Fun Things To Do In Beijing

Beijing is the oldest inhabited city in the world and the city capital of the biggest country in the world, China. Given its 3000-year history, you will be mesmerized at how rich the culture and tradition are in the city. Flying to Beijing has never been cheaper, with flights from Singapore to Beijing costing roughly $300-500.

What are the fun things to do in Beijing? There are a lot of fun things to do in Beijing, which includes savoring the tasty Chinese cuisine, experiencing Chinese Art and walking through UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The city is so vast that three days is not enough to go around the city, including Qianmen Street, Forbidden City, The Great Wall of China, and navigating through the Venice of China.

Beijing has transformed before our very eyes. It is no longer the sleeping dragon we once knew. Gone are the times when China depicted in most Chinese movies of Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan. The city capital Beijing is soaring with skyscrapers dominating the city landscape of the Central Business District. Amidst all that, Chinese people harmoniously mixed the old and the new side of Beijing.

Here are fun things that you can do in Beijing:

Qianmen street

Qianmen street means a big street, is located in the south of Tiananmen Square. The road was built during the Ming Dynasty some 600 years ago. It is known to be a shopping street for the locals where you can dine and shop.

Fun things to do in Qianmen street

1. Eat Chinese snacks like tanghulu, fruits dipped in sugar instead of chocolate. They have flavors such as Hawberries with sesame to cherry tomatoes.

2. Shop in the traditional shopping mall for Chinese porcelain.

3. Customize your action figures. Choose your favorite action hero from marvel to DC to anime characters. Have a figurine artisan sculpt your face and stick it on the hero’s body of your choice.

4. Devour China’s iconic Peking Duck. Order a whole duck together with side dishes and savor the 600-year-old cuisine. The chef carves the duck right in front of you as they show you several ways to enjoy it:

5. Dip the skin in sugar which makes the duck savory and sweet, taste like a honeycomb toffee

6. Wrap the chicken breast in wheat crepes together with cucumber, green onion, and sauce.

7. Make a Peking duck burger.
   
   

Forbidden city

One day is not enough to walk around the entire city. The city in itself is on a 180-acre land with over 8000 rooms. Once forbidden, it is now open to the public, and a known tourist destination visited approximately 15 million people per year.

Instead of squeezing through the crowd, which is no fun at all, you can go to Jingshan Park to see the entire city. Jingshan Park is 15-minutes away on foot from Qianmen Street, located north of the Forbidden City. Pavillions were built on the top of the artificial mountain peaks as a look-out to the entire city. have your photo taken in a traditional costumer at a cheap price with the Forbidden City as the back drop. Enjoy the sunset at the top while watching the city burst into light at night.

Gubei Water Town

A town that not a lot of people know about, even the locals. Gubei water town dubbed “Venice of China” due to its waterways and cobblestone infrastructure. The Chinese government built the city as a replica of Wuzhen City, located in the South of China, but with the architectural design from the North of China. The town was considered to be the biggest planned city in the country.

Fun things to do in Gubei Water Town

1. Ride the 6-seater boat along the waterways ala Venetian style

2. Devour Chinese cuisine and snacks such as Bridge cake (traditional Chinese bread which brings good fortune), Lamb and beef skewers on twigs, Fried white radish, and stone pot rice.

3. Ride the cable car Simatai

4. After a 10-minute hike, you reach the Great Wall of China. Best of all, there are no tourists.

5. Watch the sunset and fall in love with the nightscape of Gubei Water Town from the Simatai.

Beijing will never cease to amaze you to see the beauty of China. How they managed to protect and even develop their age-old traditions and culture is truly inspiring. Walking along Beijing is like being teleported back and forth to the ancient time and the future. Visit Beijing, and you might find yourself in a time warp.