100 Fun Things to See and Do in Beijing

As part of an orientation program for some English teachers earlier this month, I prepared this list of 100 fun things to see and do in Beijing. How many have you done?

1. Attend
   a Chinese Acrobat performance
2. Attend
   a concert in the National Opera House
3. Attend
   a folk or jazz concert at the Sanwei Bookstore
4. Attend
   a Peking Opera performance
5. Attend
   a show at the Lao She Teahouse
6. Attend
   services at one of the Catholic Churches
7. Attend
   services at one of the Protestant Churches
8. Attend
   the flag lowering ceremony at Tiananmen Square (sunset)
9. Attend
   the flag raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square (sunrise)
10. Climb
    the Great Wall at Jinshanling and hike to Simatai
11. Climb
    to the top of Coal Hill in Jingshan Park (just north of the Forbidden
    City)
12. Climb
    up the mountain, then ride down the alpine slide at Badachu Park
13. Dance
    with locals in the park in the morning or evening
14. Drink
    Shaken Iced Tea at Starbucks
15. Eat a
    bowl of Jia Zhang Mian (special noodles)
16. Eat a
    green pea pie at MacDonalds
17. Eat a
    Whopper at Beijing’s only Burger King inside Terminal 3 at the airport
18. Eat at
    an outdoor café in the lakes area (Hou hai)
19. Eat at
    Element Fresh
20. Eat at
    Hutong Pizza.
21. Eat at
    Pete’s TexMex
22. Eat at
    the Old Beijing Noodle Shop across from the Pearl Market
23. Eat
    baozi on the street for breakfast.
24. Eat
    Beijing Roast Duck
25. Eat
    candied fruit on a stick (bingtang hulu)
26. Eat
    fish and chips at Fish Nation (Sanlitun)
27. Eat
    jianbing on the street for breakfast.
28. Eat
    scorpions on a stick at the Wangfuing night market
29. Eat
    snacks on the street in the evening
30. Eat
    youtiao (oil sticks) on the street for breakfast
31. Enjoy
    a tea ceremony at a teahouse
32. Get a
    ‘dry hair wash’
33. Get a
    facial.
34. Get a
    foot massage
35. Get a
    medicure/pedicure
36. Go
    boating at Houhai
37. Go
    boating at the Summer Palace
38. Go to
    the top of the Gate of Heavenly Peace to look out over Tiananmen Square
39. Eat at
    the Bridge Café at Wudaokou
40. Go up
    into the tower at Deshengmen
41. Drink
    ‘bubble tea’ at a “Be For Time” teahouse. 
    
42. Hang
    out at The Village at Sanlitun (tons of Western restaurants; Apple Store)
43. Hang
    out in an exercise park
44. Have a
    suit or dress made
45. Rent a
    bike
46. Ride
    Subway Line 2 to either end.  Get
    off and explore.
47. Ride
    the alpine slide at Mutianyu Great Wall
48. Ride
    the tourist express train from Xizhimen to the Badaling Great Wall
49. See
    the pandas at the Beijing Zoo
50. Shop
    at Beijing Glasses City (low priced frames and lenses)
51. Shop
    at Jenny Lou’s imported foods market
52. Shop
    at Jingwuxing Wholesale Market
53. Shop
    at Ladies’ Street
54. Shop
    at Panjiayuan Antique Market
55. Shop
    at the clothing wholesale market across from the Beijing Zoo
56. Shop at
    the Harley Davidson store
57. Shop
    at the Liang Ma Flower Market (across the canal from the Lufthansa Center)
58. Shop
    at the Pearl Market (Hong Qiao)
59. Shop
    at the Silk Market (Xiu Shui Jie)
60. Shop
    at the wholesale fabric market at Muxiyuan
61. Shop
    at the world’s second largest IKEA store
62. Shop
    at the Yashow Market (Ya Xiu)
63. Shop
    at Tianyi Wholesale Market (Christmas Central in November and December)
64. Shop
    for antique furniture and reproductions at Gaobeidian
65. Shop
    for computers/electronics in Zhongguancun
66. Shop
    in the Xidan area
67. Take a
    boat ride along the canal
68. Take a
    bus to the end of the line.  Get off
    and explore. 
69. Visit
    “The Bookworm” (restaurant and bookstore—lots of current western titles)
70. Visit
    an art gallery
71. Visit
    Beihai Park
72. Visit
    Chuan Di Xia Ming Village (2.5 hours west of town in the mountains)
73. Visit
    Nan Lou Gu Xiang (cafés and nightclubs)
74. Visit
    the 798 Art District (galleries and restaurants)
75. Visit
    the ancient observatory at Jianguomen
76. Visit
    the Art Muesum
77. Visit
    the Bell Tower and Drum Towers
78. Visit
    the Bird’s Nest (pay to go inside)
79. Visit
    the Botanical Gardens
80. Visit
    the Capital History Museum
81. Visit
    the CCTV Tower.  This is best done
    on a very clear day.
82. Visit
    the China Minorities Park
83. Visit
    the Confucian Temple
84. Visit
    the Forbidden City
85. Visit
    the Fragrant Hills
86. Visit
    the Mausoleum of Chairman Mao at Tiananmen Square
87. Visit
    the Military Museum
88. Visit
    a morning market
89. Visit
    the Museum of Ancient Chinese Architecture
90. Visit
    the Old City Wall at Chongwenmen—Go into the Dongbianmen Tower at the east
    end to visit the Red Gate Art Gallery and view photos of Old Beijing
91. Visit
    the Old Summer Palace
92. Visit
    the pagoda park along the canal near the Mac.
93. Visit
    the Planetarium
94. Visit
    the Temple of Heaven
95. Visit
    the tomb of Matteo Ricci.
96. Visit
    the Water Cube (pay to go inside)
97. Visit
    the wholesale market across the canal from the hotel (Ling Long Lu and the
    canal road)
98. Visit
    the Yonghegong Lama Temple
99. Walk
    around Kunming Lake at the Summer Palace
100. Wander
     the old streets of the Da Zha Lan (Da Sha Lanr) district