Hutongs Tours in Beijing

A tour of Beijing's hutongs will give you an insight into the daily life of the residents of the old town. On a hutong tour, you will have the opportunity to walk through the narrow, ancient alleys that make up the hutongs while listening to fascinating stories about the residents and their culture.

This experience becomes one of the best things to see and do in Beijing, as you will also visit the siheyuan which are the traditional houses of the hutongs. It is also the perfect place to experience authentic cuisine in local restaurants.

On this small group tour you will travel in a private tuk-tuk while being offered unlimited beer and soft drinks. Together with your tour guide you will explore the back alleys of the huts in North Sutra to escape the traditional paths.

When you book a tuk tuk food tour you will also go to a popular local brewery to enjoy the best craft beer in town. There you will learn about the brewing process and what makes beer truly special to Beijingers.

You can sample the best local food at small family-run businesses frequented by locals, cook your own barbecue at a steakhouse, savour the best homemade Beijing noodles and wrap up delicious desserts.

Interesting details

• Price: from 65 euros per person.
• Duration: about 3.5 hours.
• Means of transport: the whole tour is completed by tuk tuk.

In Beijing, the dining experience goes beyond the typical tourist markets full of insects and meat on sticks. If you want to enjoy authentic local food, I recommend joining this small-group food tour, which will take you to explore the traditional hutong district.

There you will taste traditional dishes and learn about the history and culture of the city as you wander through the alleys full of local life.

You will visit the modern local Mijiu Brewery and taste six cups of handmade rice wine. Then you'll head to Guijie Street or Ghost Street, one of the city's most popular snack streets and end one of Beijing's best food tours.

Interesting details

• Price: about 74 euros per person.
• Duration: about 3 hours.
• Means of transport: part of the tour is by private transport and part on foot.
• Advantages of this option: bottled water is included throughout the tour and entrance fees to all the places you will visit.

On this tour you will get to know the main sights of the city with the help of a private guide who will adapt to your needs. You will get to know:

• The Forbidden City
• The Great Wall of China
• The oriental carriage alleys
• The Lama Temple, among other highlights.
• A show with world-famousChinese acrobats.
• Various shopping venues in the Hutongs.

In the midst of this one of the best tours in Beijing you can sample a variety of food options in Beijing, from Szechuan dishes to traditional styles such as Southern, Pekingese and Dim Sum.

Interesting details

• Price: around 100 euros per person.
• Duration: about 8 hours.
• Means of transport: the whole trip is completed by private car.
• Disadvantages of this option: food and drinks are not included in the price. Tips and entrance fees to the places you will visit during the tour are also not included.

One of the most authentic experiences you can have is to take a tour of the city's history through its narrow and picturesque streets, and what better way to do it than in a traditional oriental rickshaw.

You'll be able to enjoy the sights of the old Beijing that still exists for millions of people. Right after that you will walk to the Drum Tower, which you can climb to enjoy panoramic views of old Beijing.

After climbing down from the Drum Tower, you will have a chance to stop for a short break to rest and chat with a real Chinese family and learn about their daily life. You will also pause to enjoy a nice refreshment at a local tea house. It is an experience that combines very well with the Beijing sightseeing bus activity.

Details of interest

• Price: from 49 euros per person .
• Duration: about 3 hours.
• Means of transport: the whole trip is done in the traditional rickshaw.

The tour will start early in the morning, when your tour guide will pick you up from your hotel or accommodation to take you straight to the Panda House at Beijing Zoo, where you can see the adorable giant pandas. Afterwards, you will visit Olympic Green and have time for a photo session outside Water Cube and Bird's Nest.

To continue the tour, you'll go straight to the Yongle Lama Temple, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery dating back more than 300 years.

Halfway through the day you'll sample a traditional Chinese lunch and continue the tour by exploring the hutongs, a maze of historic alleys flanked by traditional houses that are now fast disappearing. You can even learn Chinese calligraphy or how to cut Chinese paper on this tour.

Details of interest

• Price: around 153 euros per person.
• Duration: about 8 hours.
• Means of transport: the whole experience is done in a private air-conditioned vehicle.
• Advantages of this option: all entrance fees to the sites visited are included.

The Olympic Park, home of the 2008 games, has attracted worldwide attention and this tour takes you to the National Stadium known as the "Bird's Nest" due to its impressive architecture.

After strolling through Beijing's sporting arena, you will explore the city's ancient streets on an exciting rickshaw tour. With this tour you can enjoy the city life as you stroll through narrow streets and quaint bungalows.

Doing this tour will definitely allow you to see the most authentic parts of the city and really discover the old Beijing.

Interesting details

• Price: about 139 euros per person.
• Duration: approximately 7 hours.
• Means of transport: you will travel in an air-conditioned minivan.
• Advantages of this option: you will be offered a Chinese-style lunch and will be accompanied by a professional guide. In addition, transport to and from your accommodation is included.

On this bike tour of Beijing you will cycle through the different hutongs of the city, where you will not only learn about the history of the city, but also see teahouses and galleries to appreciate the antiquity of the city.

Your cycling tour will include visits to traditional courtyard houses hidden behind high walls. Your guide will explain the details of the hutongs and their houses, as well as showing you different unique attractions, while you cycle, such as lesser-known temples and parks where locals spend their time chatting.

You will also visit one of the old courtyard houses to get a better idea of the old stone walls and aristocratic architecture.

Details of interest

• Price: about 182 euros per person.
• Duration: about 3 hours.
• Means of transport: the whole tour is completed by bicycle.

On this 3-hour walking tour of the city you will see Beijing's meandering huts in the Nanluoguxiang district, the glittering canals of Houhai Lake and the amusement parks that come alive at night.

Together with your local guide you'll walk the city streets, sample some delicacies at the night market on the lively Wangfujing Snack Street and stroll through the Royal City Park, so it's definitely one of the best things to see and do in Beijing at night.

You'll love Nanluoguxiang, a historic area dating back to 1750 that has become a popular tourist destination in recent years for its charming huts. Another area you'll visit is Shichahai, where you'll see many temples and palaces. This is even a tour you can include in your Beijing itinerary in summer, when you can hire a boat to row around the region's lake.

Details of interest

• Price: about 182 euros per person.
• Duration: about 3 hours.
• Means of transport: by public transport.
• Advantages of this option: a typical Beijing roast duck tasting is included.

On this night tour with an expert you will discover the best nightlife spots in Beijing. To start with, you will visit the Wangfujing Night Market, which is located in the basement of a large shopping mall.

What will strike you most about this place is that it is a transformed place that resembles the old Hutong streets of Beijing before modernisation. You'll also have the chance to sample traditional Beijing sweets before moving on to Nanluoguxiang Street, where you'll find pubs, cafes, restaurants and shops selling traditional handicrafts.

At this point you'll be able to watch the daylight fade and the neon lights begin to mix with the traditional red lanterns to create a lively and relaxing atmosphere.

Details of interest

• Price: around 76 euros per person.
• Duration: about 4 hours to complete the tour.
• Means of transport: the whole tour is done by taxi.

The driver will pick you up from your hotel to take you to the hutong area. Your guide will tell you interesting stories of Beijing' s traditional alleys and Hutong. One thing you will like about this tour is that you can choose between walking and cycling.

You will pass through many hutongs and see how the locals live in such a small and grey Siheyaun. The tour ends at the Empty Tower, where you can see the most traditional part of Beijing. After that, the driver will take you back to your hotel or accommodation.

Interesting details

• Price: about 114 euros per person.
• Duration: about 3 hours.
• Means of transport: walking or cycling.
• Advantages of this option: bottled mineral water is included throughout the tour.

A tour of Beijing's hutongs is a unique experience that will give you an insight into traditional Beijing life and culture. The hutongs are narrow streets surrounded by traditional Chinese houses called Siheyuan and have become one of the city's most popular tourist attractions.

On the various tours you can get an up-close look at how the locals live in these houses, as well as the different kinds of buildings in this area of the city, while learning about their history and culture from your guide.