Beijing Travel Guide for First-Time Visitors 北京
Plan Beijing airport or rail arrival, metro use, reservation-only sights, and a manageable first 24 hours.
- Best for
- History and first-time highlights
- Suggested stay
- 3-5 days
- Main arrival points
- PEK and PKX airports, Beijing South for high-speed rail
Beijing arrival and stay guides
Use the guide that matches the exact airport, railway station, border point, park gate, or hotel decision in your plan.
Your first 24 hours
- Set up local transport
- Check attraction reservations
- Save your hotel address in Chinese
Use the Beijing metro with the exact station and exit
Save the station and exit nearest the hotel, then keep a staffed ticket or taxi fallback for luggage and late arrival.
Open the metro guideUse locally
Keep the city name and your destination available offline for transport staff and ticket checks.
Where to stay
Dongcheng 东城区
Works for: First visits focused on the historic center.
Tradeoff: A large district: check the exact metro station, not only the district name.
Guomao / CBD 国贸
Works for: Travelers who value modern hotels and east-side transport.
Tradeoff: Longer journeys to several historic sights and the Great Wall departure point.
Local transport and apps
- Save the nearest metro station and exit for the hotel.
- Keep a single-ticket or staffed-counter fallback beside any app or QR route.
- Use the full Chinese station name for every railway journey.
Chinese address card
Copy only the place shown on your live booking. These are planning references, not substitutes for a complete hotel address.
Beijing Capital International Airport
北京首都国际机场Beijing Daxing International Airport
北京大兴国际机场Beijing South Railway Station
北京南站Routes that include Beijing
These are published itineraries, not a custom route generator. Open a route to see its full trip length, transfer days, bookings, and backups.
- 3 days · Focused
3 Days in Beijing
A compact first visit with one major landmark cluster each day.
- 5 days · Balanced
5 Days in Beijing: A Slower First-Time Route
Plan five usable days in Beijing with separate Palace Museum and Great Wall days, a Summer Palace day, a weather buffer, and official ticket checks.
- 7 days · Balanced
7 Days in China: Beijing and Shanghai
A two-city first trip with one high-speed rail day and enough time for each city's major reservations.
- 7 days · Balanced
7 Days in China: Beijing and Xi'an
Plan seven days across Beijing and Xi'an with three days in each city, one protected high-speed-rail day, official landmark checks, and backups.
- 10 days · Active
10 Days in China: Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai
A first-time route with two intercity transfers, fixed-ticket priorities, and realistic time in each city.
- 14 days · Comfortable
14 Days in China: Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu and Shanghai
A four-city route that includes transfer time, slower days, and room for one booking change or recovery day.
Official pages checked 17 Jul 2026
Next review due 17 Aug 2026. Recheck the live arrival point, station, venue, and local transport information before travel.
- Beijing Government: PEK transport guideOfficial airport-to-city transport choices and staffed support.
- Beijing Government: Palace MuseumOfficial reservation, closure, address, and visitor information.
- Beijing SubwayCurrent operator information, network map, and service notices.