Travel Information

Chinese website

Beijing is the Capital of China, the nation's political, cultural and educational center. It's not only one of the most ancient cities in China, but also a modern metropolis. There are four world cultural heritage in Beijing: the Great Wall-the only man-made structure that could be seen in the space, the Summer Palace-ancient empire gardens, the Forbidden City-the largest empire palace in the world, Temple of Heaven-the place emperors to worship their ancestors, and a lot of precious cultural treasures, such as Tian'anmen square, National Stadium, and so on. The successful Beijing Olympic Game in 2008 has promoted and strengthened the friendly communications between Chinese and foreign people.

The recorded history of Beijing as a city can date back to more than 3,000 years ago. During the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (c. 11th century-771 B.C.), the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 B.C.) and the Warring States Period (475-221 B.C.), Beijing was the capital city of the State of Yan, which was ruled by dukes or princes under the emperor. From the Qin Dynasty (221-207 B.C.) and the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.) to the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), Beijing was a major city and also a strategic point in northern China. When the Qidan (Khitan) people founded the Liao Dynasty (907-1125), they established Beijing, which was then under their occupation and was called Jiuzhou, as the secondary capital under the name of Nanjing (southern capital). Afterwards, the dynasties of Jin (1115-1234), Yuan (1271-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) all chose Beijing as their capital city. In 1928, the Nanjing-based nationalist government of the Republic of China designated Beijing as the Beiping Special Municipality. In 1930, the municipality was renamed as Beiping City. On September 27, 1949, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference decided that the newborn People's Republic of China would base its capital in Beiping and renamed the city as Beijing.

Links:
About Beijing: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/
Sightseeing: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/Travel/Sightseeing/index.htm
Food: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/Travel/Food/index.htm
Shops: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/Travel/Shop/index.htm
Leisure: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/Travel/Leisure/index.htm
Hotel: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/Travel/Hotel/index.htm