7 days in Beijing
The version for travellers who want to understand the city rather than tick it off: two quieter neighbourhood days, a museum day and enough margin for real Beijing weather and transport.
Seven days does not mean seven huge sightseeing days. It means you can protect the important reservations, take the long trips when conditions are good, and have time for places locals use as part of daily Beijing rather than just photo stops.
Imperial centre
Tiananmen Square → Forbidden City → Jingshan.
Make this the fixed reservation day. Finish at Jingshan and leave the evening light. Forbidden City planning guide →
South axis
Temple of Heaven → Qianmen → Dashilar.
This stays south and central, with an intentionally open evening. Temple of Heaven guide →
Lake and hutongs
Beihai Park → Shichahai → Nanluoguxiang.
Start at Beihai before it warms up, then go north through Shichahai and the hutong lanes. This is a walking-and-eating day, not a ticket collection. Stop whenever the pace stops being enjoyable.
Summer Palace
A single north-west garden day.
Let the palace garden set the pace. Take the lake route that suits your energy, then return for a relaxed dinner instead of adding an unrelated east-side attraction.
Mutianyu Great Wall
Transport, wall, return — one complete day.
Keep this day weather-aware. If the forecast is poor, swap it with Day 6 or 7, but do not add it to another city day. Full Mutianyu guide →
Modern north-east
Olympic Park → 798 Art District → Sanlitun.
Use the day for 21st-century Beijing: landmark architecture, two or three galleries and dinner. DiDi is the easiest bridge between the two areas; use the Chinese destination names in your app.
Museum + a free afternoon
Capital Museum → return to your favourite area.
Visit the Capital Museum in the morning, then use the afternoon as a weather, shopping or favourite-neighbourhood buffer. A seven-day itinerary is stronger because it includes one day you can change without breaking the rest.
The seven-day advantage
- Weather: move the Wall day rather than visiting it in a haze or storm just because the plan says so.
- Reservations: reserve all time-sensitive entries early, then keep Day 7 as your safety margin.
- Energy: use the city’s metro and DiDi, but do not try to “optimise” away every rest — Beijing rewards a calmer pace.