Full-Day Private Tour to Temple of Heaven and Houhai Hutong

Your tour guide will be welcoming you at exit of the airport with the welcoming board on which your name will be written at 08:30 a.m.. Then, we will transfer to Beijing old city center and start the wonderful layover tour. Firstly, we will visit Temple of Heaven. It is the Largest Existing Architecture Group For Heaven Worship in the World. Originally, the Temple of Heaven was the place where emperors of the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty held the Heaven Worship Ceremony. Residents living near the this place enjoy many activities here, such as running, cycling, singing, dancing, playing chess, flying kites, etc. You can become involved personally in these activities and experience the leisure pursuits of local people. Then, we will walk through Qianmen Street, head to Tian’anmen Square and admire a variety of significant edifices.

The solemn and respectful Tian’anmen Square is the largest central city square in the world, which serves not only the city's symbol but also the whole of China. This immense courtyard is surrounded by a variety of significant edifices such as the Tian’anmen Tower, Great Hall of the People, Memorial Hall of Chairman Mao, Monument to the People's Heroes and National Museum. It is the must place to visit in Beijing City.

Wangfujing is one of the most famous shopping streets, not only in Beijing but in all of China. It is the most well-known and prosperous shopping street with modern and fashion trends. Wangfujing Shopping Street houses a wide variety of shops and boutiques, some of which are of world-famous brands as well as restaurants. Apart from that, there are also many time honored stores with traditional commodities standing in the street for hundreds of years. Nowadays, Beijing Wangfujing Street is a modern commercial street which can be paralleled with Champs Elysees in Paris. Another Wangfujing landmark: the Foreign Languages Bookstore. The store sells books, art supplies, videos and CDs on several floors, but the street level is the place to buy coffee table books about China in a variety of languages as well as cookbooks and books to help you learn the Chinese language. At noon, we will enjoy local traditional food for lunch(Vegetarian diet, Beijing Duck and Sichuan Cuisine are available). In the afternoon, we will visit Prince Gong's Mansion and stroll along Houhai Hutong.

Prince Gong’s Mansion is the best preserved mansion in China, including the mansion and the park. The main layout of Prince Gong’s Mansion includes three parts: middle buildings, east and west buildings. All those three parts are built along the central axis and composed of traditional courtyards. Those mansions are built widely with the highest level of construction regulations at that time. Besides, there are three courtyards in each of three main buildings and each of them is a popular tourism spot.

Houhai, which literally means "Back Sea", is a large artificial lake in northern downtown Beijing. There were many wine shops, workshops, and opera stages in ancient times. Nowadays, it is open to all. The area is dotted with bars, cafes, tea houses and restaurants, and is quite popular among foreign visitors and local young people. In addition, the neighboring Hutongs and courtyards of former court officials and celebrities are worth a visit. We will stroll along Lotus Lane in the Back Lakes (Houhai) area, see its night-time bars and lake waters, taste some local traditional snacks and take in the historical Yandaixiejie Hutong and Nanluoguxiang Hutong.

Know as Yandai Xiejie in Chinese, the Yandaixie Street is one of the oldest hutongs in Beijing. Located in the Xicheng District, it is close to the Shichahai which are famous attractions in Beijing. Since the olden days, Yandaixiejie Street has been one of the most flourishing commercial areas in Beijing. The stores are closely packed along the street and a wide variety of souvenirs with Beijing characteristics can be found there.

Nanluoguxiang Hutong is known for its authentic Beijing atmosphere. The age-old siheyuans, archways, wall carvings, and former residences of socialites can be found there. Today there has been an unprecedented fusion of East and West in Nanluoguxiang Hutong, where new pubs and restaurants have given it an urban appearance. Afterwards, enjoy comfortable transfer back to Beijing Capital International Airport to catch your flight or your hotel. Wrap your memories and say good-bye.