Beijing Private Tour: The Central Axis and Hidden Gardens in Hutongs
Meeting Point
Exit A of National Art Museum (Line 8)
Jingshan Park
First stop: the city’s highest vantage point, tucked right behind the Forbidden City. Expect jaw-dropping views of old and new Beijing — and a heartbreaking dynasty story most tourists never hear.
Shichahai area
This area has almost everything you can imagine: natural view with far reaching lake, an ancient Taoist temple sitting beside the lake as well as all sorts of street food.
The Bell and Drum Tower
The birthplace of Beijing’s Central Axis — and the ancient clock that kept the city’s rhythm. Here, time wasn’t told by machines, but by sunlight, shadows, and centuries of daily ritual.
Lunch
We will have a 30-minute lunch break along the way
Pocket garden in hutongs
Nestled deep within a 400-year-old hutong is one of Beijing’s best-kept secrets — a tranquil garden tucked along the water’s edge. It’s the kind of place that feels almost impossible in a city this vast and frantic: a pocket of silence, greenery, and reflection, hidden in plain sight right in the bustling core. There shows you the past and present of the city and creative transformations the mega city is undergoing.