Beijing: Forbidden City, Summer Palace and Cooking Class

Donghuamen Subdistrict, Beijing



Discover Beijing's cultural landmarks on a guided tour. Explore the Forbidden City, Summer palace, and Dumping Cooking Class, also includes traditional Beijing cuisine with dumplings as lunch.

Highlights

  • Hotel Pick-up and Drop-off
  • Private professional guide immerses you in Beijing's profound cultural heritage.
  • Flexible tour sequence fully tailored to your preferences—no rigid schedules.
  • Multiple options are available to meet your diverse travel needs and preferences
  • The tour includes a dumpling cooking class and a traditional Beijing-style lunch.

Description

Discover the Forbidden City, Summer palace, and a Local Beijing Cooking class Experience (making dumpings) on a guided tour. Learn about the history of these unique cultural landmarks, and immerse yourself in authentic Beijing culture. Begin your tour at the Forbidden City, the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Learn about how it was the venue where emperors handled state affairs, held national grand ceremonies, and where the royal family resided. Next, visit the Summer Palace. As one of the largest and best-preserved imperial gardens in China, it is also a world-renowned imperial garden of extremely high artistic, cultural and historical value. Once a summer retreat for emperors and empresses of the Qing Dynasty, it bears profound historical and cultural heritage, with most of the buildings and landscapes in the garden having unique historical backgrounds and cultural connotations. Then you will be visit a Beijing local family, at here, you will learn how to make dumpings and enjoy your DIY dumpings with other local dishes as lunch. After lunch, you will head to the Shichahai area, a classic representative and vital carrier of old Beijing hutong culture. Boasting a dense network of hutongs built along the water with a natural layout, Shichahai presents a unique streetscape. The hutongs are home to a large number of courtyard houses, the quintessential form of traditional Beijing residences that embody time-honored architectural styles and residential culture. Lined with stalls selling traditional handicrafts and authentic local snacks, the area allows you to wander along the lakeside paths at your own pace or take a rickshaw ride through the hutongs. Here, you can deeply immerse yourself in the lifestyle and cultural charm of old Beijing. After you visit Shichahai area, you will be taken back to your hotel.

Includes

Private Air-conditioned car (if you choose over budget option without car, you can take didi taxi or subway) Hotel pick-up and drop-off Professional English-Speaking Tour Guide Forbidden City Entrance Ticket Summer Palace Entrance Ticket Cooking Class Lunch (Chinese dishes and Dumpings) Bottled Water

Excludes

Summer Palace Boat Ticket if you choose over budget option not include didi taxi fee or subway ticket fee Gratuities

Easy cancellation

Cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund

Trusted local guides, read by millions every month

  • 2006 online since
  • 26.2M page views a month across the network
  • 14 languages

180+ destination guides, one network

Every guide covers a single destination on its own website, with events, restaurants, things to do and places to stay chosen from local recommendations.

My Guide Network Locations

Nearby Destinations

Add to your trip

Add your travel dates so we can place this on the right day, or save it for later.