I had the opportunity to return to Beijing, China, this summer as part of a 2-week press trip to Beijing, the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and the Silk Road in the Gansu Province with the China Tourism Board. What I found was a thoroughly modern city around a significant historic core. But what I also found was a city that had changed significantly since my last visit, and changed for the better.
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Second Impressions: A Greener Capital
Fifteen hours after leaving Los Angeles, I landed in a capital that felt both familiar and new. My last visit to Beijing was in 2011 with my family. This time, I arrived with a small group of journalists and immediately noticed cleaner skies, more green plates on cars (electric), and bicycle lanes chugging with scooters.
When I landed in Beijing in 2011, the air quality was so bad that you could not see one end of the Beijing Airport from the other. Now, Beijing has closed the heavy industry that was in the area and moved it elsewhere. It has embraced electric vehicles, and even in the heat of July, the air quality was good, hot, and sticky, but clean.
Cars are rationed, but even with that, in a city of 22 million people, the traffic is busy, but not as chaotic as when I first visited China almost 20 years ago. At that time, traffic lights seemed to be primarily decorative.
Our base was the Crowne Plaza Beijing Chaoyang U-Town, located on the Second Ring Road. It offered the comfort and amenities I appreciate at the start of a long trip, plus easy access to both historic sites and modern attractions.
Day 1 – Arrive in Beijing
Morning: Airport to City
Arrive in Beijing. See details on how to get from the airport below.
Afternoon: Forbidden City
Entering the Forbidden City, I felt small by design. When the Ming Emperors started constructing the Imperial Palace in 1406, they wanted people to be overawed by the scale. It has 980 surviving buildings spread across about 720,000 square meters. It was the imperial seat from 1420 until the early 20th century. Now it is officially the “Palace Museum”.
I’d been before, but a good guided tour improves your experience. Our guide, Jerry, showed us how to read the architecture like a code. Count the marble terraces under a hall, the layers of roof, and the row of tiny mythical figures along the eaves (roof charms or eave beasts). The more layers and the more figures, the more important the building.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony, the tallest in the complex, carries the maximum number of eave beasts at 10. The first two versions of this building had 9, but after burning down twice, one was added for the “God of Lightning.” That must have worked, as the building is still standing.
The buildings in the northern part of the Forbidden City are where the Emperor and his court lived. These are much more modest in size. The emperor slept in the Palace of Heavenly Purity, which had over 27 bed alcoves across nine rooms on two levels. This layout was meant to conceal his exact sleeping spot for security after a mid-1500s assassination attempt.
Practical note from this visit: foreign visitors must book under their own name and present a passport at the entrance. This was a recent change. Same-day tickets are not sold at the gate. Book ahead and bring water in the summer heat. Or better yet, plan your visit outside of July and August to avoid the heat and the crowds.
Exiting the North Gate, you can cross to Jingshan Park. The climb to Wanchun Pavilion delivers the postcard view. From this hill, the highest point on Beijing’s central axis, you look straight down over the golden roofs of the palace. This hill was manmade with dirt from excavating the foundations of the Forbidden City. On a very hot day, we skipped the climb.
Evening: A Roast-Duck Welcome
Our first night in Beijing, we had Peking duck (as one must in Beijing) at Mei Zhou Dong Po Restaurant. Part of the entertainment was a face-changing artist. Face-changing comes from Sichuan opera, where performers switch masks in a split second to show a character’s sudden emotional or moral change. It’s been practiced for roughly 300 years.
Day 2 – Great Wall & Hutongs, Drums, and Lakes
Morning: Mutianyu Great Wall
We left early for Mutianyu, about 1 hour and 40 minutes by car when traffic cooperates. We visited Mutianyu because it’s a restored section of the Great Wall, dramatic without the crush of locals you’ll get at Badaling. The section runs about 5.4 kilometers and includes 23 watchtowers. Tours from Beijing to Mutianyu are readily available.
We took the cable car up to the wall, which was wrapped in rain and fog. Visibility shrank to maybe a hundred feet, but the mood was unforgettable, with friendly stray cats patrolling the parapets and locals queuing for a photo beside the famous Mao quote about “not being a true hero” until you’ve climbed the Wall.
On my previous visit to Mutianyu with my wife and son, I hiked up rather than taking the lift, which I am not sure I would do again. When the weather is clear you can see for miles of the Great Wall until it finally fades in the distance. That day ended with the classic toboggan ride down to the valley. The contrast with this trip was striking: same wall, two very different moods. The rain meant the toboggan was closed when we visited on this trip.
Did you know that there were two different Great Walls? We would visit the older Great Wall near Dunhuang on this trip. The Han Dynasty built it to keep out the nomadic Xiongnu, also known as the Hun. The second Great Wall was built after the Ming expelled the Mongols to hold the northern frontier. It was interesting to see the wall both on a day with blue skies and on a misty day.
Afternoon: Hutong Lanes to the Drum Tower
Beijing used to be a maze of small local neighborhoods with small houses and crowded alleyways called hutongs. These have disappeared mainly for new apartments, hotels, and office buildings, but at least one has been preserved for its historic value. This area is north of Jingshan Park and south of the Drum Tower, located in a neighborhood known as Shichahai or 10 Temple Sea. Shichahai is filled with bars and restaurants and crowded with tourists.
Our next activity was a bicycle rickshaw ride through the hutong and around Shichahai. Narrow lanes, courtyard doors, neighbors chatting over tea, and crowds of tourists. I feel sorry for the rickshaw drivers who are navigating streets filled with local and international tourists, but I quite enjoyed the activity.
We then drove to the Drum Tower, climbing up the long, steep staircase for a view of the city. The Drum Tower was used to announce the time, and it has a small collection of ancient timepieces from sundials to water clocks. The twin Drum and Bell Towers stand at the northern end of the city’s historic axis.
view from the Drum Tower towards Jingshan Park
Evening: Shichahai or Sanlitun
We went to a hot pot restaurant, Beiping Restaurant (北平食府), in the Sanlitun neighborhood, which boasts 70% of the bars in Beijing.
I would recommend staying in the area of Shichahai and enjoying one of the many restaurants there. On my previous visit, I ate with a friend who lives in Beijing at a local dumpling restaurant in the area. This is an area where you can hear a Chinese singer singing an American pop song as you stroll by.
Day 3 | WestBeijing: Temple Murals and Futuristic Playground
My third day in Beijing was one of great contrasts. We visited a temple from the Ming Dynasty and one of those old factories that China shut down in the Beijing area that had been turned into a virtual reality amusement park.
Fahai Temple Murals (replica)
Morning: Fahai Temple
The Fahai Temple, tucked in Beijing’s western hills, offers one of the capital’s most extraordinary artistic treasures. Built during the Ming Dynasty in the 1440s, the temple is best known for its collection of remarkably well-preserved Buddhist frescoes. These murals, housed within the Hall of Great Compassion, are painted on a grand scale and remain vivid despite their age. Access is limited; only seventy visitors are allowed inside the actual temple per day, which makes seeing them a special experience.
Visiting the frescoes themselves is a study in contrasts. Because they are delicate, the hall is kept dim, and guides use flashlights to illuminate individual figures and details. No photography is allowed. This makes the experience intimate and almost theatrical, though somewhat challenging compared to the replica exhibition nearby. The replica, displayed in a bright, well-lit space, allows visitors to see the murals more clearly. For travelers unfamiliar with Buddhist iconography, a knowledgeable guide is essential, as the murals are filled with intricate symbolism, cosmological imagery, and depictions of Buddhist deities.
Midday: Moshikou Historical & Cultural Block
Near the temple is a quiet street lined with small shops and restaurants where visitors can pause for lunch. This area contrasts sharply with the bustling tourist quarters closer to Tiananmen Square or the Great Wall, allowing for a more relaxed pace. The area was filled with street art, especially depictions of camels. We ate at a Hot Pot restaurant.
Afternoon: Shougang No. 1 Blast-Furnace SoReal Park
On the western edge of Beijing, our group toured one of the city’s most unusual attractions: the Shougang No. 1 Blast Furnace, a former steel factory transformed into the SoReal Sci-Fi Metaverse Park. Where molten iron once flowed, the massive industrial space now houses virtual reality and augmented reality experiences on a staggering scale, 200,000 square feet with more than a billion dollars invested.
Walking inside, we felt as though we had stepped into the future. Our visit included several VR adventures. I climbed onto a simulator for a virtual Aladdin carpet ride, and dove into a virtual arcade battle, blasting away at waves of invading tanks. Around us, guests tried racing and skydiving experiences, each delivered through headsets and motion platforms.
I did fine that since I tip the scale at over 90 kilograms, I couldn’t ride some of the experiences due to size restrictions, a reminder that the park was designed with local body types in mind.
Despite those limitations, the stop was unforgettable. Though signage and explanations were scarce in English, the park’s creativity left a strong impression. With ticket prices starting around 400 RMB (about $50), SoReal offered our group a vivid look at how modern China is reimagining its past and moving into its future.
Evening:
Our guide, Jerry, was from Manchuria, so for our last meal in Beijing, we went to a Manchurian restaurant in the mall attached to our hotel, Crowne Plaza Beijing Chaoyang U-Town.
Alternatives
If you have not gotten enough history in your trip after visiting the Forbidden City, The Drum Tower, and the Great Wall, there are five more World Heritage Sites in and around Beijing, including: the Summer Palace, Peking Man Site, Imperial Tombs of the Ming & Qing Dynasties, The Grand Canal, and The Temple of Heaven.
Of those, I have currently seen only The Temple of Heaven. We quite enjoyed that visit, because the Temple of Heaven is in a popular public park filled with locals doing their tai chi or other activities.
Planning Your Three Days
Where to stay
Base yourself inside the Second Ring Road or near a subway line for simpler logistics. The metro is clean, cheap, and reliable, and it saves you from rush-hour gridlock.
Getting to Beijing from the Airport
Beijing has two commercial airports:
- Beijing Capital International (PEK)
- Beijing Daxing International (PKX)
If you don’t have someone waiting to pick you up, there are multiple ways to get from the airport:
Getting from Beijing Capital Airport (PEK)
- Airport Express → subway: 20–25 minutes to Dongzhimen (Line 2/13) with a stop at Sanyuanqiao (Line 10). ¥25 one-way; trains every ~10–15 minutes; roughly 06:20–22:50 from T3 and 06:35–23:10 from T2. Fast, cheap, easy for carry-on travelers.
- Taxi/DiDi: ~40–60 minutes in normal traffic (can be longer at rush hour). Typical fares to the 2nd Ring area ~¥120–180; night surcharge +20%. Join the official taxi queue; insist on the meter.
- Airport bus (coach): slower but direct to several downtown stops; useful if your hotel is near a route. ~¥30.
Getting from Beijing Daxing Airport (PKX)
- Daxing Airport Express → subway: 19–22 minutes to Caoqiao (connect to Line 10 and Line 19). ¥35 standard / ¥50 business-class; trains about every 8–10 minutes, roughly 06:00–22:30. Fastest public option.
- Taxi/DiDi: ~60–90 minutes depending on traffic; expect ~¥180–220 to central Beijing; night +20%. Use official ranks or the DiDi app.
- Airport bus: several city lines; cheaper, but slower and less luggage-friendly.
Monument to the People’s Heroes, Tiananmen Square
Tickets and IDs
For the Forbidden City, reserve with your passport before you go. Same-day walk-ups are not sold at the gate. You will be asked to show your passport at many major sites.
When to go
Spring and autumn offer the best mix of temperatures and visibility across both the city and the Great Wall. Summer can be hot and humid, and as I learned at Mutianyu, summer rain can make a big difference in your experience.
Final Thoughts
Three days in Beijing are enough to get a sense of the city. You start at the center of power, walk the ridgeline that guarded it, and then pivot west to a city that still reinvents itself inside a steel shell. This was my second trip to the city, and I left with an even greater appreciation for China’s capital… but also with a plan not to come back in the heat of summer.
