Beijing Great Wall & Summer Palace tour two heritage sites
Two World Heritage sites in eight hours, with a guide who knows the stories behind them
A Beijing one-day tour visiting Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace with a professional English-speaking guide, hotel pickup and drop-off, entrance tickets to both sites, cable car access, and lunch included. Choose between a small group tour (max 8 people) for a shared experience with attentive service, or a private tour for a dedicated guide and customized pace. The Mutianyu section draws fewer crowds than other wall sections and sits surrounded by forest and orchards.
Step-by-step itinerary
Explore Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace
- Meet guide in hotel lobby
- Travel to Mutianyu Great Wall
- Ascend Wall by cable car or ski lift
- Hike along Great Wall sections
- Descend by toboggan, ski lift, or cable car
- Enjoy lunch
- Visit Summer Palace East Gate
- Tour Hall of Benevolence and Longevity
- Explore Hall of Happiness and Longevity
- Walk along Long Corridor
- See Marble Boat
- Return to hotel
What’s included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off.
- professional English-speaking guide.
- entrance tickets to both Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace.
- cable car round trip or ski lift up and toboggan descent at the Great Wall.
- bottled water throughout the day.
- lunch with a vegetarian option available on request.
Times
- Monday and Saturday 07:00 07:30 08:00 09:00
- Every day except Monday and Saturday 07:00 08:00 09:00
Options for this experience
4 optionsInformation
Prices and times updated today
Operated by Discover Beijing Tours
The experience
The day starts with hotel pickup at a time that suits your schedule, then a drive to Mutianyu Great Wall while your guide shares the history and context of what you're about to see. Mutianyu draws a fraction of the crowds that gather at Badaling, and the section itself sits within forest, over 96% tree coverage, so the experience feels less like a monument and more like a walk through landscape that happens to contain ancient watchtowers and beacon towers. You choose how to ascend: cable car or ski lift. Once on the wall, you hike at your own pace, with the guide available to explain what you're standing in front of and to answer questions as they come up.
The descent offers another choice: a toboggan ride down the slope, or cable car and ski lift back to ground level. After Mutianyu, lunch arrives before the afternoon shift to Summer Palace, a royal garden that sits on the World Heritage List. The guide leads you through the East Gate and into the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity, where Qing Dynasty emperors and empresses made decisions that shaped the empire. From there, the route moves through the Hall of Happiness and Longevity, the residence of Empress Dowager Cixi, and then to the Long Corridor, a covered passageway lined with thousands of paintings drawn from Chinese mythology and history. The final stop is the Marble Boat, a structure built to symbolize stability within the garden's design.
If you book the small group option, you'll travel with no more than seven other people, which keeps the guide's attention distributed and the stops from feeling rushed. If you book private, the guide works only for your group, adjusting the pace and the depth of explanation to match what interests you. Both options include the same sites, the same guide language (English), the same cable car access and lunch, and the same hotel transport at both ends of the day.
Is this one for you?Book the small group option if you want the company of other travelers and a more relaxed pace with guide attention shared across the group. Choose the private tour if you're traveling with people you know and want the guide to focus entirely on your group's interests and timing. It's the way to customize what you linger on and what you move past quickly.
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Top questions
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (4 to 10 years); Infant (under 4): free.
What happens if it rains?
It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.
How does Mutianyu compare to the other Great Wall sections near Beijing?
Mutianyu draws far fewer visitors than Badaling and sits within forest rather than open hillside, which means the wall feels less like a crowded tourist site and more like a walk through wooded terrain where watchtowers and beacon towers emerge. The section is known for being less bustling and more secluded.
What's included in the lunch, and can I request vegetarian food?
Lunch is included in the tour price. Vegetarian options are available. Let the operator know at the time of booking if you need one.
Do I have to hike the Great Wall, or can I just walk around the base?
The tour includes time to explore the Mutianyu section at your own pace after you ascend via cable car or ski lift. Your guide provides historical context and is available to answer questions, but you decide how far and how long you walk along the wall itself.
What time does the tour start, and how do I know my pickup location?
The small group tour departs at 7:30 a.m., though the exact pickup time depends on your hotel's location and the sequence of other pickups that day. The operator confirms your specific pickup time and location in an email sent the day before departure. Check that email to arrive on time, as pickups wait no longer than 10 minutes past the scheduled slot.
Is this tour private or shared, and what's the difference?
You choose at checkout: the small group tour travels with up to 8 people total and costs less. The private tour is for your group alone with a dedicated guide who adjusts the pace and focus to your interests. Both visit the same two sites and include the same guide, tickets, cable car and lunch.
How long is the whole day, and what time does it end?
The tour runs eight to nine hours from pickup to drop-off. Exact return time depends on your hotel location and the pickup sequence, but the operator confirms this in the pre-departure email.
Beijing Great Wall & Summer Palace tour two heritage sites
8h–9h · EN · at your hotel
from US$ 138 per person