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Mini Group: Beijing Forbidden City Tour with Great Wall Hiking at Mutianyu

95 reviews

Mini Group: Beijing Forbidden City Tour with Great Wall Hiking at Mutianyu

from USD $137.50

Visit the Great Wall of China and Forbidden City in one day. Skip the line at the Forbidden City as our VIP guests, hiking on Mutianyu Great Wall after crowds leave. Make full use of your precious time in Beijing and deeply discover the history and culture of Beijing. No shopping, no factories, no queues!

BOOK WITH CONFIDENCE: As members of ABTA and ATAS we are 100% financially bonded. You can book your day trip with us in absolute confidence, no matter where in the world you are.

Due to the impacts of COVID-19, we are currently not taking new bookings for day tours.

In Brief

Location:

Beijing, China

Country:

China

Duration:

8 hours

Operates:

Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday,Saturday,Sunday.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Tiananmen Square (Tiananmen Guangchang), West Changan Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing 100006 China

Time: 8:00 - 8:30

Tian'anmen Square is the largest city square in the centre of Beijing, named after the Tiananmen (literally, Gate of Heavenly Peace) which sits to its north, separating it from the Forbidden City. It has great cultural significance as it was the site of several key events in Chinese history. As the world's largest city square and enduring symbol of China's national pride, it is surrounded by many imposing buildings including the Heavenly Gate (entry to the Forbidden City), Museums, government buildings and Chairman Mao's Mausoleum.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Forbidden City-The Palace Museum, No.4 Jingshanqian Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing 100009 China

Time: 8:30 -10:30

The Forbidden City, in the very heart of Beijing, was home to 24 emperors during the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties. It is the largest and best preserved ancient imperial architectural complex in the world, featuring a great square, halls and gates, in contrast to intricate halls, gardens, courtyards and living quarters. The exhibitions, both permanent and temporary, are important treasures of ancient China. You will be walking for about 1.5-2 hours (2 kilometers). The walks in the Forbidden City are graded moderate.

Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Mutianyu Great Wall, Mutianyu Village, Bohai Town, Huairou District, Beijing China

Time: 13:30 - 15:30

The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall is ranked top among all parts of the Great Wall on TripAdvisor for its picturesque scenery, the most child-friendly section and beautifully-restored architecture. It is about 1.5 hours driving from downtown Beijing.

In order to save your time, we suggest you to choose round-way cable car or round-way chairlift and toboggan ascend to and descend from the Great Wall, instead of spending about 40 minutes climbing lots of boring steps. Cable car station is at Tower 14. Chairlift & toboggan station is at Tower 6. We have included the costs of round-way cable car or round-way chairlift (or toboggan) ascend to and descend from the Great Wall. If you want to take one way cable car up and one way chairlift or toboggan down, you need to pay the price difference CNY100 per person at your own expense.

At the Wall you’ll have free time to enjoy the beautiful scenery and your guide will show you the background information of the Great Wall. The cable car ascends to and descends from the 14th watch tower. We recommend you to hike up the most beautiful part of the Great Wall – between the 14th and 23rd watch towers which were known by hikers as “the Golden Route”. However the chairlift ascends to the 6th watch tower while the toboggan descends from tower 6 too. It might be a challenge to hike from the 6th watch tower to the 23rd watch tower. But you can decide based on your physic condition.

Normally it would take about 2 hours to complete the hike from the 14th watch tower to 23rd watch tower.

Duration: 2 hours

Inclusions

English Speaking Professional Guide
Hotel pickup and drop-off services are available within the 4th Ring Zone of Beijing City
Round-way cable car transfer at the Great Wall at Mutianyu
Bottled water
Lunch
Entry/Admission - Forbidden City-The Palace Museum
Entry/Admission - Mutianyu Great Wall

Exclusions

Gratuities
China Visa
Hotel accommodation

Departure Time

7:00 AM

Departure Point

Traveler pickup is offered
1. Hotel pickup and drop-off services are available within the 4th Ring Zone of Beijing City. Please enter the name and address of your hotel/airbnb/accommodation information in the blank of pickup location at the time of booking.
2. You can go to one of meeting hotels: Regent Beijing, Gehua New Century Hotel. Transportation is at your own expense. Exact meeting time will be reconfirmed one day earlier.
3. Book an additional transfer service with us if your hotel is outside of the 4th Ring Zone. We will pick up from and return to your hotel, Round-way: US$35. If your hotel is near airport (PEK), Round-way: US$45. Please specify in the "Special Request" at the time of your booking. We will arrange it accordingly. You can pay the driver in cash.

Additional Information

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Please wear comfortable walking shoes.
Passport information is required for the forbidden city tickets booking, please forward each individual traveler's full name and passport number at the time of booking.
Hotel pickup and drop-off services are available within the 4th Ring Zone of Beijing City.
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Infants must sit on laps
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
You will receive details about tour guide and exact pickup time in your voucher the day before. And the tour guide will also call you via hotel or leave a message for you about pickup time the night before tour.
Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking. We try to meet individual requirement but can NOT 100% satisfy. Thank you for your understanding.
We include round-way cable car or round-way chairlift/toboggan. If you want to take one-way cable car and one-way chairlift/ toboggan, please pay the price difference CNY100 per person at your own expense.
If your booking has more than 6 people, all of you will be upgraded to a private tour group without other participants.
Most travelers can participate
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 6 travelers

Booking Information

You can present either a paper or an electronic voucher for this activity.

Cancellation Terms

This trip is fully refundable up to 96 hours prior to the commencement of your trip.

Booking Terms and Conditions

When you book this trip, you need to read and accept the terms and conditions for booking our day trips in excursions.

Hotel Pickup

When you book, we will ask you to select a hotel to be picked up from. Once your booking is confirmed, we'll send you a confirmation voucher with full contact information (phone number, email address) for our local operator in case you need to update or change your hotel pick-up details.

Here are answers to some commonly asked questions about hotel pickup:

What if my hotel is not listed?
That's okay. When you book you can select an hotel from our list and make your way there on the day of departure; or you can contact our local operator directly to make alternate pick-up arrangements.

What if I have not yet booked a hotel?
Once your hotel arrangements are finalised, you can contact our local operator directly with your hotel details.

What if I live locally, am staying with friends or relatives, and/or don't require pick-up?
Once your booking is confirmed, we'll send you complete details and directions to the tour/activity departure point.

Scoring an average traveller rating of 5 out of 5 based on the last 24 recent reviews

“

We loved this tour! It was a small group and we all had a wonderful day together. So great to see so many sights all in one day, especially if you have limited time in Beijing. Our driver was really amazing and the tour guide was fluent in English. The lunch was delicious too. 10/10. Definitely book this!”

emontemarano • Submitted 08 Jan 2020

“

Good way to discover Forbidden city and the great wall in one day. All the organisation is perfect (except the traffic to come back to Beijing) and the guide was really nice and efficient.”

Martine C • Submitted 19 Dec 2019

“

the guide was great, explained a lot. Very small group (3 customers). Organisation worked perfect, pick-up at the hotel at 07:10, back at about 17:00 Great way to see the most important places within one day. The guide provided his knowledge and explained a lot when walking and in the car. Recommended.”

Peter S • Submitted 02 Dec 2019

“

We had an excellent experience with Viator, related to customer support. We were informed all the way about our tour to Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and the Great Wall and we got our doubts solved inmediatly. Since the beginning we were in touch with our tour guide: Cactus, who gave us detailed information about our pick up our and additional recommendations about the weather because it was expected to be a rainy and cold day. During the tour Cactus, was an excellent tour guide. We want to highlight her kindness, knowledge of the topic and performance. Excellent food. We don’t have any negative observations about our tour. Totally recommend this tour!”

David S • Submitted 14 Nov 2019

“

My trip to China has been nothing but a remarkable and memorable one. I joined this tour with my sister hoping to learn and experience Beijing in a perspective of a local. I would like to give 5 stars to the Travel Agency who arranged this tour for us. Without it, we would not have met Tom, the most caring and thoughtful tour guide ever. He even made sure that we got home safe and enjoyed our tour. (Rarely do you find someone who would go out of there way) We also highly commend Tom because of his patience and knowledge. He has a good mastery of the history that we went to, credible answers to our questions and most of all brought us to the best spots in the area. Thank you Tom and to your team! I will be rebooking with you on my next Beijing trip. Once again, Thank you so much.”

Daisy N • Submitted 11 Nov 2019

“

This tour is really convenient if you're only in Beijing for a short period of time. It includes hotel pickup (my guide, Jane, met me in my lobby) and drop-off, and the guide is really flexible on how much time you want to spend at each location. My group included 3 other travelers, another solo traveler and a couple, and it was the perfect size. The included lunch was delicious, and they accommodated and double-checked our dietary restrictions (no pork). I went in August, and at this part of the Great Wall, there was actually not very many people. It was beautiful. I highly recommend taking the chair lift up (but not if you're afraid of heights!) and taking the toboggan down.”

Irene Y • Submitted 23 Aug 2019

“

This day tour was well organized. The tour guide Majorie contacted me to my hotel room telephone to confirm my pick up time the evening prior the start of the tour. Our group was small, and all the 6 participants got along well. Majorie spoke fluent English, and she answered all the questions we had about China as it was our first time visiting the country. The tour took us to Tiananmen square, the Forbidden City, and we had a delicious extensive lunch before visiting the Great Wall where we had about 2.5 hours to explore on our own. The tour concluded by dropping us off to our respective hotel. In brief, We had an amazing day in Beijing. I would definitely recommend this tour.”

jgabrielle3 • Submitted 03 Jul 2019

“

I had an Amazing trip and our guide King Kong was really nice, he explained everything and took care of us at The Great Wall. I would recommend it.”

Elisa C • Submitted 24 Oct 2018

“

Susan our guide was great. The small group made it feel like friends being on holiday and one got to know the travel companions”

Gita P • Submitted 17 Sep 2018

“

William was a great tour guide! We had an excellent day at the Forbidden City and the Great Wall. It was extremely hot and William was kind enough to lend me his umbrella. The tour also supplied us with water for the day--they truly went above and beyond. Lunch at the Great Wall was surprisingly good. William allowed us to decide how we would go up the Great Wall and we opted for the cable car up and some took the toboggan down but we did the cable car down also. Overall, we saw a lot in one day and William was very informative and took our interests into account throughout. I highly recommend this tour!”

Krystal A • Submitted 27 Aug 2018

“

The tour operator was China Highlights. Unfortunately, Tian'namen Square was closed due to a scheduled event of some kind. We only saw it from across the street as we walked toward the museum and the Forbidden City, which was interesting. We then drove by mini-van to Mutianyu for lunch before visiting the Great Wall. Our guide, Rico, was outstanding throughout the day. He was knowledgable and gave us valuable insights as we toured. He was especially patient and helpful with my wife, who had a previous hip replacement and experienced some degree of difficulty with the higher, steeper steps on the wall at Mutianyu. The lunch was forgettable, but overall, Rico made our visit to the Wall an excellent experience.”

intleconllc • Submitted 16 Jun 2018

“

We had an amazing day visiting the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and The Great Wall. Our guide, Jerry, was very kind, he foul and enthusiastic. He had so much information to share, and he took very good care of us. He took us to a fantastic restaurant for lunch and made sure we stayed hydrated. I enjoyed our time with Jerry. His English was very good and he took time to explain history, protocol and important information. Thank you Jerry! We will never forget you. -Joanie Williams”

Joan W • Submitted 09 Jun 2018

“

Amazing tour! Guide was easy to talk to, she spoke English well, and was very professional. Tour met on time and I was picked up a nice van. Bottled water was provided throughout the day. Even the driver was friendly. We saw all the sites mentioned. The guide did a great job of going into detail about the history of Beijing and China history, and the various sites. She knew the small places to meet that were away from other tour groups or in the shade. She used a microphone with ear pieces for each of us, so we could always hear her without being right next to her. The Great Wall was amazing! We were provided more than enough time to climb the wall and get down. She asked us if we wanted to visit a gift shop not forced which was nice and we each bought something as the prices were very reasonable. She also took us to a non tourist restaurant for lunch and explained all the dishes. Coke and hot water were provided at no charge. I would highly recommend this tour from this tour group!”

pupkinpie2 • Submitted 14 May 2018

“

I have wanted to go to the Great Wall for many years. The tour guide was amazing.”

Bradley K • Submitted 24 Apr 2018

“

We loved it and we loved Jerry! Even more than that, we had a small group of 6 which made the experience even that much better. Being a small group, we had a chance to bond as a group and get to know each other. It was a total blast and very informative. Thank you!”

tbeedon • Submitted 02 Apr 2018

“

Vicky, the tourguide called the evening before to the hotel to confirm the pick up time. We had a great day at the forbidden city and the great wall. The lunch was very good and Vicky very caring and knowledgeable. Thank you!”

marinette.bommelaer • Submitted 31 Mar 2018

“

Great trip! Linda our guide was fantastic. Small group setting so we had plenty of personal attention. Linda answered all of our questions and I could not have hoped for a better trip or experience.”

Steve • Submitted 18 Mar 2018

“

The trip was everything that the describtion said it would be. The day I went it was very windy so walking around the Forbidden City was awful due to the weather. Lunch was SO good! The Great was was nice, took the ski lift up and the toboggan down. Highly recommend doing both!!”

Sarah Jo P • Submitted 04 Mar 2018

“

This tour company is top notch. I would definitely recommend this tour and our guide Sue was excellent.”

sijo007 • Submitted 29 Jan 2018

“

This was such a fun tour!! Our tour guide Jerry was super friendly and helpful, plus he answered all of our questions with ease. The tour began with a guided tour through the square and forbidden city which is huge, where Jerry provided lots of insight into the history of the forbidden city. Jerry communicated with us through a wireless headset however the audio was definitely not stable and we had to reconnect a few times. This didn't detract away from the tour however its worth mentioning for future tours for this company. Then we proceeded to the Great Wall of China at Mutianyu, where we walked along the wall cardio workout, took a bunch of photos and then took a fun toboggan slide down. It was interesting to hear how the wall was built by using blasting rocks from surrounding mountains and about the wall's purpose. This tour is expensive but it is worth its price tag since you get to see two major attractions in one day.”

Elina V • Submitted 17 Dec 2017

“

Good tour. Well worth it”

donnap • Submitted 03 Dec 2017

“

Excellent experience! I was able to see the main points of interest in Beijing and surroundings going with this tour. The tour guide was very efficient, well prepared to answer questions, good interaction with the traveler. Food was great and the car was comfortable. Overall it was a memorable tour and very good experience!”

Ileana R • Submitted 03 Dec 2017

“

Excellent full day tour. Be prepared for a long day and quite a lot of walking but it is worth it. Ivy was a wonderful, energetic and informative guide. Highly recommended.”

Steve C • Submitted 25 Nov 2017

“

Sunny communicated all information about pick up and time to be ready. She was a great tour guide. Answered EVERY questions anyone had and provided lots of interesting stories. This trip visited Tiananmen Square and spent several hours touring the Forbidden City. Everyone had bluetooth headphones so you could hear Sunny as there were a lot of people and groups touring the Forbidden City. Great history lesson with lots of little side stories. Then off to the Great Wall. About a 90 minute ride. As a single American traveling, it was nice to speak to other people on this trip as I hadn't had much communication with anyone since arriving in China on a business trip and this was my one day of not working. There were 3 Americans who were part of an international study group and 2 ladies from Australia. A wonderful time was had by all. Got to the Great Wall after stopping nearby for a delicious lunch. Sunny helped us order and there was SO MUCH FOOD! We had a beautiful day at the Wall. Took the chair lift up and walked the wall for about 90 minutes. Amazing views. At this point, Sunny left us to our wanderings but we had gotten plenty of historical information on the bus ride. It was a wonderful experience, and there was no shopping or stopping at tourist traps, although if you want souvenirs, there were little shops all along Even a Burger King! on the walk to the chair lift. The Alpine slide ride down the mountain at the end of the day topped it off. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone with a day to spend in see some amazing historical sites in China.”

Jane B • Submitted 19 Nov 2017