Beijing, China

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Airport: Beijing Capital International (PEK)
Served by: American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, JAL Japan Airlines, S7 Airlines

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City Statistics

Location: Municipality of Beijing, northern China.

Time zone: GMT + 8 (GMT + 7 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in October).

Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50Hz; two-pin plugs are standard.

Average January temperatures: - 3°C (27°F).

Average July temperatures: 26°C (79°F).

Annual rainfall: 890mm (34.7 inches).

Overview

Beijing is one of those wonderful cities that manages to combine the historic with the modern, and pull off both with aplomb. The billions of dollars worth of renovations that resulted from being awarded the 2008 Olympics Games have transformed what some felt was dowdy backwater of a city into a modern metropolis any country would be proud of. Beijing is now blessed with top-quality hotels and restaurants, a world-class subway system - set to become the world's biggest by 2015 - and some of the most eye-catching and modern architecture on the planet. Yet beyond the modernity, this ancient city can still offer an incredible number of historic attractions, including its remarkable network of hutong alleyways, which provide a unique village-within-a-city atmosphere of slow-paced living and timeless charms. Beijing is also the country's most convenient launch pad for trips to China's most famous sight of all; the Great Wall.

Getting There By Air

Airlines offering direct flights to Beijing include British Airways, Air China and China Eastern. It takes around 10 hours direct from London. You can get good deals throughout the year, but try to avoid Chinese public holidays, especially Chinese New Year (usually February). The first week in May and October are also expensive times to fly to Beijing, as are the school summer holidays, (July-September). The cheapest deals are almost always on indirect flights. Emirates, via Dubai, can often offer cheap flights to Beijing.From London - 10 hours; New York - 15 hours; Los Angeles - 13; Toronto - 16 hours; Sydney - 14 hours.

Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK)
Tel: (010) 6454 1111.
Web: en.bcia.com.cn
The airport is situated 25km (16 miles) northeast of Beijing.

Airport facilities:
Facilities include banks, several bureaux de change, ATMs, telephones and a post office.

Getting Around

Public Transport: The local bus system in Beijing is dirt cheap and extremely extensive, but tough to negotiate for non-Chinese speakers. Travel by subway or taxi is far easier, although remember to carry with you the name of your destination in Chinese characters to show taxi drivers. Very few speak English. Beijing's subway is slick, modern and easy to use. Signs and announcements are in English as are ticket-buying machines. Tickets cost a flat rate for a single journey, no matter how far you travel. The ABC (Airport to Beijing City) express train connects the airport with Dongzhimen and Sanyuanqiao subway stations.

Taxis: Taxis in Beijing are plentiful, cheap and metered, and are usually just hailed from the street. Tipping is not expected.

Driving in the City: Few tourists attempt to drive in Beijing, as hiring a car is a lengthy process and roads are congested. Visitors also need a Chinese driving licence, which can only be obtained by resident permit holders. Basically, don't bother.

Car Hire: Car rentals usually come with a driver, but familiar foreign rental agencies are only slowly breaking into the market. Avis (tel: 400 882 1119; www.avischina.com) has an online booking service. Otherwise try one of the local taxi companies such as Beijing Beiqi Taxi (tel: (010) 8661 1062), although you'll need a Chinese speaker to help.

Bicycle Hire: Cycling is a great option in Beijing. The roads are as flat as a chessboard, and almost all of them have bicycle lanes, although cars don't always keep out of them! Bicycles can be rented from many youth hostels and hotels. A citywide scheme called Beijing Bike Rental (www.bikebeijing.com) is another cheap option. It has rental stations outside some subway stations (Gulou Dajie on Line 2, for example) and at various tourist sights around the city. For better quality but more expensive bikes, try Bicycle Kingdom, 34 Donghuangchenggen Nanjie, Beiheyan Dajie, Dongcheng District (tel: 133 8140 0738; www.bicyclekingdom.com).

Hotels

Hotels
Beijing's hotel scene still isn't quite as good as you'd expect for a city of this standing. Most 5-star offerings are decent rather than outstanding, and mid-range Chinese-run outfits tend to lack international standards. There are some lovely traditional courtyard hotels though, which add a unique Beijing flavour to an otherwise relatively standard hotel industry. For mid-range and cheap hotels in Beijing, a reliable hotel reservation website is www.ctrip.com, which offers decent late-booking deals. The Beijing hotels below have been grouped into three pricing categories: Luxury (over ¥2,000) Moderate (¥750 to ¥2,000) Cheap (up to ¥750) These Beijing hotel prices are for a double room and include all taxes but not breakfast, unless otherwise indicated.

Cheap

Beijing Ningxia Hotel
This excellent-value, 128-room hotel is well located in a hutong district near the Temple of Earth Park. Its clean, good-sized rooms feature modern amenities, internet access and cable TV. Though aimed largely at Chinese business travellers, its location and price make it a good mid-range travel option in Beijing.

Dongcheng District
13 Fensiting Hutong, Andingmennei Jie
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 6400 9999.
Web: www.bjnxhotel.com

The North Garden Hotel
This well-run, 4-star hotel's central location - just off Wangfujing shopping street - is complemented by small but comfortable rooms, English-speaking staff, generous breakfast buffet, business centre, gym and spa, and free internet in all rooms. Excellent value.

Doncheng District
218-1 Wangfujing Dajie
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 6523 8888.
Web: www.north-garden.com

Beijing Guxiang 20 Hotel
This comfy and cute imperial-themed boutique hotel is in the heart of Beijing's most famous hutong: Nanluogu Xiang, which has been transformed into a hip bar, café and restaurant district. There's a range of well-priced single, double and suite rooms, plus a supremely kitsch, but somehow rather cool, imperial-courtyard-meets-upscale, cocktail-lounge-style Chinese restaurant stuffed with myriad historic motifs and furnishings.

Dongcheng District
20 Nanluoguxiang
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 6400 5566.

Luxury

Aman at Summer Palace, Beijing
Located just round the corner from the Summer Palace, this sedate resort provides a rare and privileged escape from the hustle and bustle of Beijing's noisy streets. Traditional courtyard structures, which once housed the imperial kitchen of the Summer Palace, have been converted into gorgeous, spacious rooms with wood floors, three-storey-high ceilings and classic Ming-style furniture. There's also a great spa, a small cinema, a library and three high-end restaurants.

Haidian District
1 Gongmenqian Jie
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 5987 9999.
Web: www.amanresorts.com

Park Hyatt Beijing
Beijing's highest hotel towers over the new central business district. The panoramic views, particularly from the 66th-floor China Grill and the 63rd-floor lobby, are magnificent. By some margin the most opulent international hotel in Beijing, its 237 rooms and suites feature rainforest shower and spa-style tub, plasma TVs, espresso machine and iPod dock. The Tian Spa is on the 59th and 60th floors, while the swish China Bar overlooks the capital from the 65th floor.

Chaoyang District
2 Jianguomenwai Jie
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 8567 1234.
Web: beijing.park.hyatt.com

The Peninsula Beijing
Unbridled luxury doesn't come cheap on the Beijing hotel scene. Two blocks from Wangfujing, The Peninsula completed an extensive US$27m refurbishment in 2006. Every room has a wall-mounted plasma TV and DVD player, fax machine and sound system. Those who can afford one of the exquisite suites will not feel short-changed. The shopping arcade features 50 luxury brands, there's a signature spa, and the two restaurants blend sophistication and acclaimed cuisine.

Dongcheng District
8 Jinyu Hutong, Wangfujing
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 8516 2888.
Web: www.peninsula.com/Beijing.aspx

Moderate

Red Capital Residence
Located in a 200-year-old courtyard residence, this historically themed boutique hotel incorporates the Red Capital Club restaurant, a communist history-fest. The five suites are decorated in a style to befit 1950s communist leaders, and the bar is a converted bomb shelter. Not cheap, but for sheer 'experience' factor, this unique hotel in Beijing is hard to beat.

Dongcheng District
9 Dongsi Liutiao
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 8403 5308.
Web: www.redcapitalclub.com.cn

DuGe Courtyard Boutique Hotel
Housed in a wonderful, Qing-dynasty courtyard - the former residence of one of Emperor Xianfeng's ministers - this unique Beijing hotel blends traditional China with modern designs. The results are superb; trendy, yet elegant; modern yet romantic. And the location, amongst the old hutong alleys of Nanluoguxiang, could hardly be better.

Dongcheng District
26 Qianyuanensi Hutong, Nanluoguxiang
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 6406 0686.
Web: www.dugecourtyard.com

Courtyard 7
Another beautifully renovated 300-year-old courtyard complex, this is the most reasonably priced of the quality courtyard hotels in Beijing. Rooms come with traditional Chinese furniture and all the modern comforts you would expect for a hotel in this price range - wall-mounted flatscreen TV, free Wi-Fi, underfloor heating and slick en-suite bathroom. It's in the same wonderful back-alley-ridden area as DuGe Courtyard Boutique Hotel, with Nanluoguxiang, and its chic cafés, cool boutique shops and bars-a-plenty, just a short walk away.

Dongcheng District
7 Qiangulouyuan Hutong, Nanluoguxiang
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 6406 0777.
Web: www.courtyard7.com

Business Etiquette

When it comes to conducting business in China, infinite patience and a subtle but steely determination are essential. To many foreign businesspeople, the protracted pleasantries at the beginning of each meeting, the drawn-out negotiations where each minor point is discussed at length and the seeming reluctance to close the deal can be very frustrating. These, however, are deliberate negotiating tactics, and you must overcome them. Allow plenty of time for discussion and negotiations, and ensure that every important condition is included in the contract.

Chinese businesspeople are very formal (although government officials are often less so) and smart. Sober suit is a must, as is the all-important exchanging of business cards. It is essential to use both hands when giving and receiving business cards. Cards should be printed in English on one side and Chinese on the other. The person who extended the invitation should pay the bill for business meals. When visiting a business associate's house, a modest gift such as chocolates or any kind of flowers, is appropriate. Business hours are usually Monday-Friday 0800-1700, with one or two hours for lunch.

Businesspeople visiting Beijing will find the daily online new magazine BizChina-Update (www.bizchina-update.com) of interest.

Sightseeing

Sightseeing Overview: Beijing used to be a walled city but little remains now apart from the Tiananmen and Qianmen gates, located at the north and south ends of Tiananmen Square. The vast square is home to the Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, where the body of Chairman Mao rests. Behind the Great Hall of the People, China's parliament, is French architect Paul Andreu's controversial domed National Theatre for the Performing Arts. Heading east along Dongchang'an Dajie brings you to Rem Koolhaas' surreal twin-legged CCTV HQ building, nicknamed the ‘Glass Trousers'.

The Beijing Zoo is the world-famous home of the giant pandas and merits a visit, as does the Marco Polo Bridge in the southwest of the city. To the northwest is the rapidly expanding 798 Space, in the Dashanzi district, famed for its multitude of contemporary arts galleries and museums.

Away from the centre, most visitors go to Badaling (see Excursions) to walk on the Great Wall, but another less-touristy section at Mutianyu, to the northeast of the city, has spectacular views and fewer people.

It is worth including Zhou Kou Dian (Peking Man Site), 48km (30 miles) southwest of Beijing. It is the site where skulls dating back between 200,000 and 500,000 years were found in 1929. The original fossils were lost during WWII, but there is an interesting museum housing many implements and animal bones from that period.

Tourist Information: Beijing Tourism Administration
11-2 Gongti Bei Lu, Chaoyang District
Tel: (10) 6417 6627.
Website: www.bjta.gov.cn

The Beijing Tourism Administration office organises a host of city tours and excursions. There are several offices citywide, including at Beijing Railway Station (tel: (010) 6528 8448), and at the south gate of Beihai Park, 1 Wenjing Jie, Xicheng District (tel: (010) 6403 2726).

China International Travel Service (CITS)
1 Dongdan Dajie, Dongcheng District
Tel: (10) 6522 2991.
Website: www.cits.net

Passes: There are no tourist passes in Beijing.

Key Attractions

Beihai Park
Beihai Lake covers almost half of the 67-hectare (168-acre) Beihai Park in Beijing, a popular place for skating in winter and boating in summer. Qiong Hua Island (Jade Flowering Island), in the southern end of the lake, is reached by an arched marble bridge and is home to a Tibetan Buddhist shrine (the White Dagoba) and the Temple of Eternal Peace.

Wenjin Jie
Beijing
China
Opening hours: Daily 0600-2100 (park); daily 0900-1600 (halls and temples).
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes

Beijing Zoo
Beijing Zoo is the oldest zoo in Asia Pacific and home of the world-famous giant pandas. Located in the northwest area of the city, it is home to more than 7,000 animals, including golden monkeys from Sichuan, yaks from Tibet, sea turtles from the Chinese sea, Manchurian tigers and snow leopards. The zoo is also famous for being the home of zoological research and for housing many rare birds and animals. During the Qing dynasty, the zoo was a private garden, but later became an experimental farm and small menagerie. It was first opened to the public in 1908, but was destroyed during the Japanese occupation of Beijing (1937-1945), only to reopen in 1950.

137 Xizhimenwai Dajie, H?idiàn
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 6831 4411.
Web: www.beijingzoo.com
Opening hours: Daily 0730-1800 (Apr-Oct); daily 0730-1700 (Nov-Mar).
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes

Drum Tower and Bell Tower
Every Chinese city once had drum and bell towers, used to advise citizens of the time of day and to announce curfews. Beijing's Drum Tower, in the north of the city, was originally built in the 13th century and reconstructed around 1420 when the Bell Tower was first built. The strikingly different towers offer wonderful views across Beijing, and the surrounding hutong alleys deserve exploration.

Di'an Men Wai Dajie
Beijing
China
Opening hours: Daily 0900-1700.
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes

Forbidden City
Built in the 15th century, Beijing's Forbidden City is an impressive complex of courtyards, halls, pavilions and gardens, which was home to 24 emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties. It now houses a vast collection of priceless relics, including paintings, ancient pottery and bronzes, and is one of several UNESCO World Heritage sites in Beijing.

Tiananmen Square
Beijing
China
Tel: (010) 8500 7421.
Web: www.dpm.org.cn
Opening hours: Daily 0830-1700 (Apr-Oct); daily 0830-1630 (Nov-Mar).
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes
UNESCO site: Yes

Hutong alleyways
The heartbeat of old Beijing, these centuries-old alleyways still have a lost-in-time feel to them, and exploring them, either on foot or by bicycle, ranks among the most memorable of Beijing experiences. Contained within many alleys are historic siheyuan (courtyard homes), often hidden behind large, red wooden doorways. Many have now been split into smaller, less uniformed dwellings, adding to the ramshackle charm of the alleys. The best hutong areas are around the Drum and Bell Towers, Houhai Lake and Nanluoguxiang. The Beijing Tourism Administration (tel: (010) 6403 2726) can arrange one-hour, cycle-rickshaw hutong tours with an English-speaking guide.

Beijing
China
Admission Fee: No
Jingshan (Prospect Park)
Located immediately to the north of the Forbidden City, Jingshan Park contains Coal Hill, which enjoys superb views over the golden rooftops of the imperial buildings. One of the five pavilions on the summit, Wan Chun Ting ('pavilion of 10,000 springs'), used to be the highest point in Beijing.

Jingshan Qian Jie
Beijing
China
Opening hours: Daily 0600-2130.
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes

Lama Temple
Northeast of Beijing, the Lama Temple, built in the late 17th century, was once a centre of learning for the Yellow Hat sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Today, there are about 70 monks in residence. The temple consists of a series of halls connected by courtyards. A very impressive 18m (59ft) Maitreya, carved from a single sandalwood tree, stands in the furthermost hall.

Yonghedong Dajie
Beijing
China
Tel: (10) 6904 4494.
Opening hours: Daily 0900-1600.
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes

Summer Palace
Beijing's magnificent Summer Palace, in the northwestern suburbs, was used by the royal court as a retreat to escape the heat of the city and is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The recipient of a pre-Olympics makeover, the former imperial residences are located on the shores of Kunming Lake, which contains small islands, ornamental bridges and a marble boat that was once a teahouse. The Summer Palace can be reached by subway Line 4. Get off at Xiyuan station.

Northwest suburbs
Beijing
China
Tel: (10) 6288 1610.
Opening hours: Daily 0630-1800 (summer); daily 0700-1700 (winter).
Admission Fee: Yes
Disabled Access: Yes
UNESCO site: Yes

Culture

If you're interested in sampling culture within the city, there is a wealth of things on offer.Classical Music

National Centre for the Performing Arts
Designed by French architect Paul Andreu, the giant silver dome west of Tiananmen Square is known simply as "The Egg" and hosts Chinese and international art performances of the highest calibre. The theatre complex houses an opera house, a music hall and a drama hall, and can seat up to 6,200. This is the flagship performance space in Beijing, and in China, and few visitors leave disappointed.

2 Xichang'an Jie, Xuanwu, Beijing
Tel: (010) 6655 0000.
Website: www.chncpa.org

Culture

Laoshe Teahouse
For many foreigners, having to sit through three hours of high-pitched, Chinese-only storylines at a full-blown Peking Opera is a step too far. Laoshe Teahouse offers a nice alternative, with snippets of a number of types of Chinese theatre including Peking Opera, Sichuan face-changing, acrobatics and martial arts. The atmosphere is informal with the audience sat at tables, sipping tea and chatting, while performances are played out on a low-level stage.

3rd Floor, 3 Qianmen Xidajie, Xuanwu, Beijing
Tel: (010) 6303 6830.
Website: www.laosheteahouse.com

Dance

Tianqiao Acrobatics Theatre
Just west of the Temple of Heaven Park, this 100-year-old theatre is located in an area once associated with market stalls and street performers. It now offers arguably the best acrobatics shows in Beijing, performed by the Beijing Acrobatic Troupe, and is far less touristy than shows held at other, bigger venues.

95 Tianqiao Shichang Jie, Chongwen, Beijing
Tel: (010) 6303 7449.

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