Great Wall Travel Tips

How to Visit Great Wall
For Great Wall visitors as well as independent travelers who want to have more international travel experience with a strong desire for individual travel. Basic Knowledge on the Great Wall sections around Beijing.Most of the sections people see around Beijing are twentieth-century restorations of an original that is about 500 years old dating back to Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), an era of the huge 17-year reconstruction led by Qi Jiguang(1528 –1588), prime architect of the Great Wall. In 1568, at the age of 40, Qi found himself given the task of the upgrading the Great Wall along the northern frontier from Beijing to the eastern sea at Shanhaiguan. Qi Jinguang retired in 1585 and died in 1588. Work on the Wall continued steadily for the next 60 years, till the end of Ming Dynasty.  The coming of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), ruled by "barbarians" the Manchus,  halted the Wall construction which was supposed to keep them out.The sections of the Great Wall around Beijing can be divided into three categories - "Formal", "Informal" and "Wild" in terms of the local administration and management on the walls. "Formal Great Wall" sections are tamed, repaired and controlled by a local Great Wall administration bureau with facilities like parking lots, guardrails if necessary, restaurants, toilets and more. Within its administration, the entrance fees are collected, a police station is set up and security guides are dotted along Wall."Informal Great Wall" sections are softly open to the hikers with limited repairs and renovations from the local villages and jurisdictions. "Wild Great Wall" sections are officially "forbidden" for hiking to protect the original Great Wall as well as for safery reason because they are crumbling, overgrown, barred to walkers without any repairs in many areas. In the recent years these "Wild Great Wall" sections are sought after by the Great Wall hikers. Trekkers are responsible for their own safety while hiking wild Great Wall.There are over a dozen of "formal"，"informal" and "wild" sections of the Great Wall snaking across the northen mountains around Beijing. Most of the sections of the remaining Great Wall have their own names. Usually their names are given with regard to geographic location, historical factor or just the necessity of the local tourism promotion. Starting from west to east, the major sections of the Great Wall around Beijing are listed below: • Changyucheng Great Wall: 100km northwest of Beijing downtown (wild)• Badaling Great Wall: 80km northwest from Beijing, busy, popular, breathtaking veiw of the wall winding (formal)• Shixiaguan Great Wall: 90 northwest from Beijing, ruined and broken （formal）• Juyongguan Great Wall: 60km northwest from Beijing, closest section, heavily renovated, steep （formal)• Xishuiyu Great Wall: 90km Northwest of Beijing (informal)• Zhuangdaokou Great Wall: 90km north of Beijing (wild)• Huanghuacheng Great Wall: 85km north from Beijing, original, broken, steep (informal)• Luanling Great Wall: 90km north of Beijing downtown (informal)• Xiangshuihu Great Wall: 90km north of Beijing (formal)• Jiankou Great Wall: 90km north from Beijing, original, broken, ruined, treacherous (wild)• Mutianyu Great Wall: 85km north of Beijing, green, wonderful scenery (formal)• Yunmengshan Great Wall: 120km northeast of Beijing (informal)• Gubeikou Great Wall: 110km northeast from Beijing, broken, original, risky (formal)• Simatai Great Wall: 140km northeast of Beijing, rugged, steep and hazardous (formal)• Jinshanling Great Wall: 150km northeast of Beijing, wild, rugged, steep and hazardous (formal)• Bolitai Great Wall: 120km northeast of Beijing (wild)• Jiangjunguan Great Wall: 110km northeast of Beijing (wild)Which section of the Great Wall should I visit?People are often torn by the question which section to hike. Below are our suggestions only for your reference:1) If you don't have much time, but you still want to have a glimpse of the Wall, especially on a busy day, choose Juyongguan Great Wall.2) If you want to see the gorgeous section of the Wall in Beijing and don't mind the tourist crowd, go to Badaling Great Wall. 3) If you want to visit the Great Wall with a beautiful green scenery and environment, visit Mutianyu Great Wall.4) If you travel with kids or seniors, go to visit Mutianyu Great Wall.5) If you want to hike the wild and original bits of the Wall, go to hike Jiankou,  Huanghuacheng, Gubeikou, Jinshanling, Yunmengshan and Simatai Great Wall.6) If you don't want to see "people watching people", and look for a least tourist section, then go to Shixiaguan Great Wall.7) If you want to hike the Wall with a short visit to the local ancient villages, you may choose Changyucheng, Zhuangdaokou, Luanling, Xiangshuihu, Bolitai and Jiangjunguang Great Wall.Which section is touristy and less touristy?Jinshanling, Gubeikou, Simatai and Shixiaguan Great Wall are less touristy. Badaling Great Wall is most crowded and Mutianyu Great Wall is becoming more and more crowded too. It is better to hike the Great Wall during the weekdays instead of weekends. Strongly advise you not to visit the Great Wall during China public holidays. On these special days you will waste much of your valuable time on the way from your hotel to the Wall. On the Wall, you have to take group photos since there are a great number of people on the Wall.Hotels or inns near the Great WallIf you want to stay overnight close the Great Wall around Beijing, below are some of the inns and hotels for your consideration. Many of the inns and courtyard hotels are still open in winter by the Great Wall. • Juyongguan Great Wall Hotel • the Cummune by the Great Wall• Great Wall Courtyard Inn • Huanghuacheng Fuwang Courtyard Farmhouse • the Schoolhouse by the Mutianyu Great Wall• Jinshanling Hotel • Simatai Great Wall Courtyard Hotel• the Chateau Changyu AFIP Global BeijingBest Timet to Visit Great WallIn Beijing, all the formal sections of the Wall are open to tourists all year round. The ideal months for the Great Wall hike fall on spring, early summer, autumn (later March, April, May, June, September, October and early November). If you happen to visit the Great Wall in summer ( later June, July and August), be prepared for heat stroke prevention – sunglasses, sun cream, sun block, hat, water. Summer is the rain season and bring waterproofs in case. Winter Great Wall Hike is a bit challenging mainly due to the frozen weather in later December, January and early early February each year in Beijing. You are advised to dress warmly – winter hat with ear flap, ear warmers, gloves, scarf, warm jackets and ther winter accessories. The Great Wall hike is impossible only because the road access to sections is blocked due to the heavy snow. If you plan to do the hike in winter, we do suggest you check the weather report. Check out How to Dress for Visiting Great Wall in Winter.Accessible section of the Great Wall for wheelchair usersBadaling Great Wall and Mutianyu are wheelchair-friendly, the only two accessible section of the Wall around Beijing (but only on some limited areas).Beijing Great Wall Public TransportThere are several ways of traveling to the Beijing Great Wall using public trasnport.1) To Badaling Great Wall by bus Badaling Bus No.877 (Bus Fare: RMB 12)To:Deshengmen (德胜门）- Badaling (八达岭）Operating Hours: 06:00-12:00(Apr.1-Oct.31) 06:00-12:30 (Nov.1-Mar.31)Return:Badaling (八达岭）- Deshengmen (德胜门）10:30-17:00(Apr.1-Oct.31) 11:00-16:30(Nov.1-Mar.31)2) To Badaling Great Wall by TrainBadaling Great Wall is the only Wall that you can directly reach by train: 12 daily "S trains" from Beijing North Railway Station to Badaling Great Wall and 12 daily trains from Badaling Great Wall back to Beijing North Railway Station. It takes about one hour and 20 minutes to get to Badaling Great Wall from downtown Beijing. Tickets are available and easy to get at the ticketing office in the main building of Beijing North Railway Station. The train ticket costs RMB 6. The entrance to the Badaling Great Wall is a 20- minute walk from Badaling Railway Station. 3) To Mutianyu Great Wall by BusTourist Bus No.867 Directly running to Mutianyu Great Wall 慕田峪长城The Tourist Bus 867 operates two daily departures: Start at 7:00am and 8:30am; return at 2:00pm and 4:00pmValid time: from March 15 – Nov 15 each year.Bus No. 916 Express (916快）To: Mutianyu Great Wall 慕田峪长城Important Notice: The final destination of the Bus 916 Express is actually Huairou Beidajie (怀柔北大街）in Huairou District, then you have to change for the local bus No.936 (Huairou - Dongtai 怀柔至洞台), continue to take the bus 936 (936路支线) for another 18.6km, pass 8 stops and get off at Mutianyu Great Wall finally. Bus 916 Express (916快）Fare: RMB 12 Bus 936 (936路支线) Fare: RMB 8Bus Operation Time: 6:00-17:00 ( every 20 minutes )4)  Bus No. 980 Express (980快) To Jinshanling Great Wall:Destination: Jinshanling Great Wall 金山岭长城. Very Important Notice: Actually the Bus 980 Express stops at Miyun County ( 密云汽车站 ), and then you take a mini bus from the downtown Miyun to Jinshanling.Bus Fare: RMB 15Minibus Fare: about RMB 50 ( you have to share a mini-bus for Jinshanling Great Wall)5) Take a taxi to the Great WallYou can also charter a taxi for day trips to the Great Wall. The drive ranges from 1.5 hour to 2.5 hours from the city center according to the different sections of the Great Wall. Below are the approximate taxi fares to the different sections of the Great Wall with waiting for about 2-3 hours while touring the wall:Beijing Mutianyu Great Wall: 85km – RMB 600Beijing Badaling Great Wall: 80km – RMB 500Beijing Simatai Great Wall: 140km – RMB 700Beijing Juyongguan Great Wall: 60km – RMB 400Beijing Jinshanling Great Wall: 160km RMB 800Beijing Gubeikou Great Wall: 150km – RMB 750Beijing Jiankou Great Wall: 85km – RMB 650Beijing Huanghuacheng Great Wall 85km – RMB 600 Great Wall Hiking LevelIt is a beginning (1-2 hours) - intermediate level (3-4 hours). The hike from Jiankou to Mutianyu, Gubeikou to Jinshanling and Jinshangling to Simatai, take about 4-6 hours respectively, the toughest hike. Don't forget to bring a mobile phone, water, hiking boots, sunscreen, sun-glasses, insect repellent, cap and some snacks etc. Cable Car up to the Great WallThe cable car is available on Badaling, Mutianyu, Jinshanling and Simatai. If you don't have strong legs, we suggest you take the cable up the wall and walk down.Tips on What Dress to Visit the Great WallApril, October, and earlier November: long shorts, overcoat; May, June, July and August: Summer dress - many T-shirts shorts; December, January and early early February: winter hat with ear flap, ear warmers, gloves, scarf, warm jackets and ther winter accessories.