Most likely your flight to Beijing will depart from Hongqiao Airport. Take the metro (30min / 3-8Y) or a taxi (20min / 45-60CNY) to the airport (for more details, see Day 1).
Beijing is enormous. That's why we recommend staying in the vicinity of the Forbidden City so that you can walk or bike to most points of interest. If you move around by bike or taxi (they're cheap and more reliable than in other Chinese cities), it won't matter if your hotel is close to a metro stop or not. In the city centre you'll find very decent hotels at reasonable rates, a good thing given the amount of time you'll be spending in Peking.
Basic Choice:
Premium Choice:
The airport is a good place to buy your transportation smart card Yikatong Card, as you can pay with it the Airport Express train, the subway, the city buses and bicycles and even the taxis. You will have to pay a deposit of 20CNY (refundable at the end of the trip) and charge it with about 25CNY for each day you are in the city (don't worry about putting more, because itr is refundable when you return the card).
If your flight arrives at Beijing Capital Airport, it is best to take the Airport Express Train (25CNY, 20-30min) and then connect with the subway or take a taxi to the hotel (if you get off at Sanyuanqiao Station you can take the line 10 of the subway, at Dongzhimen Station lines 2 and 13 and at Beixinqiao Station line 5). Both the Airport Express Train and the subway can be paid directly with Yikatong Card. The Airport Express Train leaves every 10 minutes from 6:35 a.m. to 11:10 p.m. To get there, follow the signs at the airport. If you arrive at terminal 1, you will have to take the free bus to go to terminal 2 or 3. It leaves from gates 3-5 and takes 15min. If you prefer, it is also possible to take a taxi directly from the airport to your hotel (70-90min, 100-150 CNY).
If your flight arrives at Daxing International Airport, you can take the metro directly to Caoqiao (20min on the Daxing Line, which operates from 06:00-23:00) and from here connect with the metro line that best suits you (line 10 or 19). It will take you about 70min in total to get to the center (39CNY pp). A taxi from the airport to the city center takes about 1 hour and costs 150-180CNY.
In any case, if you prefer a private transfer to your hotel, we recommend you book it with Civitatis (about 65€ from Daxing and 32€ from Capital).
This first afternoon in the city, we recommend visiting Tiananmen Square. Not only is it the neuralgic centre and symbol of the city, but also the largest square in the world. Around Tiananmen are different government buildings such as the Parliament (Great Hall of the People) (open 9:00 to 14:00, 30CNY), the National Museum of China (open 9:00 to 17:00, free entrance), the Monument to the People's Heroes, and Mao's Tomb (open from 8:00 to 12:00, Tuesday to Sunday). You'll also see the walls behind which lies the Forbidden City.
Walk along Dongchang'an Jie until it crosses Wangfujing Dajie, the most famous street for shopping in Beijing, also known as Golden Street. It's worth walking along and entering some of its stores. If you're walking up this street, you'll see, on the left, a building called "HAOYOU Emporium". Behind it is a very interesting street market filled with little shops and restaurants. If you're feeling daring, you can try one of the insect snacks!!!
The trip between Shanghai and Beijing can be made by plane (2h30min, 550-650CNY), by high speed train (5h, 550CNY) or by regular train (9-10h, 300-400CNY).
For the sake of convenience, we recommend flying. However, if flying isn't your thing or you want to save a night in a hotel, the train is a good option (take it the night before if you choose the slow train). See the section Get Around to learn more about trains and how to reserve tickets.
Smart Link: the best flight offers can be found at China Trip. Sometimes they do odd things like send emails in Chinese, but they are very reliable, their prices are unbeatable, and the customer service (telephone, Skype, email, chat) is great (though with some minor problems with English). Compared with the airways' web sites, China Trip can be slightly more expensive, but the advantage is that their webpage works better and payment can be easily made with a credit card (not the case with all airlines).
Also check out the low-cost airline Spring Airlines (you won't find it at China Trip), in case they have a better offer for this trip. The price is given in American dollars, but keep in mind that it doesn't include any on-plane service, the maximum weight limit is 15 kg (after that, you are charged), and 20$ is added to the price your are initially quoted for duties, taxes and fuel.
Reservation details:
Choose from among the different options the one that best suits your schedule (we recommend leaving around 10.00 so that you can take advantage of the afternoon in Beijijng) and click on Book (all the airlines on this page are reliable).
Fill in your contact information and select a form of payment (PayPal or credit card).
You will be sent an email confirming your flight. To get your boarding card, all you need to do is show your passport at the check-in counter of the selected carrier.
Most likely your flight to Beijing will depart from Hongqiao Airport. Take the metro (30min / 3-8Y) or a taxi (20min / 45-60CNY) to the airport (for more details, see Day 1).
Beijing is enormous. That's why we recommend staying in the vicinity of the Forbidden City so that you can walk or bike to most points of interest. If you move around by bike or taxi (they're cheap and more reliable than in other Chinese cities), it won't matter if your hotel is close to a metro stop or not. In the city centre you'll find very decent hotels at reasonable rates, a good thing given the amount of time you'll be spending in Peking.
Basic Choice:
Premium Choice:
The airport is a good place to buy your transportation smart card Yikatong Card, as you can pay with it the Airport Express train, the subway, the city buses and bicycles and even the taxis. You will have to pay a deposit of 20CNY (refundable at the end of the trip) and charge it with about 25CNY for each day you are in the city (don't worry about putting more, because itr is refundable when you return the card).
If your flight arrives at Beijing Capital Airport, it is best to take the Airport Express Train (25CNY, 20-30min) and then connect with the subway or take a taxi to the hotel (if you get off at Sanyuanqiao Station you can take the line 10 of the subway, at Dongzhimen Station lines 2 and 13 and at Beixinqiao Station line 5). Both the Airport Express Train and the subway can be paid directly with Yikatong Card. The Airport Express Train leaves every 10 minutes from 6:35 a.m. to 11:10 p.m. To get there, follow the signs at the airport. If you arrive at terminal 1, you will have to take the free bus to go to terminal 2 or 3. It leaves from gates 3-5 and takes 15min. If you prefer, it is also possible to take a taxi directly from the airport to your hotel (70-90min, 100-150 CNY).
If your flight arrives at Daxing International Airport, you can take the metro directly to Caoqiao (20min on the Daxing Line, which operates from 06:00-23:00) and from here connect with the metro line that best suits you (line 10 or 19). It will take you about 70min in total to get to the center (39CNY pp). A taxi from the airport to the city center takes about 1 hour and costs 150-180CNY.
In any case, if you prefer a private transfer to your hotel, we recommend you book it with Civitatis (about 65€ from Daxing and 32€ from Capital).
This first afternoon in the city, we recommend visiting Tiananmen Square. Not only is it the neuralgic centre and symbol of the city, but also the largest square in the world. Around Tiananmen are different government buildings such as the Parliament (Great Hall of the People) (open 9:00 to 14:00, 30CNY), the National Museum of China (open 9:00 to 17:00, free entrance), the Monument to the People's Heroes, and Mao's Tomb (open from 8:00 to 12:00, Tuesday to Sunday). You'll also see the walls behind which lies the Forbidden City.
Walk along Dongchang'an Jie until it crosses Wangfujing Dajie, the most famous street for shopping in Beijing, also known as Golden Street. It's worth walking along and entering some of its stores. If you're walking up this street, you'll see, on the left, a building called "HAOYOU Emporium". Behind it is a very interesting street market filled with little shops and restaurants. If you're feeling daring, you can try one of the insect snacks!!!
The trip between Shanghai and Beijing can be made by plane (2h30min, 550-650CNY), by high speed train (5h, 550CNY) or by regular train (9-10h, 300-400CNY).
For the sake of convenience, we recommend flying. However, if flying isn't your thing or you want to save a night in a hotel, the train is a good option (take it the night before if you choose the slow train). See the section Get Around to learn more about trains and how to reserve tickets.
Smart Link: the best flight offers can be found at China Trip. Sometimes they do odd things like send emails in Chinese, but they are very reliable, their prices are unbeatable, and the customer service (telephone, Skype, email, chat) is great (though with some minor problems with English). Compared with the airways' web sites, China Trip can be slightly more expensive, but the advantage is that their webpage works better and payment can be easily made with a credit card (not the case with all airlines).
Also check out the low-cost airline Spring Airlines (you won't find it at China Trip), in case they have a better offer for this trip. The price is given in American dollars, but keep in mind that it doesn't include any on-plane service, the maximum weight limit is 15 kg (after that, you are charged), and 20$ is added to the price your are initially quoted for duties, taxes and fuel.
Reservation details:
Choose from among the different options the one that best suits your schedule (we recommend leaving around 10.00 so that you can take advantage of the afternoon in Beijijng) and click on Book (all the airlines on this page are reliable).
Fill in your contact information and select a form of payment (PayPal or credit card).
You will be sent an email confirming your flight. To get your boarding card, all you need to do is show your passport at the check-in counter of the selected carrier.