alternatively, stroll through Jingshan or Beihai Parks (which would be my preference). Another option is the Lama Temple, 12 Yonghegong Dajie. In the evening you can visit Wangfujing and be sure to try the Beijing Duck.

On your second day, visit Tianamen Square early and get into the Forbidden City as early as you can. Spend the rest of your time there until you have to leave for the airport.

Enjoy!

Are you eligible for a transit visa? Or do you already have a China visa?

I would try to get to the Temple of Heaven,Peace Park then go to Tiananmen Square...watch the lowering of the flag (around sunset), visit the Hutong behind the square, walk up Wangfujing and have a meal somewhere authentic (others can recommend) OR get up early the next morning and see the flag being raised and with a bit of luck see a bit of the Forbidden City just opposite.

What is this transit visa that you are referring to? This would be my first trip to China so I was unaware of any special travel documentation requirements.

I just looked up the requirements for a transit visa. This may be a no-go from the start. The country that I reside in (Republic of the Marshall Islands) does not have a Chinese consulate that I am aware of. Certainly not on this island (Kwajalein). I see that you cannot apply by mail. I have not made my flight arrangements yet so it seems that I will have to travel through another city. Thanks for all of the replies.