Beijing

Imperial scale, neighbourhood scale

Beijing is easiest to enjoy when you separate the ceremonial city from the lived one. The palaces, altars and tombs sit along a single north-south line; the hutongs and morning markets sit in the gaps between them, and that is where most travellers remember the city.

We build Beijing days around opening hours. The Forbidden City is calmer in the first hour; the Great Wall is better on a weekday and on a section with a real climb; the neighbourhood breakfast streets are gone by ten. Two well-placed days are usually enough, three if you want a temple morning and time to sit still.