Summer is just around the corner, and the desire to step out and explore is irresistible!
With the weekend approaching, let’s embark on a journey to explore the surroundings of Beijing!
Gubei Water Town, Miyun
Why travel to Venice when you can find a water town right here? At first glance, you might mistake this place for Wuzhen in Hangzhou, with its small bridges, flowing water, and charming houses. However, this is actually Gubei Water Town, located in Miyun County, Beijing.
Here, you can visit the best-preserved section of the Simatai Great Wall, stay in a northern-style inn at the foot of the Great Wall, wander through the bustling northern commercial street, savor authentic northern cuisine and snacks at restaurants like Shaorouguan, and explore numerous ancient town attractions such as Yongshun Dyeing House, Zhenyuan Security Escort Agency, Sima Xiaoshao, and Eight Banner Guild Hall. Don’t forget to soak in a hot spring, enjoy a play, sip tea, and relish in the rare moments of leisure.
📍 Gubei Water Town, Simatai Village, Gubeikou Town, Miyun County, Beijing
Qianjiadian Town, Yanqing – A Journey Through a Hundred Miles of Picturesque Landscape
Yanqing County, located 74 kilometers from Beijing’s city center, is surrounded by mountains on three sides and water on one side. It boasts an excellent ecological environment and serves as an important ecological barrier in the northwest of the capital.
Yanqing is a crucial transportation hub with well-developed urban and rural roads. Its unique climate, cold in winter and cool in summer, has earned it the reputation of being Beijing’s “Summer Capital.”
Relying on the beautiful Heibai River, the entire town has transformed the 112-kilometer Heibai River Ring Road into a thousand-acre sunflower sea. With 12 tourist nodes, including Xiushui Bay, town center, Gangou, and Gujiashanzhai, the town has created a “one ditch, one product” and “one village, one product” concept, making it a gathering area for “mountain and water homes” folk custom households in the hundred-mile picturesque gallery.
Qianjiadian Town is approximately 170 kilometers from Beijing, making it an ideal choice for both self-driving and cycling. Yanqing’s hundred-mile gallery was ranked as the top of Beijing’s 10 best self-driving routes in 2007. Along the way, there are several well-known tourist attractions, such as the Silicified Wood Park, Yanshan Pinghu, Datan Nature Reserve, Dishugu, Wulong Gorge, and more, all worth visiting.
Beijing Botanical Garden
The peach blossoms in the northern part of the Beijing Botanical Garden are currently in full bloom. From late March to May, the Peach Blossom Festival at the Botanical Garden will once again bring the most beautiful peach colors to the city.
In the Peach Blossom Garden of the Botanical Garden, there are about 100 acres of peach blossoms, with over 10,000 peach trees of 70 varieties, including red and white peach blossoms, crimson peach, longevity peach, and Yunlong peach, transforming the Botanical Garden into a world of peach blossoms.
Based on previous years, the Shantao Huaxi Scenic Area, located southwest of the Cao Xueqin Memorial Hall, will be the first to enter its prime viewing period. In fact, the peach blossoms here have already begun to bloom in the past few days, attracting numerous visitors. Hurry up and visit before it gets too crowded!
Best viewing period: March 24 to May 1
Feicui Island – A Spring Visit to the Sea
Compared to Beidaihe, Feicui Island remains serene even amidst the hustle and bustle. The yellow, stretching sand dunes resemble a young girl’s lowered eyelids, the woods are her fluttering eyelashes, and the blue sea is her most affectionate eyes. The name “The Kiss Mark of the Desert and the Sea” itself exudes a romantic atmosphere.
Here, you can fully enjoy playing on the sandy beach. The seawater is very clean, and you can clearly see the colors change with depth, creating a unique sense of beauty.
Chateau Changyu AFIP – A Taste of Europe
At Chateau Changyu AFIP in Beijing’s European Town, you’ll find French sycamore avenues, fresh grape picking gardens, Gothic castles, underground wine cellars, a European town, Changyu’s century-old history museum, and a landscape leisure area. Here, you can fully immerse yourself in the joys brought by wine culture, connect with nature, and completely relax your body and mind.
The town combines European architectural styles and is built along the mountains, boasting beautiful natural scenery and fresh air. Its geographical location is unparalleled, making it a French-style town that integrates accommodation, catering, conferences, entertainment, leisure, and tourism.
Here, you’ll find the irreplicable century-old Changyu brand and an unmatched journey of fine wine and food culture. Everything in the town exemplifies the extraordinary qualities of Chateau Changyu AFIP as the “new leader of international chateaus”!
Huanghuacheng Water Great Wall – Escape the Crowds
While everyone knows about the Badaling Great Wall, have you heard of the Huanghuacheng Water Great Wall? Located in Jiuduhe Town, Huairou District, Beijing, it is 65 kilometers away from the city center, taking about an hour and a half by car.
The scenery here is quite different from the Badaling Great Wall. The water Great Wall, set against the backdrop of the Haoming Lake, adds infinite beauty and tenderness to the majestic Great Wall.
On both sides of the main street in Xishuiyu Village, where the water Great Wall is located, you’ll find numerous farmhouse inns. For those accustomed to the delicacies of the city, be sure to try the simple and delicious farmhouse dishes!
Weixian – A Historical City Beyond the Great Wall
In this small, quiet county town, you can experience everything that an ancient city beyond the Great Wall should have. There is hardly any tourism development, but there are ample tourism elements. Almost every gate, small tower, and small temple in each household is worth a look.
Visibility is high in the north, and the sunlight in the afternoon easily forms a golden color, plating the ancient houses and the honest faces of the Hebei people. The Chinese New Year celebration in Weixian is lively and extraordinary. Do you remember the iron flower performance from the TV show “Where Did Dad Go”? This is also a New Year custom in Weixian. Kids who don’t want to go home can go to Weixian to celebrate the New Year.
European-style Life on the Italian-style Street, Wuqing, Tianjin
This Florence Town is not in Italy but located in Wuqing District, Tianjin, between Beijing and Tianjin. Walking here, you’ll see not only the traces of Florence’s yellow-walled old streets but also the shadows of many other places in Italy, such as Venice with gondolas shuttling through, St. Mark’s Square, the most beautiful living room in Europe, and the circular Roman Colosseum, all in miniature versions, of course.
In addition to sightseeing, Florence Town is also an outlet shopping plaza with hundreds of international brands. Strolling here, even just looking at various big brands, can put you in a great mood.
Buy a cup of hot coffee at the corner café, carefully observe everything in this town amidst the aroma of coffee, listen to the lively melodies coming from your headphones, and you will sincerely discover that life can be indescribably beautiful.
The Sea of Peach Blossoms in Pinggu
Pinggu’s peach blossoms are world-renowned. Every spring, 220,000 mu (about 36,667 acres) of peach blossoms bloom like a sea, stretching as far as the eye can see, with tender peach colors filling your vision.
You can drive through the hundred-mile peach blossom corridor (Guanzhuang Intersection – Xiaoyuzi Peach Blossom Sea – Dayuzi – Houbei Palace – Wangxin Village – Xiyan Road – Yukou) and take photos with the peach blossoms to capture this spring.
Additionally, if you want to view the peach blossoms from a different angle, you can go to Pinggu Mafang Stone Buddha Airport. It has opened one of the first low-altitude tourism routes connecting the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region in China. Here, you can take a general aviation aircraft, overlook the ground from a high altitude, and fully enjoy the sea of peach blossoms.
Best viewing period: Early April to early May
West Causeway of the Summer Palace
Every spring, flowers bloom all over Beijing, but in terms of urban areas, the most stunning place, in Little Bei’s opinion, is the Summer Palace.
There is a long causeway winding along the shore of Kunming Lake. It was built by craftsmen imitating the Su Causeway in Hangzhou after Emperor Qianlong’s six southern tours. It is the West Causeway of the Summer Palace.
The ten-mile West Causeway has beautiful scenery in all four seasons: spring flowers, summer lotuses, autumn willows, and winter branches. Of course, the most beautiful scenery at this time is the peach blossoms on the West Causeway.
Peach blossoms meander along the embankment, with countless branches full of peaches, hanging by the shore and falling into the water. The light pink and snow-white mountain peach blossoms, together with the bright yellow forsythia and winter jasmine, form an intoxicating spring scene!
Best viewing period: Late March to early April
Taoyuan Fairy Valley
Miyun Taoyuan Fairy Valley is located in the Yunmeng Mountain area, with a total length of 8 kilometers. The valley is densely forested with numerous pools and waterfalls. It has one lake, six waterfalls, thirteen pools, three peaks, four caves, and more than 70 scenic spots, such as the Great Wall resembling a long dragon up close and the spectacular view of the sea of clouds from afar, like a natural landscape gallery of a paradise on earth.
Every March and April, flowers bloom in the valley. Before the Qingming Festival, the first to bloom are the apricot flowers, covering the valley and hillsides in full bloom. Then come the fiery red peach blossoms, making the scenery here even more gorgeous.
By the end of April, the snow-white pear blossoms adorn the branches, and after the Labor Day holiday, the rhododendrons bloom, covering the mountains in patches and clusters, like rosy clouds and fire. Throughout the entire spring, by the water streams and under the cliffs, hundreds of flowers compete for beauty, adorning the valley in a riot of colors.
Best viewing period: Late March to early April
The Nearest Desert to Beijing, Kubuqi, Inner Mongolia
The nearest desert to Beijing is a favorite of many outdoor hikers. If you have been to many delicate and gentle places, you might as well experience the ruggedness and vastness of the desert. In Kubuqi, you can see the beautiful dune curves and the sunset scenery of the desert. It’s also quite romantic for couples to take photos~
Self-driving route: Beijing – Beijing-Zhangjiakou Expressway – Zhangjiakou – Hohhot – Baotou (Jiuyuan Exit) – Towards Ordos (Dongsheng) – Cross the Yellow River Bridge – Dalad Banner (Shulinzhao) – Return to Beijing. The total distance is 666 kilometers.
Pofeng Ridge
We all know that Pofeng Ridge is famous for its autumn red leaves, but we cannot ignore its beauty in spring. Every spring, it becomes a garden of purple and red flowers, and you can see gorgeous blooms everywhere as you stroll through it.
It is not far from the city center, yet far from the hustle and bustle. It has the brilliance of spring and the freshness of the mountains. In March and April, apricot blossoms, peach blossoms, winter jasmine, pear blossoms, forsythia, and cotinus coggygria flowers… various flowers bloom in succession, beautiful and refreshing.
The scenic area also has a 6,800-meter trail, as well as the summer resort “Yuxu Palace” and the outdoor tourism route of Hongluo Three Dangers. There are 18 viewing platforms, 5 viewing pavilions, and 20 natural ecological scenic spots distributed in the scenic area. At the same time, there are various activities such as rock climbing, spring outings, picking, parent-child activities, and everything for eating, drinking, playing, and entertainment.
The peach blossoms are one of the most beautiful sights in the mountains at this time. If you have time, you can book the Yinjuxiangli-Yunshang Stone House in the scenic area. This inn is transformed from local folk houses, surrounded by mountains, with peach blossoms in full bloom, a picturesque rural scene, and a perfect place for viewing flowers in spring.
Best viewing period: April
Tianjin Grand Canal Peach Blossom Festival
The 32nd Tianjin Grand Canal Peach Blossom Cultural, Trade, and Tourism Festival is tentatively scheduled to open on March 17th.
The theme of this year’s Peach Blossom Festival is “New Chapter of Peach and Willow, Vibrant Hongqiao”, with four characteristic highlights:
First, colorful cultural activities. Visitors can not only enjoy flowers and parks on the Peach Blossom Embankment and in Xigu Park but also taste the characteristic delicacies of “Hongqiao on the Tip of the Tongue”, listen to crosstalk, watch performances, enjoy light shows and Hanfu exhibitions, and fully experience “eating, living, traveling, touring, shopping, and entertainment”.
Second, attracting customers and promoting consumption with flowers. Hongqiao District will set up commuter buses to connect the Peach Blossom Embankment, Xigu Park with Tianjin West Railway Station, Lujiazui, and Shuiyoucheng, and hold short video competitions and e-commerce live-streaming events to achieve the “linking of beads into a chain” of cultural, commercial, and tourism resources.
Third, promoting investment with flowers. Hongqiao District will organize investment signing, tourism resource exhibition, industry docking, and other investment promotion activities to further grasp investment, projects, and industries, and strive to attract more entrepreneurs to visit, investigate, invest and start businesses in Hongqiao.
Best viewing period: Late March to early April
Ji County
The peach blossoms in Ji County are simply all over the mountains. Among them, Chuanfangyu Peach Blossom Valley Villa and Chutouling are quite outstanding. Among them, Anping Peach Blossom Valley in Chutouling Town enjoys the reputation of the Royal Fairy Peach Garden in the Qing Dynasty. It currently has two thousand mu of peach trees planted and has held two sessions of the Anping Peach Blossom Valley Peach Blossom Festival.
In Xinshuichang, Bachigou, Dongshuichang and other places in Chuanfangyu Town, the mountain peach blossoms are the most stunning, all over the mountains. Especially in the area of Xinshuichang and Bachigou, known as the “Ten Miles Peach Blossom Valley”, it is a piece of pink and a piece of snow-white, like colorful clouds leaning on the mountains.
In addition, peach blossoms are also in full bloom in Dalinghou, Huangyaguan, Panshan, Lujiagou, Tianjiagou, Zhaipinghu and other places. It can be said that when you go to Ji County, you can see peach blossoms everywhere, and everywhere is the “Three Lives Three Worlds Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms”.
Best viewing period: Late March to mid-late April
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