Day Tour: Badaling Great Wall & Summer Palace (Join-In Coach Tour)

Summer Palace

Feature: The Summer Palace located ten kilometres to the northwest of Beijing used to be a summer residence of Qing Dynasty emperors. It is now a public park. It is an imperial garden known far and wide for its architectural grandeur and stunning natural beauty.

Description: The Summer Palace, built in 1888, was once a summer retreat and the imperial park for emperors. Have a lakeside cruise on the lovely Kunming Lake, enjoy the magical views of the hills, bridges and pagodas that grace the Palace grounds.

A cluster of grand buildings adorns the middle section of the Longevity Hill. On the slope from the lakeside to the hilltop stands a decorated archway called Jade. From here you can see Firmament in Bright Colours, Cloud-Dispelling Hall, Hall of Virtuous Brilliance, Pavilion of Buddhist Incense and Temple of the Sea of Wisdom. Standing on the top of the hill, visitors command a spectacular view of buildings of different shapes and sizes below, their golden roofs glittering under the sun, the placid, huge Kunming Lake dotted with row boats and the 17-arch bridge that connects an island with the lake's southern bank.

Along the northern bank of Kunming Lake runs the Long Corridor with a total length of 728 meters and 273 sections. It is like a necklace for Longevity Hill. Strolling in the corridor, a visitor sees an endless line up of corridor stands stretching into the distance or curving away elegantly at soft angles as well as Kunming Lake sparkling under the sun. The crossbeams of the Long Corridor are decorated with more than 8,000 colour paintings with Chinese landscape and historical stories as their themes.

On November 30th 1998, the World Cultural Heritage Committee of UNESCO placed it on the List of World Cultural Heritage.

Badaling Great Wall

Feature: Located 11km away from Juyongguan Pass and 60km north of Beijing, Badaling, which means, "giving access to every direction," is the best-preserved section of the Great Wall. Restored in 1957, it has an elevation of 600 meters. The wall averages 7.5 meters high, 4 meters thick, 6.5 meters wide on the base and 5.8 meters at the top.

Description: Stretching for 4,770m among the rolling mountains, Badaling section of Great Wall is dotted with 19 strategically located watchtowers, which were used to protect the capital against attack in ancient times, bringing Badaling the name of "key to the north gate."

On the top of the wall is a road paved with square bricks, wide enough for six horses or ten soldiers to march side by side. On both sides of the road, outer parapet and inner parapet were set. The outer parapet is crenellated with merlons almost two meters high. The crenels were used as peepholes and the embrasure below each crenel was used as a loophole. The inner parapet, which is 1 meter high, was used to prevent the horses and gharries from overturning on the mountains.

In 1987, Badaling, the essence of the Great Wall, was listed as a World Cultural Heritage site by the UN. In recent years, this section of Great Wall was repaired and the Great Wall Museum, Badaling Great Wall Cableway, and other tourism facilities were built nearby. So far, about 80 million visitors from all over the world, including 300 heads of state and other celebrities have visited. The wall, as the witness of history, today serves as the friendship bridge between the Chinese people and people from other countries.

Day Itinerary

You will be picked you up from your hotel on departure time, then driven to the famous Badaling Great Wall, which is 60 miles away from downtown about one and a half hour driving. Sightseeing on Great Wall Badaling section for about 3 hours. Drive to a restaurant for lunch. After lunch, visit the largest and most beautiful Chinese imperial garden - Summer Palace. Transfer to your hotel. (L)

Coach-tour Price Includes:

Round trip transfer to your hotel; Air-conditioned Coach; Entrance Tickets; Professional English-speaking tour guide; Typical Chinese lunch; Visiting Souvenir Shop during the course.

Coach-tour Price Does Not Include:

Gratuities, Tips to Guides and Drivers

Warm Reminder: Please input the name of the hotel you will stay at in Beijing or its exact address in column "Special Request" when submitting orders or just write to info@beijinghotel-link.cn with that info.