An English name gets you nowhere with a Beijing taxi driver. "The Summer Palace" means nothing; 颐和园 means everything. The table below is built to be shown rather than read aloud — pass your phone across with the Chinese column visible and the problem disappears.
Every entry has been cross-checked against at least two independent sources, including Beijing municipal and district government pages and the venues' own official sites. Where a sight has several entrances, the gate named is the one the metro station actually serves.
The essentials, with everything you need to get there#
| Sight | Chinese | Address | Metro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palace Museum (Forbidden City) | 故宫博物院 | 北京市东城区景山前街4号 | Line 1, Tiananmen East or Tiananmen West |
| National Museum of China | 中国国家博物馆 | 北京市东城区东长安街16号 | Line 1, Tiananmen East (exit C or D) |
| Temple of Heaven | 天坛公园 | 北京市东城区天坛内东里7号 | Line 5, Tiantan Dongmen (exit A) |
| Summer Palace | 颐和园 | 北京市海淀区新建宫门路19号 | Line 4, Beigongmen (north gate) |
| Lama Temple | 雍和宫 | 北京市东城区雍和宫大街12号 | Lines 2 and 5, Yonghegong (exit C) |
| Confucius Temple & Guozijian | 孔庙和国子监博物馆 | 北京市东城区国子监街15号 | Lines 2 and 5, Yonghegong |
| Jingshan Park | 景山公园 | 北京市西城区景山西街44号 | Line 8, Shichahai |
| Beihai Park | 北海公园 | 北京市西城区文津街1号 | Line 6, Beihai North (north gate) |
| Prince Gong's Mansion | 恭王府博物馆 | 北京市西城区前海西街17号 | Line 6, Beihai North (exit B northeast) |
| Drum Tower | 鼓楼 | 北京市东城区钟楼湾胡同临字9号 | Line 8, Shichahai |
| Bell Tower | 钟楼 | 北京市东城区钟楼湾胡同41号 | Line 8, Shichahai |
| 798 Art District | 798艺术区 | 北京市朝阳区酒仙桥路4号 | Line 14, Wangjing South |
| Mutianyu Great Wall | 慕田峪长城 | 北京市怀柔区渤海镇慕田峪村 | No metro — see below |
How to group them#
Beijing punishes zig-zagging. These cluster naturally into days.
The central axis. The Forbidden City, Jingshan and the National Museum sit on one line and share a morning and afternoon. Enter the palace from the south at Tiananmen and leave by the north gate, then cross the road and climb Jingshan — the view back down over the golden roofs is the photograph you came for, and it takes twenty minutes.
The lakes. Beihai, Prince Gong's Mansion and the Drum and Bell Towers are all within walking distance of each other around the Shichahai lakes. Beihai North and Shichahai stations bracket the area. This is the most pleasant half-day in the city on foot.
The temples. The Lama Temple and the Confucius Temple are a few minutes apart, both off Yonghegong station. Do them together; separately they are an awkward trip north for one building.
Standalone. The Temple of Heaven is south and deserves its own morning. The Summer Palace is north-west and takes most of a day once you include the journey. 798 is east, and works as a half-day when you want a break from imperial China.
The Great Wall is not a metro trip#
Mutianyu is in Huairou district, well outside the city, and there is no rail link. You reach it by tour bus, a hired car, or the public bus-and-transfer route. Treat it as a full day out and back, not an afternoon.
It is the section most first-time visitors should pick: restored, dramatic, densely towered, and less crowded than Badaling. For the alternatives and how each one differs, see the Great Wall guide.
Practical notes#
Mondays. Many museums, the Forbidden City among them, close on Mondays. Build the week around that rather than discovering it at the gate.
Carry your passport. It is required to enter ticketed sights, not merely to buy the ticket.
Parks open earlier than museums. Jingshan, Beihai and the Temple of Heaven grounds open early, and the Temple of Heaven in particular is at its best first thing, when the surrounding park fills with people exercising, singing and playing cards. That hour is closer to the real Beijing than anything inside a ticket barrier.
For how many days to allow, where to base yourself and what to eat, see the Beijing travel guide.