13 Best Sights in Beijing, China

This tranquil temple to China's great sage has endured close to eight centuries of additions and restorations. The Hall of Great Accomplishment in the temple houses Confucius's funeral tablet and shrine, flanked by copper-colored statues depicting China's wisest Confucian scholars. As in Buddhist and Taoist temples, worshippers can offer sacrifices (in this case to a mortal, not a deity). The 198 tablets lining the courtyard outside the Hall of Great Accomplishment contain 51,624 names belonging to advanced Confucian scholars from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Flanking the Gate of Great Accomplishment are two carved stone drums dating to the Qianlong period (1735–96). In the Hall of Great Perfection you'll find the central shrine to Confucius. Check out the huge collection of ancient musical instruments.

In the front and main courtyards of the temple you'll find a cemetery of stone tablets. These tablets, or stelae, stand like rows of crypts. On the front stelae you can barely make out the names of thousands of scholars who passed imperial exams. Another batch of stelae, carved in the mid-1700s to record the Thirteen Classics, which are philosophical works attributed to Confucius, line the west side of the grounds.

We recommend combining a tour of the Confucius Temple with the nearby Lama Temple. Access to both is convenient from the Yonghegong subway stop at the intersection of Line 2 and Line 5. You can also easily get to the Temple of Heaven by taking Line 5 south to Tiantandongmen.

The complex is now combined with the Imperial Academy next door, once the highest educational institution in the country. Established in 1306 as a rigorous training ground for high-level government officials, the academy was notorious, especially during the early Ming Dynasty era, for the harsh discipline imposed on scholars perfecting their knowledge of the Confucian classics. The Riyong Emperors Lecture Hall is surrounded by a circular moat (although the building is rectangular in shape). Emperors would come here to lecture on the classics. This ancient campus would be a glorious place to study today with its washed red walls, gold-tiled roofs, and towering cypresses (some as old as 700 years).

This park, also known as Coal Hill Park, was built around a small peak formed from earth excavated for the Forbidden City's moats. Ming rulers ordered the hill's construction to improve the feng shui of their new palace to the south. You can climb a winding stone staircase past peach and apple trees to Wanchun Pavilion, the park's highest point. On a clear day it offers unparalleled views of the Forbidden City and the Bell and Drum towers. Chongzhen, the last Ming emperor, is said to have hanged himself at the foot of Coal Hill as his dynasty collapsed in 1644. As the park is on Beijing's central axis, you can access it from the west gate in Xicheng District or the east gate in Dongcheng.

Undeniably sumptuous, the Forbidden City, once home to a long line of emperors, is Beijing's most enduring emblem. Magnificent halls, winding lanes, and stately courtyards await you. At 180 acres, this is the world's largest palace complex.

As you gaze up at roofs of glazed-yellow tiles—a symbol of royalty—try to imagine a time when only the emperor ("the son of God") was permitted to enter this palace, accompanied by select family members, concubines, and eunuchs, used as servants. Now, with its doors flung open, the Forbidden City's mysteries beckon.

The sheer grandeur of the site—with 800 buildings and a rumored 9,999 rooms—conveys the pomp of Imperial China. The shady palaces, musty with age, recall the tedium of life at court was relieved by gossip and scheming.

The most impressive way to reach the Forbidden City is through the imposing Gate of Heavenly Peace (Tiananmen), connected to Tiananmen Square. The Great Helmsman himself stood here to establish the People's Republic of China on October 1, 1949, and again to review millions of Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. Ascend the gate for a dramatic view of the square. You must check your bags prior to entry and also pass through a metal detector.

The Meridian Gate (Wumen), sometimes called Five Phoenix Tower, is the main southern entrance to the palace. Here, the emperor announced yearly planting schedules according to the lunar calendar; it's also where errant officials were flogged. The main ticket and audio-guide offices are just west of this gate.

The Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihedian) was used for coronations, royal birthdays, and weddings. Bronze vats, once kept brimming with water to fight fires, ring this vast expanse. The hall sits atop three stone tiers with an elaborate drainage system with 1,000 carved dragons. On the top tier, bronze cranes symbolize longevity. Inside, cloisonné cranes flank the imperial throne, above which hangs a heavy bronze ball—placed there to crush any pretender to the throne.

Emperors greeted audiences and held banquets in the Hall of Middle Harmony (Zhonghedian). It also housed the royal plow, with which the emperor himself would turn a furrow to commence spring planting.

The highest civil service examinations, which were personally conducted by the emperor, were once administered in the Hall of Preserving Harmony (Baohedian). Behind the hall, a 200-ton marble relief of nine dragons, the palace's most treasured stone carving, adorns the descending staircase.

A short jaunt to the right is the Hall of Clocks and Watches (Zhongbiaoguan), where you'll find a collection of early timepieces. It's pure opulence, with jeweled, enameled, and lacquered timepieces (some astride elephants, others implanted in ceramic trees). Our favorites? Those crafted from red sandalwood.

Now you're approaching the very core of the palace. Several emperors chose to live in the Inner Palace with their families. The Hall of Heavenly Purity (Qianqinggong) holds another imperial throne; the Hall of Union and Peace (Jiaotaidian) was the venue for the empress's annual birthday party; and the Palace of Earthly Peace (Kunninggong) was the empress's residence and also was where royal couples consummated their marriages. The banner above the throne bizarrely reads DOING NOTHING.

On either side of the Inner Palace are six western and six eastern palaces—the former living quarters of concubines and servants. The last building on the western side, the Hall of Mental Cultivation (Yangxindian), is the most important of these. Starting with Emperor Yongzheng, all Qing Dynasty emperors attended to daily state business in this hall.

The Gallery of Treasures (Zhenbaoguan), actually a series of halls, has breathtaking examples of imperial ornamentation. The first room displays candleholders, wine vessels, tea sets, and a golden pagoda commissioned by Qing emperor Qianlong in honor of his mother. A cabinet on one wall contains the 25 imperial seals. Jade bracelets, golden hairpins, and coral fill the second hall; carved jade landscapes a third.

North of Forbidden City's private palaces, beyond the Gate of Earthly Tranquility (Kunningmen), lies the most pleasant part of the Forbidden City: the Imperial Gardens (Yuhuayuan), composed of ancient cypress trees and stone mosaic pathways. During festivals, the emperors, empresses, and concubines all scrambled to the top of the strange rock hill in the northwest of the gardens, called the Hill of Accumulated Elegance. You can exit the palace at the back of the gardens through the park's Gate of the Divine Warrior (Shenwumen).

The world's largest public square, and the very heart of modern China, Tiananmen Square owes little to grand imperial designs and everything to Mao Zedong. At the height of the Cultural Revolution, hundreds of thousands of Red Guards crowded the square; in June 1989 the square was the scene of tragedy when student demonstrators were killed.

Today the square is packed with sightseers, families, and undercover policemen. Although formidable, the square is a little bleak, with no shade, benches, or trees. Come here at night for an eerie experience—it's a little like being on a film set. Beijing's ancient central axis runs right through the center of Mao's mausoleum, the Forbidden City, the Drum and Bell towers, and the Olympic Green. The square is sandwiched between two grand gates: the Gate of Heavenly Peace (Tiananmen) to the north and the Front Gate (Qianmen) in the south. Along the western edge is the Great Hall of the People. The National Museum of China lies along the eastern side. The 125-foot granite obelisk you see is the Monument to the People's Heroes; it commemorates those who died for the revolutionary cause of the Chinese people.

In "Temple of Earth Park," 105 acres of 16th-century green space, are the square altar where emperors once made sacrifices to the earth god, and the Hall of Deities. This is a lovely place for a stroll, especially if you're already near the Drum Tower or Lama Temple.

Crunchy deep-fried scorpions and other critters are sold at the Donghuamen Night Market, at the northern end of Wangfujing's wide walking boulevard. We'll admit: this is more of a place to look at and perhaps photograph food rather than devour it. In addition to standard street foods, hawkers here also serve up deep-fried starfish, plus a variety of insects and other hard-to-identify food items. Most street-market food is usually safe to eat as long as it's hot. The row of stalls makes for an intriguing walk with great photo ops.

This nearly mile-long stretch, also known as Ghost Street, is lined with more than 100 restaurants, many open 24 hours a day and attracting the spill over from nightclubs. Although the restaurants here are generally just average, the lively atmosphere is enticing, with red lanterns often strung across the sidewalks (these are taken down from time to time on the whim of the local authorities). There are a wide number of cuisines on the menus here, though night owls tend to favor spicy dishes such as fiery Sichuan hotpot, crayfish in chili oil, and barbecued fish.

One of the most important functioning Buddhist temples in Beijing, this much-visited Tibetan Buddhist masterpiece has five main halls and numerous galleries hung with finely detailed thangkhas (Tibetan religious scroll paintings). The entire temple is decorated with Buddha images—all guarded by somber lamas dressed in brown robes. Originally a palace for Prince Yongzheng, it was transformed into a temple once he became the Qing's third emperor in 1723. The temple flourished under Emperor Qianlong, housing some 500 resident monks. This was once the official "embassy" of Tibetan Buddhism in Beijing, but today only about two dozen monks live in this complex.

Don't miss the The Hall of Heavenly Kings, with statues of Maitreya, the future Buddha, and Weitou, China's guardian of Buddhism. This hall is worth a slow stroll. In the courtyard beyond, a pond with a bronze mandala represents paradise. The Statues of Buddhas of the Past, Present, and Future hold court in The Hall of Harmony. Look on the west wall where an exquisite silk thangkha of White Tara—the embodiment of compassion—hangs. Images of the Medicine and Longevity Buddhas line The Hall of Eternal Blessing. In The Pavilion of Ten Thousand Fortunes you see the breathtaking 26-meter (85-foot) Maitreya Buddha carved from a single block of sandalwood.

Combine a visit to the Lama Temple with the Confucius Temple and the Imperial Academy, which are a five-minute walk away, within the hutong neighborhood opposite the main entrance.

Sentries here will assure that your communion with the Great Helmsman is brief. First, check your bag and camera at the designated point to the east of the hall. Then, join the long and winding line that leads first to a spacious lobby dominated by a marble Mao statue and then to the Hall of Reverence, where his embalmed body lies in state, wrapped in the red flag of the Communist Party of China and inside a crystal coffin that's lowered each night into a subterranean freezer. In a bid to limit Mao's deification, a second-story museum was added in 1983; it's dedicated to the former Premier Zhou Enlai, former general Zhu De, and China's president before the Cultural Revolution, Liu Shaoqi (who was persecuted to death during the Cultural Revolution). The hall's builders willfully ignored Tiananmen Square's geomancy: the mausoleum faces north, contradicting centuries of imperial ritual. Note that the hall is only open in the mornings.

The narrow Nan Luogu Xiang, or South Gong and Bell Alley, which dates back some 700 years, got a new lease on life when it was discovered by young entrepreneurs around 2006. They quickly began opening souvenir shops, boutiques, cafés, bars, and snack stalls in the aging but rustic structures that line the sidewalks. The narrow street is flanked by eight historic hutongs to the east and west that are worth exploring, especially when the crowds in the main section get overwhelming, which, as the years go by, and the street's popularity grows, they so often do. It's a great place to try some of the snacks popular with young Chinese, such as milk tea, chicken wings, and the famous custard-like yogurt at Wenyu Nailao.

This monumental edifice on the eastern side of Tiananmen Square showcases 5,000 years of history in immaculate surroundings. With 2 million square feet of exhibition space, it's impossible to see everything. The propaganda-heavy history sections can be safely skipped; focus instead on the ancient China section on the lower level, which houses magnificent displays of bronzes and jade artifacts. The museum also features strong shows of visiting works from abroad, such as Renaissance art from Florence and ceramics from the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

This impressive but often overlooked museum, located in a gleaming glass office tower, was established in 1998 to promote traditional art and to protect Chinese art from being lost to foreign countries. The museum has focused on the overseas acquisition of ancient bronzes, sculpture, and painting. The space is divided into two galleries, one for the display of early Chinese bronzes, and the other for Buddhist scriptures carved in stone. Also on display here are four bronze animal heads that were once located in the Old Summer Palace.

Wangfujing, one of the city's oldest and busiest shopping districts, is still lined with a handful of laozihao, old brand-name shops, some dating back a century, and 1950s-era state-run stores. This short walking street is a pleasant place for window-shopping. Also on Wangfujing is the gleaming Oriental Plaza, with its expensive high-end shops (Tiffany's, Burberry, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Audi among them), interspersed with Levi's Jeans, Esprit, Starbucks, Pizza Hut, KFC, Häagen-Dazs, and a modern movie multiplex.