Places to Visit in Beijing Municipality

Beijing Municipality covers about 16,400 square kilometres in northern China, bordered by Hebei province on all sides except the south-east, where it meets the municipality of Tianjin. The municipality is one of four in China (with Tianjin, Shanghai and Chongqing) that report directly to the central government rather than to a province, and it contains the national capital, the urban core and a large rural and mountain hinterland. The city sits on the northern edge of the North China Plain, while the Yan Mountains and the Western Hills rise to the north and west, carrying sections of the Ming-era Great Wall through Huairou, Yanqing and Miyun districts.

Beijing was the Ming and Qing imperial capital, and its central axis of palaces, altars and towers underlies the modern street plan. Summer is hot and humid with heavy July and August rain, and winters are cold, dry and sometimes hazy, with January lows near -8 C. April, May, September and October are the most comfortable months for walking. The 1-7 October Golden Week and Chinese New Year bring the biggest crowds, and the major sites use real-name reservations. Beijing has two international airports, Capital (PEK) and Daxing (PKX), and a large subway network that reaches most central sights but not the Great Wall sections.