Beijing, capital of China, Known as Jing for short, Beijing City is located at the northern end of the North China Plain and 150km east of the Bohai Sea. Covering an area of 16,800 square kilometers and has a population of 14.93 million, the whole city is divided into 16 districts and two countries.
How can one city boast so many phenomenal places? Beijing is an ancient city well known in the world for her long 
history and rich culture. The Beijing Ape-men lived at Zhoukoudian area in Beijing as early as 700.000 years ago. The Yan Kingdom was established here in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods. The capitals of the Liao Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty, namely Nanjing and Zhongdu, were both located in this area. Later in the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, Beijing had developed as the political and cultural center of the country. Thirty-four emperors have lived and ruled the nation in Beijing and it has been an important trading city from its earliest days.
As it has four distinct seasons, the best months to visit Beijing are May, September and October. But autumn is taken as the golden tourist season of the year since there is sometimes in the spring of recent years, a yellow wind. We suggest tourists visit Beijing during the months of May, September, and October when people can enjoy bright sunshine and blue skies. An abundance of international class performances are presented in May. If you like winter, you will have other chances to appreciate another landscape of Beijing. After skiing in Beihai and viewing the snowy sights on West Hill, enjoying the steaming hotpot is the best choice, which is really the fun of tour in Beijing. Please keep warm and remember to bring your down garments and sweaters when you visit Beijing in the winter.
Modern and ancient intermingle in this fascinating metropolis, you can experience authentic Beijing life and become acquainted with 'old Beijing' by exploring its many teahouses, temple fairs, Beijing's Hutong and Courtyard and enjoy the Peking Opera. Also, Beijing was famous for its delicious food, and the Beijing Roasted Duck is praised by foreign guests as ”°The Best Delicacy on Earth”±. Speaking of two matters concerning tourism in Beijing, everybody will recommend the tourist to ”°visit the Great Wall and try roasted duck”±, which shows the popularity of the duck. Add any or all of these to your Beijing tour and you will leave with a feeling of special appreciation in your heart for this ancient city that has truly seen it all and tells its story with matchless grace, charm and vigor.
There are many great historical sites in Beijing, including the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall passes nearby. With the biggest central square in the world - Tian'anmen Square, the Forbidden City that is the largest and best-preserved imperial palace complex, a superbly preserved section of the Great Wall, as well as the largest sacrificial complex in the world - the Temple of Heaven, Beijing attracts both domestic and foreign visitors who all come to wonder at its century-old history and unique cultural relics.
Travel around Beijing, you can find not only the ancient style buildings like Hutong and Siheyuan, but also find much in common with any other great metropolis elsewhere in today's world. There are towering skyscrapers; busy shopping malls and an endless stream of traffic that makes the city much the same as others. The most famous and popular commercial circles and commercial pedestrian streets are predominantly located near the Yansha Shopping Mall, Tiananmen and Wangfujing Street, Guomao Shopping Mall, Qianmen Street and Xidan Street, etc. However, although you will find multinational chains with their own brands to offer, nowhere else on earth will you find such a variety of gourmet Chinese restaurants offering the very best of the eight different styles of Chinese cuisine as well as western style dishes. Modern hotels abound, each offering the highest standards of service and convenience.
What the most exciting thing in China is that Beijing will be hosting the Summer Olympics on August 8-24, 2008. Visitors and athletes from around the world also will have the opportunity to experience splendour of of the 2008 Olympic Games. Much of city is presently in upheaval as infrastructure is being frenetically constructed and sights are being renovated for the Olympics; the best time to visit as a tourist will thus probably be right after them or during the Olympics if you are lucky enough to get the tickets.
