Beijing to Tianjin

[KarenB]

Hello, I have just booked a holiday to Beijing... thisis our first time to China.... while there we are going on a cruise and need to get to the harbour called Tianjin... how, costs and what do we do?? also what is the best way to see as much of the great wall of china???

I would appreciate any advice and support . Thank you

[Xiwang]

To get to the city of Tianjin, you can take a bullet train from Beijing that will get you there in half an hour if you book a non-stop one. That's quicker than you can get across town in Beijng. The bullet train is fast and fun. You also get free bottles of Tibetan spring water.

Here is some information on the train:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beijing%E2%80%93Tianjin_Intercity_Railway

One drawback about the train is that it leaves from Beijing's South Train Station, which is a bit out of the way from most of the tourist places. If you're not comfortable trying to buy a ticket on your own at a train station, you can use a third party to get a ticket, especially if you have limited time.

For example, here's one site that lists the train schedule and can deliver tickets to your hotel:

http://www.chinatraintickets.net/china-bullet-trains/beijing-tianjin.html

I haven't used this company and so cannot vouch for it. The tickets on this site cost 2-1/2 to 3 times more than if you bought them yourselves but are still relatively inexpensive by American standards. The Wikipedia article explains which train numbers are non-stop and which are not.

Welcome to China!

[Xiwang]

The two most visited parts of the Great Wall are the Badaling and Mutianyu sections. Both have been heavily restored so it's sometimes hard to tell how much is original and how much is modern. Going to visit either one will qualify you to wear the "I climbed the Great Wall" T-shirt.

Most world leaders, such as President Obama, go to the Badaling section since it is slightly closer. It is also near the Beijing Badaling Safari World where you can buy a chicken or goat to throw to the lions. (Rumor has it that Obama missed this attraction.)

Mutianyu generally has fewer tourists so you might be able to get better pictures. Both sections have cable cars you can use to ride up and down. However, Mutianyu also has a fun toboggan that you can ride down.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Mutianyu-Toboggan

If you have more time or if you like hiking, there are also other sections of the Wall further away that you can visit. For example, the Simitai section has a zip line you can slide down. There are also unrestored sections elsewhere that you can hike and see what the real Wall looked like. However, they are really unrestored, which means that the bricks are often loose and people have died falling off the Wall.

Here is a tourist website that seems to have a good summary of the sections of the Great Wall you may want to see:

http://www.chinahighlights.com/greatwall/section/