Beijing 2-Day Tours: Great Wall, Forbidden City & Top Highlights
Overview
Available languages
2 days
Mobile ticket
This all-inclusive small-group tour is the ultimate way to experience all of Beijing’s highlights, even with a limited schedule. Over two days, see the most iconic Tiananmen Square, the UNESCO-listed Forbidden City, the Great Wall of China at Mutianyu, Temple of Heaven, Lama Temple, and Summer Palace, as well as enjoy a rickshaw ride through the old Hutong alleys bustling with local life.
- Mini group with more personalized service
- Seamless, door-to-door hotel transfers
- All-inclusive and no hidden charges
Additional Info
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Specialized infant seats are available
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Tickets to the Forbidden City require a real-name reservation 7 days in advance and are easily sold out, so you are advised to book the tour as early as possible. Otherwise, international travelers will need to line up at the entrance to buy tickets.
We offer free pick-up within the Third Ring Road of Beijing, beyond which there will be an extra charge, so we suggest you book centrally located downtown hotels. Please get ready at the hotel lobby at least 5 minutes in advance of the pick-up time confirmed with you a day before. No-show is non-refundable.
Please provide the correct passport information for booking the real-name tickets. Make sure to carry the same identification when travelling; otherwise, you’ll be refused entry by the scenic areas.
Group Size: About 12 people. There are chances that 10% of the tour groups will exceed 12 people but we’ll make proper arrangements.
Departures are guaranteed with three persons.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What To Expect
Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Mutianyu Great Wall
Food and Drinks
LUNCH
Lunch
Buffet lunch
Beijing
In the morning, your professional guide will pick you up at your hotel lobby, and then a comfortable and capacious chauffeur-driven vehicle will escort you to Tiananmen Square.
Tiananmen Square
Walk around this large square and shoot photos of the brilliant landmark buildings. Note: To pass through the security check quickly, especially during holidays, we suggest you leave your bag in the car and carry only your passport and bottled water to go through the no-bag passage.
Chairman Mao Memorial Hall (Maozhuxi Jiniantang)
Appearance
Monument of the People's Heroes
Appearance
Great Hall of the People (Renmin Dahuitang)
Appearance
National Museum Of China
Appearance
The Palace Museum
Walk through the Gate of Heavenly Peace, and you’ll reach the Forbidden City/ Palace Museum, the home to 24 emperors from 1368 to 1911 AD. Visit the most essential palaces on the central axis and chambers on the two wings among its 9,999 rooms, with in-depth explanations and expert photography guidance. Note: If your travel date falls on a Monday when the Forbidden City is closed, we’ll visit the royal resort Summer Palace instead. Besides, the Forbidden City visit does not include the Treasure Gallery, the Gallery of Timepieces, or any temporary exhibitions.
Meridian Gate (Wu Men)
Visit
Hall of Great Harmony (Taihe Dian)
Visit the three main halls of the Outer Court where ancient emperors held state ceremonies.
Palace of Heavenly Purity
Visit the three main palaces of the Inner Court - the emperor’s sleeping quarters and the place for him to handle daily affairs.
The Imperial Garden of The Palace Museum
Visit the entertainment venue for the emperor and the imperial harem.
Mutianyu Great Wall
After 1.5 hours’ driving, you’ll arrive at Mutianyu, the best-preserved and most popular section of the Great Wall of China. A Chinese buffet lunch with soft drinks will be prepared for you to refuel before the afternoon. After lunch, enjoy your hike and take nice photos on the Great Wall for at least 2.5 hours. The round-way cable car rides, or a chairlift up and toboggan down are included, and you can make your own choice. Notice for Toboggan: Children under 10 need to be escorted by an adult; travelers aged 60 and above, or those with hypertension or heart disease, are not permitted to take it. After descending from the Great Wall, relax with a Chinese tea ceremony to learn about traditional tea culture and taste different flavors of tea
Thereafter, your guide and driver will escort you back to your hotel.
Temple of Heaven, Hutong Alleys, Lama Temple & Summer Palace
Temple of Heaven
In the morning, your guide and driver will pick you up from your hotel and escort you to the Temple of Heaven, where the emperors worshiped the God of Heaven for good harvest in ancient times. Note: If your travel date falls on Monday when the main sights of the Temple of Heaven are closed, we’ll arrange Beihai Park instead.
Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest
A large circular palace with a roof covered in three layers of blue glazed tiles for the emperors to hold sacrificial ceremonies.
Yuanqiutan
Open-air altar where the emperor offered sacrifices to heaven on the Winter Solstice.
Hutong Tour
Continue your tour to Beijing Hutong area, where you can take a rickshaw through the old alleys and visit a traditional courtyard to see how the old Beijingers live.
Follow your guide to visit the beautiful old Lama Temple, which is known as the largest and most perfectly-preserved lamasery in Beijing.
Summer Palace
Here’s the last stop. Mainly consisting of the Longevity Hill and the Kunming Lake, this imperial resort is reputed as the ‘museum of ancient Chinese royal gardens’. In the end, your guide and driver will escort you back to your hotel.
What‘s Included
Free headset to receive your guide's explanations.
Hotel pickup & drop off within the third ring road of the Beijing city.
Lunch
Professional English-speaking tour guide, driver & air-conditioned vehicle.
Entrance fees to tourist sites
Unlimited bottles of drinking water.
Buffet lunch with soft drinks on Day 1 (Halal food and baby food not available).
Mutianyu Great Wall round-way cable car or chairlift up & toboggan down, which costs US$20/person.
Baby seat for free.
Gratuities to guide and driver
Not suitable for: People over 85 years old or with wheelchair
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Options
Great Wall & Forbidden City
Mini Group of about 12 pax: Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City/Palace Museum, Buffet Lunch, Mutianyu Great Wall.
Duration: 10 hours
Includes: Hotel pickup & drop-off, entry fees, round-trip cable car or chairlift up & toboggan down, English-speaking guide, driver.
Note: Toboggan at Great Wall is not available for visitors over 60. You may take the round-trip cable car ride instead.
Pickup included
2 Days Mini Group Beijing Tour
Mini Group of about 12 pax: D1: Tiananmen Sq, Forbidden City, Buffet Lunch, Mutianyu Great Wall
D2: Temple of Heaven, Hutong, Lama Temple, Summer Palace
Duration: 2 days
Includes: Hotel pickup & drop-off, entry fees, round-trip cable car or chairlift up & toboggan down, English-speaking guide, driver.
Note: Toboggan at Great Wall is not available for visitors over 60. You may take the round-trip cable car ride instead.
Pickup included
Reviews
784 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Well worth joining an organised tour!
641philipt,Apr 20, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00This tour is not as simple as it seems. Our tour guide, Helen was regularly organising detail and not just accompanying us. This meant that we got far more out of the tour than we would have been able to arrange ourselves. Highly recommended.
Beijing tianamen forbidden city great wall temple of heaven.
Stratis T,Apr 19, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00We visited beijing for 4 nights. 1st day the lake 2nd forbidden city tianamen square 3rd great wall And 4th temple of heaven. We were lucky odynovo tours helped us do a good planning. Jack our guide a beijing native was very friendly and helped us with all our questions. Tge driver and the can highly professional. I highly recommend it.
Beijing Highlights
John C,Apr 18, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00It was very nice having a guide like Helen to help navigate the challenging lineups and move past the crowds.
Fun trip
Odyssey34799286055,Apr 18, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Helen is warm & welcoming from the moment she picked us from the hotel. She took us to the Forbidden City and the Great Wall and was a world of knowledge.
“Above and beyond, unforgettable experience”
cathybX9065EA,Apr 17, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Helen was an absolutely incredible guide and truly made our experience unforgettable. Her English is excellent, and her deep knowledge of history brought every place to life. From Tiananmen Square to the Forbidden City and the Great Wall of China, she shared fascinating stories and insights that made us appreciate each site so much more. We actually went all the way to Watchtower 21 on the Great Wall and ended up running late to meet the group—but Helen went above and beyond. She made sure the group was settled in a tea house and personally came back to pick up me and my partner. That level of care and dedication is rare and meant so much to us. Helen is not only knowledgeable but also kind, thoughtful, and incredibly professional. We felt completely taken care of the entire time. If you’re looking for a guide who is passionate, reliable, and truly cares about your experience, Helen is the one. Highly recommend! ❤️ From Canada Cathy and Brandon
An unforgettable day in Beijing!
G6144ICemmanuelleg,Apr 17, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00We had an amazing time. Everything was very well organized. The group was great and our guide Helen was super nice and knowledgable.
my top choice for day tour in beijing
E1067OYangelj,Apr 17, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00unforgettable day tour hosted by Helen who is very helpful & kind! she gave a lot of info & history on the locations we visited. she is very resourceful and it made the tour very pleasant. 🥰 admission fees are covered in the tour price as well, increasing convenience & transparency of cost. the 12 member group atmosphere was fun & easy going too! this tour is best for those to tick off some amazing locations on the bucket list (forbidden city, great wall, tiananmen square). there is a fair amount of walking (& steep slopes at the great wall) but the views & sights made it so worth the trip. the cable car ride at the great wall had a great view! there were visits to a jade shop & teahouse with a wide variety of choices, but staff were not pushy at all. buffet food was pretty good! highly recommended day tour for sure~
Highly recommended!
168bradleyo,Apr 15, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00I had an excellent day with Helen and twelve other tourists: in one day, we went to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden Palace, and the Great Wall, and we even managed to squeeze in trips to a buffet restaurant and a traditional teahouse. The square and the palace were incredibly busy and chaotic at times, but Helen managed to get us through with no problems. She was very knowledgeable, professional, and conscientious. I don't normally go in for guided tours, but I would recommend this one to anybody.
Beijing tour
cavey604,Apr 15, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Had an amazing day exploring Beijing with Helen as our guide. She was knowledgeable, easygoing, and made everything run smoothly. It would’ve been extremely hard to do this on our own — doing a tour like this is so much better. We got to hit all the main spots and learned way more than we would have by ourselves. Helen made the whole day seamless and really enjoyable. Highly recommend! Ryan Australia
Best tour in Beijing for 2 days to cover highlights
MethaneRus,Apr 15, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Helen was an excellent guide and itinerary was fantastic for 2 days in Beijing. I highly recommend if you have limited amount in days in Beijing and want to see the highlights.
From US$99.00
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