Tip 1: Do Your Internet Research – Which Section of the Beijing Great Wall Tours to Visit?
There is no one single best place to visit the Beijing Great Wall Tours of China – as you can imagine with something as massive as the Great Wall, there are hundreds of component of the Beijing Great Wall that you can visit – some open to the public and free while others are not. The sections nearby to Beijing that is open to the public are Badaling, Juyongguan, Mutianyu and Shuiguan. Badaling is typically particularly crowded while Shuiguan is too small of a section to be value a visit. If you want to stay closer to Beijing, stick with Juyongguan or Mutianyu. There are also other fantastic sections of the Great Wall within a 2 – 3 hour drive of Beijing (Jinshanling, Simatai, Gubeikou, etc.) – check the internet for the pros and cons of visiting any of these sections. Badaling, Mutianyu and Simatai have cable cars to help you get up on the Great Wall, which are great to help those not physically able to do much hiking.
Tip 2: Hire a highly regarded Tour Guide with Driver
You will find this advice valuable for any touring that you do in China – like most tourist destinations, there are countless people around that make their living from cheating unsuspecting tourists. Horror stories abound, from being taken to the wrong (and much closer) section of the Wall than what you paid for to being forced to hand over more money or get out of the vehicle halfway to the Wall. It doesn’t cost that much more to hire a licensed tour guide and driver from a reliable Beijing tour company, and it is well worth the peace of mind and overall better experience rather than taking a risk on a complete stranger and “black” (illegal) taxi. Beijing China Tours guides are also costly for fending off destructive vendors who will try to sell you more types of material like water, t-shirts, postcards, and more. at exaggerated prices.
Tip 3: Wear Comfortable Clothing, Especially Shoes
This would seem to be just common sense, but when you go to the Great Wall, take notice of how many people, especially women, who are wearing high-heeled or dress shoes for climbing up on the Wall. Don’t worry about fashion – dress comfortably for the season, and wear shoes that are good for hiking/climbing – the more comfortable you are, the higher you can go for even better views on any section of the Beijing Great Wall that you visit.
Sam Lin has lived in Beijing for more than ten years and is the co-founder of Beijing Private Tour, For more information about Beijing China Tours, and Beijing Great Wall Tours please visit [ http://www.chinabeijingprivatetour.com/tours/china_private_tours.htm ]
