Kaifeng City Walls

Henan


Kaifeng is ringed by a relatively intact, much-restored Qing dynasty wall, which you can climb up at various points. There's precious little to see from up top and it can be punishingly hot on a sunny day (bring plenty of water and a hat). In fact, the best way to appreciate the bastion is to walk alongside it at ground level, through various small parks and with plenty of local life to observe.

Today’s bastion was built on the foundations of the Song dynasty Inner Wall (内城, Nèichéng). Rising up outside was the mighty, now buried Outer Wall (外城, Wàichéng), a colossal construction containing 18 gates, which looped south of Po Pagoda.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Henan attractions

1. Kāifēng Fǔ

0.83 MILES

This reconstructed site of the government offices of the Northern Song has daily theatricals commencing outside the gates – the doors are thrown open and…

2. Temple of the Chief Minister

1.25 MILES

First founded in AD 555, this frequently rebuilt temple vanished along with Kaifeng in the early 1640s, when rebels breached the Yellow River’s dykes…

3. Shanshangan Guild Hall

1.37 MILES

This tiny, elaborately styled guild hall was built as a lodging and meeting place during the Qing dynasty by an association of merchants from Shanxi (山西),…

4. Kaifeng Drum Tower

1.39 MILES

Built in 1379, Kaifeng's drum tower was originally located west of here and this site belonged to the bell tower. In the late Ming dynasty, a sickly…

5. Longting Park

1.5 MILES

Site of the former imperial palace, this park is mostly gardens and a lake, into which hardy swimmers plunge in winter. Reached by a bridge, you can climb…

6. Po Pagoda

2.15 MILES

This stumpy pagoda from 974 is the oldest Buddhist structure in Kaifeng and was originally a nine-storey hexagonal building, typical of the Northern Song…

7. Iron Pagoda Park

2.87 MILES

Kaifeng's most iconic landmark is a magnificent 11th-century Iron Pagoda (55m tall) at the centre of a pleasant park. The gorgeous, glazed-brick edifice,…

8. Kaifeng Museum

4.59 MILES

Housed in a colossal fortress 10km west of town, the Kaifeng Museum contains a modest collection of archaeological finds, woodblock prints and historical…