Great Wall of China

Travel to the Great Wall of China

When to travel to the Great Wall - The best time for a Great Wall holiday.

The travel season really begins in May - the weather is mostly sunny and not too warm. Things tend to heat up in the Northern hemisphere summer so the next best time to go is late September and October.

During June, July and August the humidity can be high and this is the official wet season. It is n't monsoon wet though but you will be sharing the wall with thousands from Europe and Japan as this is there main summer holidays.

November to April is the low season (and dry season). There will not be the crowds of the summer months but you will be there for the coldest westher. January can be particularly cold.

Opening hours of the Great Wall

The Wall is generally open all day but the advice is to avoid 10am to 4pm as it will be tour bus hell! If you go later in the day you will miss the crowds and maybe catch a stunning sunset over the wall.

Where to go on the Wall

The three most popular areas of the Great Wall are all towards Beijing which makes it easier to get to the wall from the main China gateway. These areas are Badaling, Mutianya and Simatai.

Badaling is by far the most popular area of the Great Wall with tourists. This is because Beijing is pretty close. The Government have invested a lot of money into the Great Wall here to make it a World number one tourist destination. It is the most popular and attracts most of the tour buses and hawkers selling some tacky gear.

One hour further on is Mutianya and you will be relieved to hear that many of the tour buses that plague Badaling don't make it this far. The wall here is very steep but there is a cable car so you don't need to be in top condition to climb it at Mutianya.

One further hour on is Simatai and is even less popular with tour groups which for many will be bliss. The wall here is very steep and there is no cable car so make sure you are in fairly good condition before you come to Simatai.

Getting to China for the Wall

Beijing is the closest large internation gateway for the wall. Many national carriers fly into Beijing and it is an exciting time to be in Beijing with the 2008 Olympics coming up.