5-Day Beijing Discovery: Wall, Palaces, Hutongs and Museums

Morning/Afternoon — Arrival & Transfer
Arrive at Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) or Beijing South Railway Station, where your private guide and driver will meet you in the arrivals hall with a name sign. A comfortable private vehicle transfers you to your hotel, and your guide assists with check-in and gives you a brief orientation to the city. Take time to rest and recover from your journey.

Afternoon — National Museum of China
Immerse yourselves in China's rich history at the National Museum of China, located on the eastern side of Tiananmen Square. It is one of the largest museums in the world, with around 200,000 square meters of floor space and a collection of more than a million items. Its extensive exhibits span millennia, featuring priceless artifacts such as ancient bronzes, terracotta figures, jade carvings, and revolutionary memorabilia. Please note that entry requires advance online booking.

Lunch — Near Tiananmen Square
Lunch is arranged at a restaurant near Tiananmen Square, offering a selection of local dishes.

Evening — Welcome Dinner with Peking Duck
Your welcome dinner is held at a renowned restaurant where you can savor the iconic Peking Duck. Roasted until the skin turns crisp and golden, the dish has been a celebrated Beijing specialty since the imperial era and is traditionally carved tableside and served with thin pancakes.

Meals
Breakfast at the hotel; lunch near Tiananmen Square; a welcome Peking Duck dinner.

Accommodation
Check in at your Beijing hotel.

Morning — Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City
Walk across Tiananmen Square, the world's largest public square, past the Monument to the People's Heroes and the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong (viewed from outside). Pass through Tiananmen Gate into the Forbidden City, the Ming–Qing imperial palace built in 1420 with some 980 surviving buildings, a UNESCO site. Your guide leads you along the central axis to halls such as the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Palace of Heavenly Purity.

Lunch — Near the Forbidden City
Enjoy lunch at a family-friendly restaurant close to the Forbidden City.

Afternoon — Wangfujing Street
Explore Wangfujing, one of Beijing's premier shopping streets, with department stores and a pedestrian walkway. The nearby Snack Street offers a glimpse of local street-food culture for the adventurous.

Evening — At your leisure
Dinner is at a Wangfujing restaurant; the rest of the evening is free to enjoy the lit-up street.

Meals
Lunch and dinner are included (Wangfujing area).

Morning — Mutianyu Great Wall
Drive to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall, prized for its scenery, good preservation, and lighter crowds than Badaling. Ride the scenic cable car up, then hike a gentle stretch with panoramic mountain views; many enjoy the thrilling toboggan ride down the hillside.

Afternoon — Return to Beijing
Return to Beijing for some rest and relaxation at your hotel after the morning's hiking.

Evening — Casual Dinner
Enjoy a casual dinner at a local restaurant to round off the day.

Meals
Lunch and dinner included.

Morning — the Temple of Heaven
The Temple of Heaven is the largest complex in the world built for the worship of heaven, finished in 1420 and used by the emperors of the Ming and Qing to pray for good harvests. The meaning sits in the shapes: the round halls stand for heaven and the square terraces beneath them for earth, and the whole axis is set out on a strict numerical order. Your guide will take you through the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, a circular timber hall raised without a single nail, and along the Echo Wall, where a whisper at one end carries to the other. Coming in the morning you also see the park at its most local, with groups practising tai chi and calligraphy under the ancient cypresses.

Lunch — near the Temple of Heaven
Dine at a local restaurant near the temple, on Beijing dishes that suit both children and adults.

Afternoon — the Summer Palace
The Summer Palace began as the Qing imperial garden Qingyi Yuan and was rebuilt and expanded by Empress Dowager Cixi as a retreat where she received foreign envoys. Kunming Lake fills about three-quarters of its 2.9 square kilometres, Longevity Hill rises above the water, and the two are joined by the 728-metre Long Corridor that ends at the Marble Boat. You can climb Longevity Hill for sweeping views over the gardens and towards the Fragrant Hills, or stay low and follow the lakeside path past the Seventeen-Arch Bridge; after a full morning, the pace here is deliberately gentle.

Evening — at your leisure
Enjoy a relaxed dinner at your hotel or a nearby restaurant to close the day.

Morning — Hutong Tour by Rickshaw
Experience old Beijing on a relaxing Hutong Tour by rickshaw in the picturesque Shichahai area. Glide through the narrow alleys flanked by traditional courtyard homes, known as siheyuans, which date back centuries to the city's Yuan dynasty origins. Your guide will explain the historic lifestyle of these neighborhoods and the role the hutongs played in the daily life of old Beijing.

Lunch — Courtyard Restaurant
A farewell lunch is arranged at a charming restaurant set within a traditional courtyard.

Afternoon — Departure
Your guide and driver will transfer you to the airport or railway station for your departure to the next destination, assisting with your onward arrangements.

Meals
Breakfast at the hotel; a courtyard farewell lunch; dinner during departure travel.