As locals we know the main sites - but we're interested in taking you on a tour we'd love to do ourselves! What's that mean? We'll cover the secrets of Mao's Nuclear Bunkers, visit the most jaw dropping vistas of the city from our favourite 'Insider' vantage points, include the major sites such as the formidable Forbidden City, whisk you to the top of the World Trade Tower and lunch in our favourite local microbrewery which mixes Chinese ingredients with German styled brews and a burger to die for, it is the perfect introduction and a Beijing perspective the tourists pass by!
•An Insider's Beijing Tour visiting ALL the major sites and the hidden ones others pass by
•Expert guides from architects, political scientists, designers, historians, and all locals!
•Visit the China World Trade Tower for incredible vistas over the historic centre
•Check out the town plans for the future of this new mega metropolis
•Get the low down on Cold War history, Nixon's visit with Mao and more
•Cover the subterranean 'Great Wall' - the nuclear bunker network running under Beijing
•Enjoy the amazing Forbidden City from the top of the 'Coal Hill'
•Beer? You got it - we finish with a local microbrewery and burger you'll be telling your friends about!
The Famous Insider Beijing Tour provides an exciting introduction making sense of the world's newest, yet ancient, global capital - Beijing.
Important things happen in Beijing. You can feel this everywhere in the city of nearly 20 million people. Your guide, a leading architecture expert, will start the day leading you through the South Gate of the Forbidden City, you'll stand before the Meridian Gate, and take in the wonders of the monumental Imperial grounds. His explanations reveal the intricate meanings of the design, gardens and bring the perfectly preserved Imperial gold and blood-red of the ancient city to life.
Insights ... We peek behind the "red curtain' into the unknown mechanisms of rule of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party and how its 'princlings' and rule mirrors that of the Chinese Emperors and the global shift toward Beijing as the new centre of power.
This is a city of architecture, with Soviet masterpieces designed to intimidate and modern wonders of glass and chrome - it is a cityscape of superlatives and grand scale. The Forbidden City, for instance, which served as the Imperial Palace for Ming and Qing Dynasty Emperors (once strictly out of bounds to the general Chinese public), houses up to 800 buildings and some 9000 chambers!
History ... Find out about 'the week that changed the world' with Nixon and Kissinger's visit to China with Mao, the secret discussions, the split with the Soviet Union, and the world it created.
Covering the jaw dropping plans for the future of Beijing's urban development and the transformation and conservation of old Beijing we'll then take in the perspective from the China World Summit Wing. With unrivalled views over the historic city centre and Beijing's traditional neighbourhoods - or hutongs. These represent an organic development, a window in time and a human scale, with tiny alleys that separate traditional courtyard homes. In contrast we'll also explain Beijing's other 'Great Wall' - the 'Under Ground city'. Covering an area of 85 square kilometres - under Beijing - this subterranean complex at one time had about 90 entrances hidden in shops along the main streets. Mao ordered its construction during the 1970s in anticipation of a nuclear war with the Soviet Union.
Narrative ... learn about the incredible personality of China's Empress Dowager Tzu-hsi who wielded power as head of the Qing Dynasty for half a century, the fate of the last Emperor, the brutality of Japanese occupation and more.
The Summit Wing is a remarkable space in the upper floors of the 330-metre tall China World Tower. The resident hotel bars provide us an opportunity for a refreshing drink before experiencing the 'every day' over lunch in one of the capital's best microbreweries.
Our Famous Insider Beijing Tour takes you on a journey of the past, present and future, from Dynastic Emperors to a monolithic Communist Regime, Cold War intrigues on to the every day, through design, architecture, incredible perspectives and local beers.
VariArts 'Insider Tour' of Beijing and Shanghai are ground breaking. Know these incredible metropolises with the expert perspectives of local designers, architects, military officers, scholars of history and archaeology, nightlife officiendos and home cooks. Yes you heard correctly! There's no use travelling to the other side of the world to meet someone else staying in a hotel. Our tours provide you with not only amazing guides but we'll cover the major sites and the minor, the grit and glamour in what most tourists pass by, traditional eateries only the locals know about, Chinese micro breweries, behind the scenes access to key museums and even nuclear bunkers. It's interactions and experiences like these which allow you to meet every day folks and perspectives you frankly can't put a price tag on. We've been pioneering cutting edge English language tours that take you to government buildings, workers studios, museums, archaeological digs, secret places (we'll keep secret) and more with guiding that is non scripted, expert and insightful. Our internationally renowned - mainly walking tours - show all the main sites while delivering a gripping narrative on China's ancient and imperial, communist and present history, character and contemporary state. Our highly acclaimed professional guides give knowledgeable and riveting accounts of the stories behind the Cultural Revolution, Mao's Long March, the Last Emperor and Japanese Occupation, the Cold War, through to the emergent and remarkable state of the new world and the 'China Century' - as reflected in the ancient and strikingly modern of Beijing and Shanghai. Get ready to see a side of China like few others. Full profile ⋅ Leave a Review
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