Great Wall from Beijing: Which Section to Visit and How to Book

For most visitors to Beijing, the Great Wall is the one day that cannot be skipped. But the wall is not one place. The section you choose decides how long you spend in transit, how many people share the ramparts with you, and how far ahead you need to plan. This guide compares the Beijing-area sections that work as a day trip, explains the real-name booking rules that apply to foreign passports, and shows how to combine the wall with the shuttle bus, cable car, or a night visit. Prices and hours below come from the official Mutianyu and Beijing municipal pages checked on September 15, 2026. What to know first Mutianyu (Huairou District, about 70 km from central Beijing) is the best all-round section: restored walkways, towers No. 1–20 open in daytime, a cable car and a slide, and passport-friendly online booking. Badaling (Yanqing District, about 60 km northwest) is the easiest famous section: adult tickets are ¥40 in peak season and ¥35 off-peak, and the official listing says no reservation is required. Mutianyu tickets are real-name: you need your passport number, and each document can buy only one ticket per day. Book online before weekends and holidays. The official booking page supports Visa, Mastercard, Diners Club, and JCB, and entry is by QR code or passport at the turnstile. Shuttle bus, cable car, ropeway, and slide are separate tickets from separate operators, and the shuttle service area sits about 3 km from the ticket gate. Night visits are limited: Simatai sells an official night ticket (¥200, May–October), while Mutianyu and Badaling run night sessions only at certain times. Check your visa status early: China's 240-hour visa-free transit applies to 57 nationalities who arrive with an onward ticket, while work, study, and news reporting require a visa, and the rules change often. The Mutianyu Great Wall following a forested ridge above a valley filled with low cloud at dawn Source: Mutianyu Great Wall, Huairou District, Beijing. Photo: Mutianyu Great Wall official website. Mutianyu vs Badaling: the two main choices Mutianyu is the section most travelers picture: the wall rides a forested ridge with broad views, and the official routes range from a light cable-car loop to a long stair climb. Its hours are seasonal. From March 16 to November 15, Mutianyu opens 7:30–18:00 on weekdays and 7:30–18:30 on weekends. From November 16 to March 15 it opens 8:00–17:30. Ticket sales stop one hour before closing, and ticket checks stop 30 minutes before closing. Badaling is the classic name, closer to the postcard view, and the busiest. It opens 6:30–16:30 from April 1 to October 31, and 7:30–16:00 from November 1 to March 31. The official listing says you can buy tickets on-site without a reservation, with free admission for minors under 18, visitors 60 and older, and disabled visitors. Discounted tickets are ¥20 in peak season and ¥17.5 off-peak. Choose Badaling if you want the simplest logistics and the lowest ticket price. Choose Mutianyu if you are ready to book online and want a more comfortable mix of scenery, cable car, and walking. Both sections fit comfortably in a single day, so pick one and start early. Other sections worth knowing Juyongguan, in Changping District, is the closest to the city and the steepest of the main options. It opens 8:30–17:30 in peak season and 8:30–16:30 off-peak, with adult tickets at ¥40 peak and ¥35 off-peak, and discounted tickets at ¥20 and ¥17.5. Huanghuacheng, in Huairou, is the only Beijing section where the wall meets a lake, which is why it is called the Water Great Wall. Adult tickets are ¥60. Summer hours are 8:30–17:00 on weekdays, 8:00–18:00 on holidays, and 8:00–17:00 on Sundays and the last day of holidays; winter hours are 8:30–16:30. Shuiguan, in Yanqing, is a smaller, quieter section near Badaling. It opens 9:00–16:30 from April 1 to October 31 and 9:00–16:00 from November 1 to March 31, with adult tickets at ¥35 and student tickets at ¥17.5. Simatai, in Miyun, sits inside the Gubei Water Town resort and is the section to pick if you want an official night visit. Day tickets are ¥40 with entry from 9:00 to 15:00, and the night ticket is ¥200 with preferential tickets at ¥80. The Gubei Water Town resort ticket costs ¥140, and the resort runs 9:00–22:30 Sunday to Thursday and 9:00–23:00 Friday to Saturday. Jinshanling, in neighbouring Hebei province, is not covered by Beijing's municipal ticketing platform; check its own official channels for tickets and transport. Tickets and real-name booking for foreign visitors Mutianyu runs a real-name system. You provide your name, mobile phone number, and ID number, and foreign visitors select Passport as the ID type. One phone number registers one user, and one document buys one ticket per day. Book through the official reservation page. The official ticket guide says bookings open up to 30 days ahead, while the visitors' notice mentions 15 days, so confirm the window shown for your date. Refunds and changes are possible until 24:00 on the day of the reservation. Official adult products are priced as follows: Regular Ticket ¥40, Postcard Ticket ¥45, Postcard Ticket with shuttle bus round trip ¥60, and Postcard Ticket with shuttle bus and cable car round trip ¥200. The Beijing municipal listing separately shows adult admission at ¥45 with a discounted ¥25 ticket for eligible minors, students, and other groups. Discount tickets apply to foreign minors aged 6–18, students under 18 in undergraduate programs, visitors 60 and over from outside Beijing, military personnel, social-security card holders, and firefighters. Most free-admission categories are limited to Chinese citizens or Beijing card holders, so plan on paying at least the discounted fare. The shuttle bus and cable car offer no discounts beyond free rides for children 1.2 m and under. Match the booking to your passport exactly, including the spelling of your name. If you book with a foreign passport, you do not need to exchange a paper ticket. Show the original reservation document, or the passport itself, at the designated gate. Cable car bookings enter through the North Ticket Gate, while ropeway and slide bookings enter through the Slide Ticket Gate. Badaling and the other municipal-listed sections still sell tickets on-site, and foreign visitors can book official Beijing platforms using a passport or permanent residence permit. On peak dates, arrive at opening time or book ahead through the official channels anyway. Getting there: four practical routes The simplest public transport route to Mutianyu is Bus 916 from Dongzhimen to Huairou Beidajie, then a transfer to H7, H23, H24, H35, or H36. Tourist dispatch buses leave for Mutianyu from Qianmen (7:00–11:00), Dongzhimen Subway Exit H (9:10), and Shaoyaoju Subway Exit E (9:30). They return from Parking Lot P4 between 13:00 and 16:00, cost ¥80 per person round trip, and do not accept the Beijing Transport Card. Tickets are sold on the bus, and the hotline is 86-10-83531111. Several operator lines (Mu Bus, Zan Bus, Beidou, Jinma, Busda, and Mujiaren) depart from subway exits at set times and can be booked through their own platforms. Badaling is reachable by the S2 suburban railway; schedules are adjusted seasonally, so check China Railway 12306 before you go. Since February 10, 2026, a Capital Airport bus also runs directly to the Badaling Great Wall stop via Deshengmen, Madianqiaonan, and Beishatanqiaobei, leaving the airport at 6:00 and 8:00 and returning at 14:00 and 16:00, with fares from ¥30 to ¥80. If you drive to Mutianyu, take Jingcheng Expressway Exit 13 (Beitai Road) and follow the signs. Cable car, slide, and walking routes at Mutianyu Most visitors ride the shuttle bus first. The service area is about 3 km from the ticket gate, or 6 km round trip, and the ride is sold as a separate ticket. The cable car climbs to the No. 14 tower area, where the official light route visits tower No. 15 and descends. The ropeway and the slide belong to different companies, so cable car and ropeway or slide tickets are not interchangeable. Walkers can hike from the North Entrance toward towers No. 10 and No. 14 before taking the cable car down. The stairs are steep and uneven, so allow more time than the map suggests. Before you ride, note the restrictions: the cable car is not suitable for visitors with conditions such as acrophobia, hypertension, or heart disease, for heavily intoxicated visitors, for early- or late-stage pregnancies, or for elderly visitors with limited mobility. Severe weather can close facilities; the official site publishes notices and runs a live camera. Inside the scenic area, open flames, smoking, flammable, explosive, toxic, or dangerous objects, and pets are all prohibited. Do not carve, post, or hang items on the wall, and do not climb on the battlements. Night on the Great Wall An official night visit is easiest at Simatai. The night ticket costs ¥200, entry runs 18:00–21:40 from May to October, and everyone must leave the wall by 22:40. The day ticket for the same section is ¥40, with entry from 9:00 to 15:00. Mutianyu's visitors' notice says the nighttime section is towers No. 10–15, but dates and tickets are announced separately. Badaling runs night tours as seasonal events, such as the Spring Festival period openings from 18:00 to 21:00, booked through official mini-programs when announced. Never build a trip around a night session without checking that it is running. Weather, season, and event schedules all affect availability. Best time to go and how to avoid the worst crowds Autumn, from late September through October, is the most comfortable season, with clear air and cooler climbs. Spring brings blossoms, summer is hot and rainy, and winter is cold but far quieter. Avoid China's National Day holiday, October 1–7, 2026, if you can. The official portal warns travelers to reserve transport early for the seven-day break. Weekdays are calmer than weekends at every section. Start at opening time. Mutianyu opens at 7:30 for most of the year, and Badaling opens at 6:30 in peak season, so the first hour is the calmest. Check the weather before you commit. Mutianyu's official notice lists temporary or partial closures for thunderstorms, rain, snow, hail, fog, and strong winds, and the scenic area runs a live camera you can check before leaving the city. Common mistakes Arriving at Mutianyu without a booking on a holiday and expecting tickets to be available. Bringing an ID that does not match the booking, or forgetting that one document buys only one ticket per day. Buying a cable car package and entering through the wrong gate, or assuming cable car and ropeway or slide tickets work on each other's lines. Skipping the shuttle bus and then facing a 3 km walk to the ticket gate before the climb even starts. Assuming free admission categories apply to foreign passports; most free tickets are limited to Chinese citizens or Beijing card holders. Forgetting to confirm visa-free or 240-hour transit eligibility before booking flights. What to check before you go Confirm the current opening hours for your travel date, because the peak and off-peak switch dates differ by section. Check the Mutianyu booking window and remaining slots for your date on the official reservation page. Read the weather, live camera, and closure notices on the day you plan to go. Check National Day and weekend crowd warnings, and reserve transport early. Verify visa-free entry or 240-hour transit eligibility on the National Immigration Administration site. Confirm night-session dates if you want to visit after dark. Expect to pay for extras: shuttle bus, cable car, ropeway, and slide are separate tickets. Sources Mutianyu Great Wall official website — Notice to Visitors: https://en.mutianyugreatwall.com/article/4DlCYuBZ75h Mutianyu Great Wall official website — Opening Hours: https://en.mutianyugreatwall.com/article/4DnYNPtz09s Mutianyu Great Wall official website — How to Get There: https://en.mutianyugreatwall.com/article/4DlBQNxqZum Mutianyu Great Wall official website — Ticket reservation: https://en.mutianyugreatwall.com/reservation-center/tickets Beijing Municipal Government — Visit Beijing ticketing (prices and hours by section): https://english.beijing.gov.cn/specials/ticketing/index.html Beijing Municipal Government — Badaling Great Wall: https://english.beijing.gov.cn/travellinginbeijing/attractions/202603/t20260320_4562521.html Beijing Municipal Government — Capital Airport bus to Badaling: https://english.beijing.gov.cn/livinginbeijing/transportation/bus/202602/t20260211_4507827.html Beijing Municipal Government — Suburban Railway Line S2 notice: https://english.beijing.gov.cn/livinginbeijing/transportation/railway/202503/t20250319_4038371.html Beijing Municipal Government — How foreign visitors book Beijing attraction tickets: https://english.beijing.gov.cn/specials/serviceguideforforeignersinbeijing/202607/t20260701_4742127.html National Immigration Administration — 240-hour visa-free transit: https://en.nia.gov.cn/n147418/n147468/c217849/content.html National Immigration Administration — Regional visa-free policies: https://en.nia.gov.cn/n147418/n147463/c180637/content.html