Great Wall of China at Mutianyu Day Trips from Beijing

By taking an excursion to the Great Wall of China from Beijing, you will be able to admire one of the most iconic and majestic constructions in the world, stretching for thousands of kilometers through breathtaking mountain scenery. In addition, you will have the opportunity to immerse yourself in the culture and history of China while being impressed and taking pictures of the panoramic views offered by this architectural marvel.

Visiting the Great Wall of China is a unique and unforgettable experience that you can not miss, and certainly is among the top things to see and do during your trip to Beijing. You will be impressed by how Chinese history and culture are present along the wall. In addition, as you climb its steep slopes and towers you will appreciate every bit of this all-time masterpiece of engineering and architecture.

If you want to see this wonder of the world, this is one of the best tours to the Great Wall of China from Beijing that you will find. During the tour you will have the opportunity to enjoy one of the most impressive constructions in the world, walk along its undulating paths up to its defensive towers and enjoy incredible views, which makes this excursion a unique and unforgettable experience. In addition, during the walk you will learn more about the culture and history of China.

To make the tour, you can choose between three sections of the wall, being the Mutianyu section the most recommended. With this option you have everything covered because even if you don't have much time to visit the city, you will be able to book the tour from the airport. In addition to seeing the Great Wall, you will see some of the most important monuments of the Chinese capital in the company of your tour guide.

Interesting details

• Price: You will have to pay around 250 euros per group.
• Duration: It will take you between 8 and 10 hours to complete this experience.
• Means of transportation: You will travel by private vehicle with driver included.
• Advantages of this option: The transfer to and from the hotel or lodging site is included. The company of an official Spanish-speaking guide is included. It is a private tour in which only you and your group will participate.
• Disadvantages of this option: Food and beverages are not included. Entrance to the wall and cable car is not included, nor is entrance to any of the other tourist sites you visit.

In this experience you are going to get to know one of the oldest and steepest sections of the wall, which is none other than Mutianyu, an area less explored than the Badaling Wall and where you can enjoy the iconic monument without the crowds. You will even have the opportunity to climb ancient watchtowers to admire the surrounding views.

After the wall walk, you will enjoy a delicious and authentic lunch at a local restaurant. You will also visit the famous "Bird's Nest" of the 2008 Summer Olympics, where I recommend you take the opportunity to take some pictures. If you are a history lover, you will love the visit to the 18th century Summer Palace, the best preserved imperial garden in the world, to end this one of the best excursions from Beijing.

Details of interest

• Price: You can enjoy this experience by paying an approximate price of 430 euros per group.
• Duration: The tour takes about 9 hours to complete.
• Means of transportation: The entire tour is done in a private vehicle.
• Advantages of this option: Bottled water and lunch are included in this tour. The company of a professional guide is also included. Roundtrip transportation to and from the hotel or lodging site is included. Transportation in a private vehicle is included. The entrance fee to each of the attractions you visit during the tour is also included.
• Disadvantages of this option: The dragon boat cruise at the Summer Palace is not included. Gratuities are not included. Additional entrance fees to museums and entrance to the Niaochao National Stadium are not included.

If you are looking for an exciting adventure on the Great Wall of China from Beijing, this is the experience for you. Your tour guide will pick you up early at your hotel or accommodation site to take you comfortably on a two and a half hour drive to the Jinshanling Great Wall.

The most exciting thing about this section is that it connects to other sections of the wall and is acclaimed for its brick watchtowers and dragon shape snaking through the mountains. In fact, in this area of the Great Wall of China you could sign up for one of the best bike tours in Beijing for an even more extreme experience.

For the next three and a half hours, you will have the opportunity to explore the wall and enjoy the incredible views without having to worry about the crowds. After the wall walk, you can enjoy a typical lunch at a local restaurant before driving back to Beijing.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay from 100 euros per person to enjoy this experience.
• Duration: It will take you one day to complete the activity.
• Means of transportation: The entire tour is completed by air-conditioned van or bus.
• Advantages of this option: Pick up at the hotel or lodging site is offered. Transportation in an air-conditioned van or bus is included. A tour guide will accompany you at all times. Entrance fee to the Jinshanling Great Wall is included in the price. You will be offered lunch of local food. This is a private tour, meaning that only you and your group will participate in the tour.
• Disadvantages of this option: Transportation back to your hotel or accommodation is not included. The cable car ride is not included, but it is an option you can choose. Tips are not included.

At the beginning of the experience, your tour guide will pick you up from your hotel or accommodation in the morning in a private vehicle. Your tour will start with a visit to Tiananmen Square, one of the largest in the world. Here you will see the Great Hall of the People and the National Museum of China.

From the square gate you will walk to the Forbidden City, where your guide will tell you the history of the 24 emperors who lived and ruled here, starting with the Ming Dynasty and ending with the Qing Dynasty. After a couple of hours exploring the site and after lunch, you will continue your tour to the Great Wall at Mutianyu, the typically less crowded section of the Great Wall of China.

Once there and after an hour and a half drive, you will have approximately two hours to hike. You'll ride the cable car up to the halfway point to begin your walking tour, and then you're going to ride back down or ride the slide back down.

Details of interest

• Price: This experience has an approximate cost of 200 euros per person.
• Duration: It will take you about 9 hours to complete the trip.
• Means of transportation: The whole trip is completed by car with all the comforts.
• Advantages of this option: Local fees and taxes are included. You are offered bottled water during the trip. Lunch is included. You will be accompanied by a driver inside the private car, as well as a professional guide. Roundtrip transportation to and from the hotel or lodging site is included. Entrance to the round cable car or toboggan run is included.
• Disadvantages of this option: Tips and souvenirs are not included. Personal expenses are not included.

For this experience you will depart from your hotel or accommodation in the early morning hours. Before starting the activity I recommend you to stop and enjoy a simple and traditional breakfast, this way you will be able to start your trip to the Jinshanling Great Wall recharged with energy. Once on the eastern side of the wall, you will begin a three-hour hike.

Along the way, you will have plenty of opportunities to take pictures of the foliage, architecture and towers along the way. You will also be able to stop and admire the breathtaking views from the parapets as many times as you like. After the hike, you can enjoy a local lunch before heading back to the city.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay from 95 euros per person to enjoy this experience.
• Duration: The entire tour takes approximately 9 hours to complete.
• Means of transportation: The trip is completed in an air-conditioned bus.
• Advantages of this option: Entrance fees to the Wall are included in the price of the tour. Lunch is also included. You will be accompanied by a local guide. Hotel pick up is included. You will have air-conditioned transportation and all the comforts.
• Disadvantages of this option: Breakfast is not included. Tips are not included. Souvenir photos are not included in the price. Jinshangling cable car fees are not included. Personal expenses or expenses not mentioned in the package are also not included.

In this trekking tour you will discover Jinshanling, the most isolated and most representative section of the Great Wall of China. This tour will be ideal for you if you like Chinese history, or want to know it better. The tour will start very early in the morning, when your guide will pick you up at the meeting point in Beijing. From there you will continue on to the Jinshanling Wall, but before starting the hike, you will make a quick stop for breakfast.

It will take you about two and a half hours to get to Jinshanling, but it will be worth it because this point connects two sections of the Great Wall: the Simatai section to the east and the Gubeiko section to the west. The medium-difficulty hike of about three hours will start at Zhuanduokou. Along the way, you can enjoy the views offered by Jinshanling. The hike ends in Wuyanlou, where you will have lunch at a local restaurant, typical Chinese dishes.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay around 57 euros per person to enjoy this experience.
• Duration: The whole tour takes about 10 hours.
• Means of transport: Partly by private car and partly on foot.
• Advantages of this option: Pick up at the meeting points is included. You will be accompanied by an expert guide. Entrance fees are included. Lunch is provided.
• Disadvantages of this option: Not wheelchair accessible. Pets are not allowed. Breakfast is not included.

For this private tour, your tour guide and professional driver will pick you up from your hotel very early in the morning. After about two and a half hours of driving, you will arrive at the foot of the Simatai Great Wall and right there you will start your walk together with your guide along the walls until you reach the Five Windows East Tower, where you will have a short rest and also have the opportunity to take panoramic photos of the scenery.

After you have had some rest and taken lots of photos, you will continue walking west to the Jinshanling Great Wall, while learning about the local culture. One thing that will strike you about this section is that it still maintains its original appearance, despite the millennia-long history of the wall. You will walk for another hour and arrive at Shalingkou Pass, where you can choose between two options: descend or continue walking for another 30 minutes to Zhuanduokou Pass.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay about 390 euros per person.
• Duration: The whole tour will last approximately 10 hours.
• Means of transportation: The tour will be completed by air-conditioned minivan.
• Advantages of this option: The transfer from and to the hotel or lodging place is included. You will complete the entire tour aboard an air-conditioned minivan. You will be accompanied by a tour guide. You will be offered free bottled water. You will be offered umbrellas during the walk. Entrance to the Jinshanling Great Wall is included.
• Disadvantages of this option: Meals during the walk are not included. Tips are not included. Cable car fare at the Great Wall is not included.

You will be met by your tour guide to embark on a journey of approximately two hours to reach the Jiankou Great Wall in Xizhi. The driver will drop you off at the village, then pick you up again at Mutianyu, at the end of the trail. Together with your private guide, you will hike from a small mountain trail in Xizhi village. It will take you about 50 minutes before you reach the first tower: Zheng Bei Lou, from where you will be able to photograph breathtaking views of the Jiankou Great Wall.

After this experience, you will go with your private guide to the east of the tower, in the direction of Mutianyu, where you will walk to the tenth tower. From there you will see a very different view of the Great Wall. At the end of the hike, you will board the shuttle bus to descend the mountain. From there you will go to a traditional Chinese restaurant to have a typical Chinese lunch, with different dishes and rice as the main food.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay around 345 euros per person to enjoy this experience.
• Duration: It will take you between 8 and 10 hours to complete the tour.
• Means of transportation: You will travel in an air-conditioned bus during the whole trip.
• Advantages of this option: The trekking guide and an experienced driver are included. You will be offered lunch with typical Chinese food accompanied by a drink. Bottled water and snacks are included. Entrance fees to the Great Wall are covered. You will be given a gift as a souvenir.
• Disadvantages of this option: Cable car ticket or toboggan ticket at Mutianyu Great Wall is not included. Excess baggage charges are not included. Gratuities are not included.

You will meet your guide at your hotel or accommodation place to get into a private vehicle and go straight to the Great Wall at Gubeikou with its broken tower. You will make several stops to take pictures and enjoy the views from the mountains.

After this adventure, you will have the opportunity to enjoy lunch at a local restaurant and enjoy a delicious Chinese tea, just before boarding the vehicle to continue to the Great Wall at Jinshanling. Then your guide will take you to a perfect location to watch the sunset over the Wall. When night falls completely, your guide will take you back to your hotel or accommodation.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay an average price of 375 euros per person.
• Duration: This tour has an approximate duration of 9 hours.
• Means of transportation: The entire tour is completed in an air-conditioned vehicle.
• Advantages of this option: You will be accompanied by a professional guide. Lunch and snacks will be provided. You will be offered bottled water. Pick up and drop off at the hotel is included. Entrance to the Chinese Wall in Gubeikou and Jinshanling is included.
• Disadvantages of this option: Tips are not included.

On a first day tour you will visit the magnificent Forbidden City at Tiananmen Square, while learning about the history of the palace for about two hours. Then you will visit the Temple of Heaven and Hutong. The Temple of Heaven, built at the same time as the Forbidden City, is a sequence of temples and altars set in a park, so you'll get plenty of attention walking around and photographing this place.

For the second day of your trip, you'll go to see the Mutianyu Great Wall, where you'll enjoy panoramic views from the top tower and your guide will help you imagine the ancient armies that fought on these mountainous terrains in the past. After completing the entire tour, you will return to Beijing in the company of your tour guide and the rest of the tour group.

Details of interest

• Price: You will have to pay around 650 euros per person.
• Duration: The whole experience lasts about 2 days.
• Means of transportation: You will travel in a vehicle with all the comforts.
• Advantages of this option: Pick up and drop off at the hotel is included. You will be accompanied by a private tour guide. Included in the price, the ticket in the cable car, chairlift or sled. Bottled water is also included. Entrance fees to the tour sites are included.
• Disadvantages of this option: Lunch is not included in the price. Tips are also not included.

It is advisable to visit the Great Wall of China with a tour guide for several reasons. First of all, a guide can provide you with valuable information about the history and culture of the wall, which can significantly enhance your tour experience. In addition, with the company of a guide you could avoid the crowds and maximize the time available during the tour.

Also, if you go with a guide, he or she can offer a unique and personalized perspective on the Great Wall based on your own interests and needs. Most importantly, he or she will offer recommendations on the best places to take pictures and keep them as souvenirs.