Beijing Hutong Half Day Walking Tours

Beijing Hutong Half Day Walking Tours

If you are interested in learning about the lifestyle and culture of the people living in Chinese hutongs then you must fly to the capital city of China, Beijing for exploring the Beijing hutongs.

Book yourcheap flights to Beijing on iEagle.com for maximum savings on airfares. Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) is the primary Beijing Airport in Beijing city where you will be landing.

To those of you who are wondering about what a Hutong actually means here is the answer: a Hutong is Chinese word which simply means a narrow street or an alley packed with siheyuan courtyard residences, the term is usually associated with cities in Northern China including Beijing.

In the remainder of the article we are going to focus on one popular Beijing Hutong half-day walkingtour that can help you gain a good insight on the hutongs and the history and culture of the local people inhabiting them.

Route #1 Nanluoguxiang to Lotus Market

Important attractions en-route the tour: Nanluoguxiang and Ke Garden, The Drum Tower, Yandaixieje Street, Silver Ingot Bridge, Qinhai Lake, and Lotus Market.

Main Outcomes of the Beijing Hutong Half-Day Walking tour

·         You will get to see the Beijing Hutongs

·         You can spot traditional Siheyuan courtyard residences that are unique to Hutongs

·         You will be exposed to Chinese temples and the culture

The half-day tour starts at Nanluoguxiang Hutong and culminates at Lotus Market and the tour needs to be done by walking, lasts approximately for 2 hours.

Nanluoguxiang

Nanluoguxiang is the starting point for the tour. As you walk past the 800 meter-long Nanluoguxiang Hutong you will be bumping into many traditional Siheyuan courtyard houses, archways, and erstwhile houses of socialites.

The street or the alley speaks about the culture of the locals and has an authentic atmosphere of a typical Beijing Hutong.

Stopping at the erstwhile residence of Wen Yu, a top intellect of the Quing Dynasty is something that can’t be missed during the Beijing Hutong Half-Day Walking tour. The traditional siheyuan courtyard residence of Wen Yu is popularly known as Ke Yuan and is numbered 15 on the Hutong.

Ke Garden

The next important landmark in the Beijing Hutong Half-Day Walking tour is Ke Garden. This is a classy garden which boasts of pavilions and a few man-made hills built meticulously without any specks and it is rare to find such a beautiful garden in a Beijing neighborhood.

Drum Tower

The Drum Tower is the next big landmark on our route and can be reached after walking 1.2 km from Nanluoguxiang. 

The path for navigation is as follows:

·         Walk westwards 220 meters along Di’anmen East Street

·         Take a right turn and walk 70 meters in a straight direction before taking a left turn

·         Walk 10 meters in a straight direction and then take a right turn

·         Take a left after walking 190 meters in a straight direction

·         Take a left on Mao’er Hutong after walking 100 meters in a straight direction

·         Take a right on Di’anmenwai Street after walking a distance of 230 meters on Mao’er Hutong

·         Finally walk straight for 390 meters to reach Drum Tower

Just before reaching the Drum Tower you will be touching Mao’er Hutong, one of the ten most popular hutongs of Beijing. The small alley prides itself for being home to the last empress of China, Wan Rong.

The Drum Tower lies to the north of Di’anmenwei Street and has a high historical importance because it throws a lot of light on the ancient Chinese culture.

Yandaixiejie Hutong

Yandaixiejie Hutong is the next important landmark in our Beijing Hutong half-day Beijing Hutong Half-Day Walking tour and is only 100 meters away from Drum Tower. This hutong is famed for the corner-shops selling local souvenirs that are characteristic of Beijing.

Silver Ingot Bridge

Just 40 meters south of Yandaxiejie Hutong is the iconic Silver Ingot Bridge that connects two prominent Beijing lakes: Qinhai Lake and Houhai Lake.

Qinhai Lake

Take a walk on the north bank of the famous Qinhai Lake before merging with Shichahai Pub Street. Walking till the end of the street takes us to our final landmark, Lotus Market and this is the culmination point of our Beijing Hutong Half-Day Walking tour.

Lotus Market

The Lotus Market gets the name from the abundance of lotus flowers in the Qinhai Lake and the market is famed for the presence of many restaurants and pubs.