public transport
The 5 best day trips from BeijingFeb 14, 2024 • 5 min read
Beijing offers a dizzying number of things to see and do, but its appeal extends well beyond the confines of the city. Here are our top five getaways.
Beijing Travel Stories
historyHow visiting the world’s busiest museums has changedJul 7, 2020 • 5 min read
As some of the most popular museums in the world reopen, here are the new COVID rules and restrictions that visitors can expect.
Trailblazers: crossing into China as a Lonely Planet writer in the 1980sJul 7, 2019 • 8 min read
Our Trailblazers series sees Lonely Planet's guidebook writers reflect on past adventures, reminisce a little, and compare their experiences past and…
foodCool Xisi: Beijing's up-and-coming neighbourhoodOct 19, 2017 • 5 min read
Xisi (literally ‘West Four’) is a neighbourhood in western Beijing, so called for its four richly carved paifang (sign gates) that once straddled the…
foodRooster booster: how to welcome the Chinese New YearJan 23, 2017 • 5 min read
This year, China welcomes the Rooster, crowing in the new year on 28 January 2017. The Rooster is the tenth animal in the Chinese zodiac (between the…
artHidden Beijing: 10 intriguing sights to discover in the Chinese capitalMay 18, 2016 • 5 min read
As Beijing leaps skywards into the 21st century, its history can sometimes get left in the shadows. But despite the new highways and high-rises, China’s…
foodBeijing on a budgetMay 8, 2015 • 7 min read
China’s breakneck rise – in 2014 it became the country with the world’s biggest economy – means that it’s no longer quite the budget destination it used…
foodWhat to eat in BeijingSep 9, 2014 • 8 min read
Mongolian lamb, Sichuan-style chilli-spiked crayfish and flaky flatbreads with sweet wafts of fried spring onions cooked before you. Beijing showcases the…
foodHip Beijing: a neighbourhood guideJul 11, 2013 • 5 min read
Once the great grey heart of China’s communist regime, Beijing now boasts colourful districts that mix historic buildings with contemporary art and design…
foodBeijing trip plannerSep 3, 2012 • 3 min read
Beijing is a city of incredible contrasts. Imperial palaces and ancient alleyways teeming with life mingle with cutting-edge architecture and new shopping…
- foodThe story of duck
Jun 8, 2011 • 2 min read
Most people would agree that Peking (or Beijing) duck is the capital’s most famous dish. Once imperial cuisine, now the legendary duck dish is served at…
artRocking out in BeijingJun 3, 2011 • 3 min read
Think of Asian rock and traditionally, it is Japanese bands that have had the biggest profile in the West. China, though, has been undergoing its own…
family travelBeijing on ice: 5 ways to cross a frozen lake in styleJan 11, 2011 • 3 min read
Winters in Beijing can be brutal, with temperatures commonly dropping to minus 10 degrees Celsius or worse. It doesn't stop the locals, though. Rather…
The cave dwellers of 21st-century ChinaSep 6, 2010 • 3 min read
Cave dwellers' dwellings. Image by Daniel McCrohan / Lonely Planet.
- artHutong alleyways: Old Beijing at its timeless best
Jul 17, 2010 • 3 min read
China's capital may be racing towards the future at breakneck speed but sneak behind one of the city's glittering, ultra-modern tower blocks and you find…
- artBeijing's once Forbidden City
Jul 11, 2010 • 4 min read
Once home to China’s emperors, the Forbidden City was the very heart of the country for five centuries and even now exerts a powerful pull on the nation’s…