Beijing Walking Tour With Smartphone Audioguide

5.0 (one review) 7 hours Free cancellation

out of 5

one review

5.0

Beijing Walking Tour With Smartphone Audioguide — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

Beijing Walking Tour With Smartphone Audioguide, photo 2 — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

About this activity

The audio guide is a convenient mobile companion for a self-guided walk around Beijing. The tour is designed specifically for getting to know the city in a short time (5-6 hours). Follow the route on the in-app map to walk from Qianmen Gate to Wanning Bridge, passing the city’s main attractions.

You will definitely see: Tiananmen Square, The Drum Tower and Bell Tower, St. Joseph’s Church, Chairman Mao Memorial Hall, Prince Gong’s Mansion, Fire God Temple.

The tour includes 35 fascinating stops. All stories are written by professional journalists and historians, with a touch of humor and a love of travel.

After you download the tour, the app works offline. You can always hear the audio guide clearly through your headphones. Enjoy engaging stories and legends as you move at your own pace, without needing to follow a tour group. You can stop at any time to rest in a café or walk down a picturesque alley, then continue your walk around the city.

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At a glance

Duration: 7 hours
Confirmation: Instant confirmation
Ticket: Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group: Up to 20 people
People per booking: 1–15
Audio guide: Russian, English
Operated by: TouringBee

Ages: Adults (14–99 years)

What is included

Included

Included: Illustrations to identify landmarks
Included: Offline map with a route for easy GPS navigation
Included: Audio Guide App for iPhone and Android
Included: 1 year access to the tour in your preferred language
Included: 35 audio recordings narrated by a professional historian

Not included

Not included: Smartphone and headphones
Not included: In-person tour guide
Not included: Transportation
Not included: Food and drinks

Itinerary

Qianmen (Zhengyangmen)

30 min

Qianmen Gate is one of Beijing’s historic city gates. Built during the Ming dynasty, it once guarded the southern entrance to the Inner City on the central axis leading toward the imperial palace. Its gatehouse, arrow tower, and position near Tiananmen Square reflect Beijing’s fortified past and ceremonial urban planning.
Chairman Mao Memorial Hall (Maozhuxi Jiniantang)

Passing by

Chairman Mao Memorial Hall stands at the southern end of Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Built after Mao Zedong’s death in 1976 and opened to the public in 1977, it serves as his mausoleum and a major national memorial. Its monumental form and central position reflect the political symbolism of Tiananmen Square in modern Chinese history.
Great Hall of the People (Renmin Dahuitang)

30 min

The Great Hall of the People stands on the western side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Completed in 1959, it was built as one of the major public buildings of the early People’s Republic of China. Its vast halls, monumental façade, and role in national meetings and state ceremonies reflect the political centre of modern China.
National Museum Of China

Passing by

The National Museum of China stands on the eastern side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Formed from earlier museums of Chinese history and revolution, it presents the country’s past from ancient civilization to modern state history. Its vast galleries, monumental façade, and national collections reflect China’s cultural memory and political symbolism.
Stop 5

Passing by

The Forbidden City is the former imperial palace at the heart of Beijing. Built in the early 15th century during the Ming dynasty, it served as the residence and political centre of Chinese emperors for nearly five centuries. Its gates, courtyards, ceremonial halls, and red walls reflect imperial power and classical Chinese palace planning.
Huabiao

20 min

Huabiao are ceremonial stone columns associated with imperial architecture. The best-known Beijing examples stand beside Tiananmen, with carved dragons, cloud-shaped crossbars, and mythical beasts on top. Their form, symbolism, and position on the imperial axis reflect the ceremonial order and political imagery of historic Beijing.
Stop 7

20 min

Pudu Temple is a historic Buddhist temple near the Forbidden City in Beijing. Its site belonged to the Ming imperial precinct and later became associated with Prince Rui Dorgon before being converted into a Qing-era temple. Its raised platform, surviving halls, and quiet courtyard setting preserve a rare fragment of imperial Beijing outside the palace walls.
Huangchenggen Ruins Park

20 min

Huangchenggen Ruins Park is a linear park along the former eastern wall of Beijing’s Imperial City. Created on the site of historic wall remains, it follows the edge of the old palace precinct near the Forbidden City. Its preserved fragments, trees, pathways, and sculptures reflect the memory of imperial Beijing within the modern city.
Wangfujing Street

30 min

Wangfujing Street is one of Beijing’s best-known shopping streets. Its name refers to princely mansions and an old well once associated with the area. Department stores, pedestrian zones, snack streets, and historic storefronts reflect Beijing’s mix of traditional commercial life, modern retail, and everyday urban energy.
St. Joseph's Church

30 min

St. Joseph’s Church is one of Beijing’s historic Catholic churches. First founded by Jesuit missionaries in the 17th century and later rebuilt after periods of damage, it stands near Wangfujing Street. Its Romanesque Revival façade, open square, and long religious history reflect Beijing’s encounter with European Christianity and modern urban life.
Former Residence of Lao She (Lao She Jinianguan)

30 min

Lao She Memorial Hall is the former Beijing residence of the writer Lao She. He lived in this courtyard house after returning to China in 1949, and many of its rooms preserve the atmosphere of his later life and work. Its exhibitions, manuscripts, personal objects, and hutong setting connect modern Chinese literature with everyday old Beijing.
Beijing People's Art Theatre

20 min

Beijing People’s Art Theatre is one of China’s leading spoken-drama institutions. Founded in 1952, it became closely linked with modern Chinese theatre and works by playwrights such as Lao She and Cao Yu. Its repertory tradition, stages, and location near Wangfujing reflect Beijing’s role in literature, performance, and cultural life.
Stop 13

20 min

Guardian Art Center is a cultural and art complex at the junction of Wangfujing Street and Wusi Avenue in Beijing. Designed by Ole Scheeren, it combines exhibition halls, auctions, education spaces, a bookstore, art services, and a hotel. Its patterned façade, art-market role, and location near the imperial centre reflect modern Beijing’s cultural ambitions.
National Art Museum Of China

30 min

The National Art Museum of China is a major state art museum in Beijing. Opened in 1963, it focuses on modern and contemporary Chinese art, including painting, sculpture, calligraphy, folk art, and international exhibitions. Its large halls, traditional-style roofline, and location near Wusi Avenue reflect Beijing’s national cultural institutions.
Stop 15

30 min

Peking University Red Building is a historic red-brick building on Wusi Avenue in Beijing. Completed in 1918, it became closely linked with Peking University, the New Culture Movement, the May Fourth Movement, and early revolutionary activity. Its classrooms, library spaces, and political associations reflect the intellectual energy of modern China’s formative years.
Jingshan Park

Passing by

Jingshan Park is a historic imperial garden just north of the Forbidden City. Its artificial hill was formed from earth excavated during palace and moat construction in the Ming dynasty. The park’s pavilions, old trees, and central viewpoint reflect Beijing’s imperial landscape planning and offer one of the classic panoramas over the palace roofs.
Stop 17

20 min

Da Gao Xuan Dian, known locally in Chinese as 大高玄殿, is a former imperial Daoist temple near Jingshan and the Forbidden City in Beijing. First built in the Ming dynasty under the Jiajing Emperor, it later served Qing court rituals connected with prayers for rain and snow. Its courtyards, ceremonial halls, and surviving Qianyuan Pavilion reflect the religious symbolism of imperial Beijing.
Beihai Park (Beihai Gongyuan)

Passing by

Beihai Park is one of Beijing’s historic imperial gardens northwest of the Forbidden City. Developed over several dynasties, it centres on a large lake, islands, temples, pavilions, and the White Dagoba on Jade Flower Island. Its landscape design reflects imperial leisure, Buddhist symbolism, and classical Chinese garden traditions.
Shoujing Guo Memorial

30 min

Guo Moruo Memorial Hall is the former Beijing residence of writer, historian, and scholar Guo Moruo. Located on Qianhai West Street near Shichahai, the courtyard house preserves rooms, manuscripts, photographs, and personal objects from his later years. Its garden and exhibitions connect modern Chinese literature with old Beijing residential culture.
Stop 20

Passing by

Prince Gong’s Mansion is one of Beijing’s best-preserved Qing dynasty princely residences. Originally built for the powerful official Heshen, it later became the residence of Prince Gong. Its courtyards, gardens, carved interiors, and theatrical pavilion reflect aristocratic life, political power, and refined residential design in imperial Beijing.
Stop 21

20 min

Siheyuan is the traditional courtyard house type of northern China. Built around an enclosed central courtyard, it usually arranges rooms on four sides according to family hierarchy, privacy, and orientation. Its grey walls, tiled roofs, wooden gates, and quiet inner space reflect the domestic architecture and social order of old Beijing.
Yinding Bridge

20 min

Yinding Bridge is a small single-arch stone bridge in Beijing’s Shichahai area. It links the waters of Qianhai and Houhai and takes its name from its resemblance to a silver ingot. The bridge, lakeside views, nearby hutongs, and old courtyard houses reflect the quieter landscape and everyday charm of historic Beijing.
Stop 23

Passing by

The Drum Tower and Bell Tower stand on Beijing’s historic central axis north of the Forbidden City. Originally used to mark time for the city, they were rebuilt and maintained through the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Their tall platforms, wooden structures, drums, bells, and hutong setting reflect the rhythm and order of old Beijing.
Stop 24

20 min

Fire God Temple is a historic Daoist temple near Shichahai in Beijing. Traditionally traced to the Tang dynasty and rebuilt in later periods, it is dedicated to the Fire Deity and other Daoist figures. Its courtyards, halls, glazed roof details, and lakeside setting reflect Beijing’s religious life and old northern cityscape.

Meeting point and pickup

Everyone meets at the meeting point.

Meeting point

The tour begins near Qianmen and is designed as a self-guided experience, so there will be no live guide at the meeting point. To start the tour, simply open the TouringBee app, select the Beijing Walking Tour, and follow the route provided in the app at your own pace.

End point

The tour begins near Qianmen and is designed as a self-guided experience, so there will be no live guide at the meeting point. To start the tour, simply open the TouringBee app, select the Beijing Walking Tour, and follow the route provided in the app at your own pace.

Using your ticket

To get audioguide:

Open Viator Ticket
Find Viator Booking ref - it should start with BR-####
Find your Viator Booking on https://activate.touringbee.com/?partner=viator

Cancellation

Free cancellation

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

If you cancel	You get back
At least one day before	100%
Less than a day before	0%

Good to know

Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
The audio guide is available through a special mobile app for iOS and Android
Entry tickets to the museums are not included. Please buy them separately in advance
The tour doesn’t cover all Beijing sights
This is a self-guided tour. You will need to download the audio guide mobile app, activate your purchase, and follow the route on the app's map. There is no human guide provided
The audio guide is available anytime. The date and time provided for checkout are approximate