Everything you need to sort out before and during your first trip to Beijing — visas, payments, transport, language and etiquette.
Beijing is one of the easiest major cities in China to visit as a foreigner — the metro is in English, signage is bilingual and most tourist sites are set up for international visitors. But a few things work differently here. This page covers them before you land.
A short checklist, in order of how much trouble it causes if you skip it.
Card acceptance is good at hotels, malls and larger restaurants. In small shops and markets, QR payment or cash is expected. ATMs accepting foreign cards are common in the city — look for Bank of China, ICBC or China Construction Bank.
The Beijing subway is the fastest way across the city: 20+ lines, English signage, flat fares from CNY 3. Trains run roughly 05:00–23:00. For short hops, taxis and ride-hailing are cheap; always have your destination written in Chinese to show the driver.
English is widely used in hotels, the airport and major attractions, less so in small shops and taxis. Learning a few words goes a long way: 你好 (nǐ hǎo, hello), 谢谢 (xiè xie, thank you), 多少钱 (duō shǎo qián, how much), 不要 (bú yào, I don't want it).
The Forbidden City sells timed-entry tickets online only — there is no ticket window for walk-up sales, so book before you leave your hotel, not when you arrive. Foreign visitors reserve through the official WeChat mini-program or website (passport required; the passport itself is your ticket at the gate). Tickets are released seven days in advance and summer slots sell out fast. Standard entry is 60 yuan in high season, 40 yuan low season; the Treasure Gallery and Clock Gallery in the inner halls cost an extra 10 yuan each and are worth it if you like objects over architecture. Enter via Meridian Gate on the south side and exit north at the Gate of Divine Prowess — you cannot reverse direction, so see everything in one pass. Closed Mondays. Aim for the first entry slot: the grounds thin out noticeably after 15:30, but by then tour groups have worn the route smooth.
Badaling is the section most first-timers know and the easiest to reach: the S2 suburban train from Huangtudian station or express buses from Deshengmen, and entry around 40 yuan. The trade-off is crowds — on weekends and holidays you may be photographing other tourists more than the wall. Mutianyu, 90 minutes northeast, is quieter, better restored and has a cable car and a toboggan ride down (around 100–140 yuan combined with entry; check current prices on the day). Getting there means a pre-booked shuttle bus or a hired car, roughly 400–600 yuan for a day return — budget accordingly. Go early: leaving the city by 7:00 gets you on the wall before the mid-morning tour buses. Wear real shoes; the steps are uneven and steep in stretches. If your trip is short, Mutianyu is usually the better use of a day.
Beijing's headline attractions all have a quiet window, and it is earlier than you think. At the Temple of Heaven, arrive before 8am: the park opens around then, entry to the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests starts at 8am, and the early hours belong to locals dancing and playing chess, which is arguably the better sight. The Summer Palace is manageable before 9am and gets heavy from 10am, especially on weekends; entering from the less-used North Palace Gate on Line 4 puts you on Kunming Lake's quiet north shore first. Jingshan Park, the hill with the panorama over the Forbidden City's roofs, is busiest at sunset — go at 5pm sharp if you want a railing spot, or accept that late afternoon means shoulder-to-shoulder. National holidays, particularly the first week of October and Chinese New Year week, multiply crowds everywhere; if your dates fall in those windows, book everything further ahead and shift visits to weekday mornings. Check opening hours on the official WeChat accounts or the park sites the day before, since they shift seasonally.
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