Beijing

Country: People's Republic of China · 21,893,095 inhabitants

Attractions

Wikivoyage

Beijing (北京 Běijīng) is China's capital and its second-largest city after Shanghai, with a population of around 22 million. With a rich history as the capital of Imperial China for much of its past, Beijing became the political and cultural heart of the People's Republic of China following the Chinese revolutions.

The city is renowned for its flat terrain and orderly layout. Within the city limits, you'll find just three hills, all in Jingshan Park, north of the famous Forbidden City. Beijing's urban structure is marked by its concentric "ring roads," which are actually rectangular in shape, mirroring the configuration of the Forbidden City.

Beijing is a city of contrasts, where the old meets the new, particularly within the 2nd and 3rd Ring Roads. Here, cutting-edge technologies and modern social innovations coexist with historical architecture and alleyways. While the people of Beijing may initially seem reserved, they are warm and engaging once you get to know them. As you explore Beijing, be mindful of customs and social norms that may differ from your own; see the China article for further insights. However, Beijing is home to sophisticated urbanites, so the cultural differences here may be less pronounced than in rural areas or other cities in China's interior.

Wikipedia

Beijing, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's most populous national capital city, as well as China's second largest city by urban area, after Shanghai. It is located in Northern China, and is governed as a municipality under the direct administration of the State Council with 16 urban, suburban, and rural districts. Beijing is mostly surrounded by Hebei Province and neighbors Tianjin to the southeast; together, the three divisions form the Jing-Jin-Ji cluster.

Beijing is a global city and one of the world's leading centres for culture, diplomacy, politics, finance, business and economics, education, research, language, tourism, media, sport, science and technology, transportation, and art. It is home to the headquarters of most of China's largest state-owned companies and houses the largest number of Fortune Global 500 companies in the world, as well as the world's four biggest financial institutions by total assets. It is also a major hub for the national highway, expressway, railway, and high-speed rail networks. For a decade before the COVID-19 pandemic, Beijing Capital International Airport was Asia's busiest airport (2009–2019) and the second busiest airport in the world (2010–2019). In 2020, the Beijing subway was the fourth busiest and second longest in the world. Beijing Daxing International Airport, Beijing's second international airport, is the largest single-structure airport terminal in the world. The city has hosted numerous international and national sporting events, the most notable being the 2008 Summer Olympics and 2008 Summer Paralympics Games. In 2022, Beijing became the first city ever to host both the Summer and Winter Olympics, and also the Summer and Winter Paralympics.

The architecture of Beijing contains elements of both traditional Chinese architecture with modern styles, with one side of the city being modernized and renovated, and the other half still offering traditional hutong districts. Beijing is one of the oldest cities in the world, with recorded history spanning over three millennia. As the last remaining one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China, Beijing has been and still is the political center of the country for most of the past eight centuries, and was the largest city in the world by population for much of the second millennium AD. With mountains surrounding the inland city on three sides, in addition to the ancient city fortifications, Beijing was strategically poised and developed to be the residence of the emperor. The city is renowned for its opulent palaces, temples, parks, gardens, tombs, walls and gates. Beijing is considered one of the most well-known tourist destinations in the world. In 2018, Beijing was the second highest earning tourist city in the world after Shanghai. Beijing is home to many national monuments and museums and has eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites—the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, Ming Tombs, Zhoukoudian Peking Man Site, Beijing Central Axis and parts of the Great Wall and the Grand Canal—all of which are popular tourist locations. Siheyuans, the city's traditional housing style, and hutongs, the narrow alleys between siheyuans, are major tourist attractions and are common in urban Beijing.

Beijing's public universities make up more than one-fifth of Double First-Class Construction universities, and many of them consistently rank among the best in the Asia-Pacific and the world, including Tsinghua University, Peking University and UCAS. Beijing CBD is a center for Beijing's economic expansion, with the ongoing or recently completed construction of multiple skyscrapers. Beijing's Zhongguancun area is a world leading center of scientific and technological innovation as well as entrepreneurship. Beijing has been ranked the city with the largest scientific research output by the Nature Index since the list's inception in 2016. Beijing hosts 176 foreign embassies as well as the headquarters of many organizations, including the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the Silk Road Fund, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the Central Academy of Fine Arts, the Central Academy of Drama, the Central Conservatory of Music, and the Red Cross Society of China.