Secrets of Beijing
4-Day Beijing Highlights and Great Wall Night Tour
The Great Wall of China is one of the greatest sights in the world. Most tourists see the majestic Great Wall by day. Can you imagine, however, what is it like to catch the night views of the Great Wall?
Walk on the most picturesque Great Wall at Jinshanling. Stay overnight in a beautiful water town at the Simatai section of the Great Wall. Try out a Chinese cultural experience. Appreciate the stunning views of the Great Wall by night.
This 4-day Beijing tour combines the city highlights and a Great Wall night tour to give you a special experience during your stay in Beijing.
Tour 'Wow' Points
Explore the Hidden Halls of the Palace
Get off the ordinary sightseeing route in the Forbidden City. Listen to the stories of royal family life in the quiet and exquisite halls. Discover what the ancient Chinese emperors' lives were like


Witness the Most Picturesque Section of the Great Wall
Walk on the spectacular Great Wall at Jinshanling. See both a restored section and a wild section of the Wall.


Enjoy Dreamy Night Views of the Great Wall
See the Simatai Wall lit up along a mountain ridge at night. Sense its history in a new light. The tasteful illumination is both romantic and atmospheric.


Learn to be a Traditional Chinese Craftsman
Try out a handpicked cultural experience (tie-dyeing, kite making, or Buddhist text tracing).


Time Travel back to the China of Old
Take pictures of an authentically recreated Ming-Dynasty-style resort in Gubei Water Town.

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98.8% positive customer reviews among 10,000+
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Great tours!
I had an amazing two trips on the Great Wall and the Forbidden City with the guide Ivy during my stay in China. She was very helpful and answered all of our questions with an enthusiastic approach. I have nothing to say but to highly recommend the trips they offer on the Great Wall hiking/camping and also the in-depth Forbidden City tour! Thank you Ivy and China Highlights. more
May 2023,
Serhat Altay
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Amazing First Time to Beijing with China Highlights
Tom, my private tour guide was there when I landed and accompanied me all the way through to sending me off at the airport after check-in at the end of my trip. Zhao the driver, who also did all the driving during my trip, was calm, confident and knowledgeable in taking us around. Both Tom and Zhao were punctual too. The Great Wall of China Hike I wanted to do started in a very remote, unrestored part of the wall. This would not had been possible without Tom problem solving many issues we had on the way up and I could not have done this on my own a a foreigner. It was well worth the effort and probably the highlight of my trip.The remainder of the tour around Tiananmen Square, Forbidden Kingdom and The Temple of Heaven was paired with a detailed commentary by Tom of which I learnt a lot. more
May 2023,
Munsie
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Beijing - city of surprises
A fantastic guide was waiting for us - Jack, who told all the stories with passion and commitment. He also fulfilled those wishes that were not in the plan. I highly recommend visiting Beijing with this guide. more
May 2023,
Joanna i Piotr Kuzebscy
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Liu Yuan was a superb guide and a lot…
Liu Yuan was a superb guide and a lot of fun to spend time with during my first visit to Beijing. It was a wonderful intensive three days. more
May 2023,
Pam S.
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Great weather and a good trip out with Lily!
Many thanks to my guide Lily for customising the trip to make it as efficient and enjoyable as possible. She arranged to start an hour earlier to beat the crowd and I got to enjoy the Great Wall before the crowd streamed in and while the weather was cool. I requested to switch the next attraction to visit from Temple of Heaven to Ming Tomb and she not only accommodated the prompt request, but made all the necessary arrangements even before the trip coordinator managed to reply! Kudos! Our driver was jovial and friendly, always on top of traffic conditions and took detours to beat slow moving traffic. Hassle free day and I wouldn’t have been able to cover the two attractions so easily and comfortably without them! more
May 2023,
Meibao
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This was our first time traveling to Beijing
This was our first time traveling to China, so we really wanted to experience some of the major historical sights of Beijing together with a tour guide. Our itinerary was very carefully planned out according to our interests and tailored to our needs. First, we went camping on the Great Wall and hiked from Jiankou to Mutianyu, and the next day we got an in-depth tour of the Forbidden City as well as a tour of the Temple of Heaven and a taiji experience in the gardens. Our tour guide, Ivy, was truly wonderful in preparing and organizing our personalized itinerary. She is very friendly and knowledgeable, and she was always able and willing to answer all of our questions. Ivy provided us with a truly amazing first visit to China and I would warmly recommend China Highlights for everyone who wishes to travel to China and I would especially recommend Ivy as a tour guide for your trips! more
May 2023,
Annalina Wheeler
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Tom is the BEST tour guide EVER!
Just had the most AMAZING tour with Tom. He was beyond knowledgeable, so generous with his time and made me feel so at ease which was super important as I am travelling by myself. Thank you Tom for the best day-you have totally made my China trip a fabulous experience, one I will never forget! more
May 2023,
SHARRYN HINCHLIFFFE
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Superb service and wonderful time in Beijing
Superb service from Jack who were with us for 4 wonderful days in Beijing. Jack was clearly knowledgeable about the history and able to deliver insight information to us about places. He was also kind and accommodating to my mother who has bad knees. Both China Highlights and Jack were flexible about the itinerary to ensure that we enjoy the best of Beijing. We'll definitely use China Highlights' services again for our next trip to China. more
May 2023,
Chani
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Amazing Trip
First time booking a trip with China Highlights and was fortunate to have Sunny as my private tour guide. We went to the Jinshanling section of the Great Wall, then arrived and walked around Gubei Water Town, and then visited the Simatai portion of the Great Wall at night. Was a very enjoyable trip as we were able to see a night time drone show in the sky, ride a private boat through the canals of the Gubei Water Town, and eat a delicious lunch at a local restaurant along the way. Sunny is super knowledgeable when it comes to the history of the Great Wall and took the time to explain various interesting facts and stories which made the trip very meaningful. The driver we had was also a very nice man who was always on time and eager to help. Was an unforgettable experience and would highly recommend Sunny and China Highlights :) more
May 2023,
Allen C
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Tour to the great wall from the airport
My guide Tom was ver kind and knowlegable, he explained everything to me about the great wall and even went out of his way to help me the next day at Bejings downtown! amazing service!!! thank you so much Tom! more
May 2023,
Fer Villasefior
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Great tour, fantastic guide!
This tour was fantastic! I loved hearing about the history of the Forbidden City and admiring the views at the Great Wall. William was a fantastic tour guide. We were a group of families with several young children, and he was very accommodating and flexible with timing and arrangements. I totally recommend this tour and William as a guide! more
May 2023,
Ryan Corless
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Four excellent sightseeing days in Beijing
We had wonderful four days in Beijing. The entire trip was tailored exactly to our wishes. From experiencing local food, to exploring the major sites of the city up to hiking the great wall of China. Additionally, we had two amazing guides Ina and Fan taking care of all the tickets and coordination required. Also, they could not only tell us everything about the sights we visited and give us an insight to local customs and traditions, but they did so in perfect German. The chauffeur service from Mr Chang was also excellent, getting us from A to B without any hazzle. The past couple of days were one of the most carefree trips we have had so far. more
May 2023,
Katha
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Great tour from William
Great tour organized by China highlights, our tour guide was William - his knowledge was impressive, his English was great and he was always on time. We did the four day tour including the wall and forbidden city - would definitely recommend to anyone looking for an English tour guide. more
Apr 2023,
Lawrence
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Beijing 2 day private tour
The tour itself was great, private driver to and from, my guide Ivy was great English speaking guide. She was very knowledgeable and passionate about her country. Was a great time exploring the Great Wall of china and then my second day did a city tour (forbidden city, hutong tour, summer palace). Felt extremely safe, and was confident having an English guide. Thank you china highlights. (Provide them what you want and they’ll make it happen). Prices are reasonable as I looked at a few places but for private tour, my own schedule, and confidence of getting around safely you can’t go wrong. more
Apr 2023,
Mark
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Very enjoyable
Everything was to the vest standard, the history all very well explained by the Tour Guide in Beijing, Ivy. Really enjoyed it, and appreciated the time. more
Apr 2023,
Jonathan
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Amazing Beijing Experience
I had an amazing time in Beijing and glad Tom was my tour guide. He went above and beyond and I’m truly grateful. Tom did all that he could to ensure my stay in Beijing for two days was pleasant and thanks to him, I say that it was. The driver was also nice and courteous, I called him Jon. The company is blessed to have a good tour guide like Tom on their team so if you are planning to come down to Beijing, make sure you ask for Tom. Thank you Christy and Kimmy for replying all my emails with questions that I had. more
Apr 2023,
Pedro V
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Great experience
We had a great experience with China Highlights and Roger was highly efficient and helpful planning our itinerary exactly how we needed. more
Apr 2023,
Brenda Sarmanho
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Excellent service and tour guide!!
Excellent service and communication from the travel agent Roger Li and amazing tour and experience of Great Wall of China from our tour guide Amber. Highly recommended! more
Apr 2023,
Evangelos Athanasopoulos
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Maggie was such a tremendous help for…
Maggie was such a tremendous help for our recent Beijing trip. Very prompt and helpful in helping us plan and adjust/amend to our requests. more
Apr 2023,
Hi
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HK-Beijing-Wuhan-Guilin-HK
We travelled first to Beijing for a few days before moving on to Wuhan for the wedding and then for a few days in Guilin along with my son and daughter in law. It was a great trip and all went smothly with the help of the guides we had along the way. William in Beijing and Jenny in Guilin were excellent. Chas in HK was also very helpful in getting us to the right place and the right time to fly home. more
Apr 2023,
Alan Harris
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Itinerary Quick Look
Here is a suggested itinerary. We are happy to customize a tour according to your interests.
Your private guide will be ready to meet and greet you at the arrival hall of the airport or at the train station's exit. A comfortable private car (non-smoking) with an experienced driver will transfer you directly to your hotel where your guide will help you to check-in.
After breakfast, visit the historic Tian'anmen Square. Then enjoy the highlight of the day – the Forbidden City – which was home to 24 emperors in the Ming and Qing dynasties from 1420 to 1912.
In addition to giving you a background introduction on the Forbidden City's architecture, history, and art, your guide will take you to 12 selected places in the complex to discover the deep secrets of the royal families, while other group tours only visit six spots briefly.
Listen to the stories about eight famous royal figures in the two dynasties. Your guide will present a "living" Forbidden City to you.
After lunch, your guide and driver will take you to the Temple of Heaven - a place where emperors used to pray for a good harvest. The Circular Mound Altar, Echo Wall, and the Imperial Vault of Heaven are rated as key sights there, and you will see them all.
After breakfast, travel to the Great Wall at Jinshanling. It takes about 2½ hours to get there from central Beijing.
At the Jinshanling section, you can see both restored and wild parts of the Great Wall. A cable car ride will be arranged for you to get to the middle point of this section. Then you can choose whether to turn right for the restored section or left for the wild section. Both parts are great although the wild section is a bit more challenging.
You will have a late lunch at the foot of the Jinshanling section of the Great Wall and then drive for about 20 minutes to reach Gubei Water Town where you will stay overnight.
Have a rest or walk around the pretty town to enjoy the sunset's glow shining on the Chinese roofs and the Great Wall at Simatai.Take the cable car up to the wall and see the stunning night views. Simatai is the most recommended section of the wall which is lit up and open to tourists at night.
Enjoy your time at Gubei Water Town, which is in a traditional courtyard style. If you are an early bird, it is nice to walk around the water town when there are fewer people in the morning. Your guide will be happy to show you some selected places in Gubei Water Town that highlight the authentic Chinese style. Take the most pictures there, if you'd like to.
Afterward, we can arrange for you to have a "one out of three" experience in Gubei Water Town (lasting for about 45 minutes): tie-dyeing, kite making, or Buddhist text tracing. Try one of these Chinese cultural experiences to make your own unique souvenir.
The tour will end after lunch and it is better to choose a flight that departs after 5 pm as it will take about 2 hours to get to Beijing Capital International Airport.
Your guide will handle your luggage and transfer, and will accompany you to the correct check-in desk at the airport or to the train station for your departure.
Hotel Selection
—the Icing on the Cake
Boutique hotels are recommended to enrich your travel experience.



Price Includes:
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