02/04/2018
What should you know about the Great Walls in China of Badaling, Mutianyu and Simatai?
Hiking the Great Wall is a must-do activity for every first time traveler in Beijing. The Great Wall of China can be divided into many parts. Most of the sections of Great Wall in Beijing are well-preserved and mainly remained from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), an era of huge construction. Here in this article, we provide with some useful information about visiting the three most visited Great Wall sections to help you choose a visit to suit your needs and requirements:
There are cable cars available in the three for you to climb further. Recommended length of visit: More than 3 hours for each section
Badaling Great Wall
Situated 72 km (44miles) northwest Beijing in Yanqing County, around 1 h 20min driving. Badaling(八达岭) is the best preserved and most visited section of the Great Wall of China. It is advised to visit for the first-time traveling in China, since most stairs are not very steep and they are equipped with handrails, it is easiest to climb and the most representative one with beautiful scenery.
Pulleys available (not recommended for little kids/ seniors)
Mutianyu Great Wall
Mutianyu (慕田峪) Great Wall section is located 73 km(47 miles)in Huairou County, 1h30min driving from Beijing City. Mutianyu offers great landscape and represents a good trade-off for people that don’t want to travel too far from Beijing but at the same time would like to visit a section a bit wilder than Badaling. The advantage is that it is less visited, fewer tourists, but not as grand as Badaling.
Luge/toboggan down the spot available
Simatai Great Wall:
120 km (75 miles) northeast of Beijing, 3 hours driving from Beijing City.
Simatai(司马台) is a lot more authentic with odd loose bricks, some steep steps, physical demanding, it can be strenuous. Not as renovated as Badaling, Simatai is left more or less in its natural state, it is the only section opened for a night tour, top choice for Great Wall Hikers and Photographers.
There are shops/merchants along the road in visiting the Great Wall.
GoTourChina offers Circle tours (operated every month), Tailor-made trips to Great Wall for different customer preferences equipped with knowledgeable and thoughtful guides.
Circle tour: 65USD a day/P.P., classic Badaling visit, English and Spanish speaking guide available.
Tailor made: High cost - efficiency, for individuals, groups of corporate incentive trips, educational tours.
No shopping outlets, no detours, but high quality tours.
[email protected] www.GoTourChina.com