Beijing/Chaoyang

Chaoyang District (朝阳区 Cháoyáng Qū) is in Beijing. While Chaoyang district does not have that many tourist sites, most visitors to Beijing will find themselves in Chaoyang at some point: especially for visiting the art districts, shopping, restaurants, and nightlife.

Understand
Chaoyang is a massive district, roughly covering the urban area to the north and east of central Beijing, beginning at the Second Ring Road, and stretching beyond the Fifth Ring Road. Chaoyang contains Beijing's Central Business District (CBD).

The main precincts you are likely to visit are:

CBD (Central Business District)
CBD is the primary area of corporate services, business and media which surrounds Guomao (China World Trade Center), the most prestigious business addresses with an ultra-modern architecture. The WTC itself includes an impressive complex that includes grand hotels, the most luxurious malls selling elite international brands, exclusive restaurants and night spots. The clientele here represents the cream of China's wealthy elite.

Sanlitun
This precinct has been vastly improved for the community of expatriates, with better shopping and nightlife. Sanlitun is considered a stylish international precinct, featuring avant-garde commercial centres and retail. It has the most diverse international scenes and the widest selection of great restaurants, classy bars and dazzling nightclubs. Sanlitun is located next to international embassies, and is close by to Liangmaqiao, Chaoyang Park and Solana by 10–15 minutes on bike. Sanlitun Tai Koo Li and Sanlitun Soho on the other side of the road have a multitude of shops and restaurants, with an Apple Store and one of the only Shake Shacks in Beijing.

798 Art Zone
This area is a great place to visit from morning to midnight. It has grown into a visual arts destination attracting the best in talent from China and abroad. 798 also features trendy cafes and a buzzing night life.

Liangmaqiao
The region around Liangmaqiao, right next to Sanlitun, is popular with locals and tourists for its abundance of restaurants and shops. The river running through Liangmaqiao was renovated in 2020, and connects locations such as Solana, where a grouping of restaurants and shops are, with the 3rd Ring Road. The food in Solana is mid-range to expensive, and is connected to Chaoyang Park's northern parking lot. There is also one of the only Taco Bell locations in Beijing in Liangmaqiao.

Olympic Park
As part of an urban regeneration program leading up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the area in northwestern Chaoyang has been converted into the Olympic Park zone. Reachable with Line 5, 15 ans 8, the area includes chiefly Olympic Park with greenery, walkways, and landmarks such as the Bird's Nest.

Get in
Subway line 10, opened in 2008 in time for the Olympics, travels along or parallel to the Third Ring Road, through most of Chaoyang district. Line 1 runs east–west through the Central Business District. Line 5 runs north–south in the northern part of the district. Line 14 also runs north–south, east of Line 10, with access to Chaoyang locations such as 798 Art District and Chaoyang Park.

Olympic venues
Many of the 2008 Olympic venues are in or around the Olympic Green in Chaoyang. The Olympic Green area is a public square that can be visited for free. Admission is charged if you want to visit inside the venues:



Olympic venues are also found elsewhere in Chaoyang:



Finally, Olympic venues can be found in other districts including China Agricultural University Gymnasium, Beijing Science and Technology University Gymnasium, Beijing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics Gymnasium, Peking University Gymnasium, Beijing Institute of Technology Gymnasium, Capital Indoor Stadium, Beijing Olympic Basketball Gymnasium, Beijing Shooting Range CTF, Beijing Shooting Range Hall, Laoshan Velodrome, Laoshan Mountain Bike Course, and Fengtai Sports Center Softball Field.

Dashanzi Art District
Dashanzi Art District (大山子艺术区 Dàshānzǐ Yìshù Qū), originally known as 798 Factory, is a district full of galleries of contemporary Chinese art, in an old industrial district. Also many Western style cafes here. The area has been undisputed as the centre for Chinese contemporary art. But beginning commercialisation and mainstreaming of the area and the rise of other areas in Beijing makes this less obvious. The area is now firmly on the tour group circuit and can be crowded at weekends. Many of the original galleries have closed or moved due to high rents, although there are more and more cafes and shops, some quite high-end. Full of young artists selling their handiwork, which makes for great shopping if you can't afford the big art pieces. Visiting the area is still a must for art lovers and for other tourists. It's located outside Fourth Ring Road, so it's easiest and fastest to get there by taxi. It's in the direction of the airport, so it can be a convenient stop on your way there or a quick trip back into the city on your last night. Alternatively, bus routes 688 and 418 go from Dongzhimen via Liangmaqiao for connections to/from the subway system. Gaojiayuan Subway Station, which is directly outside 798, is under construction, so via subway, the closest stations are Wangjing South and Jiangtai, both of which are around a 5-minute walk from the district.



Caochangdi
Caochangdi is a satellite branch to Dashanzi established as Dashanzi became increasingly commercialised and rents rose significantly there. Caochangdi used to be a village, but has now been swallowed up by the city. It's a few kilometres north-east of Dashanzi, just beyond the Fifth Ring Road (a short taxi trip or a few stops on the same bus routes that go to Dashanzi). The galleries here are more spread out and can be hard to find, so this is a destination for more serious art aficionados.

Liquor Factory
Liquor Factory is the third large art area in Chaoyang

Other
Chaoyang also has a number of galleries elsewhere

Sanlitun
Sanlitun (三里屯 Sānlǐtún). Long the center of nightlife in Beijing, Sanlitun is located beside the embassy area in Chaoyang district. It is comprised of a main "bar street" divided into north and south sections, a side street with more casual (and cheaper) bars, and several large clubs/discothèques at the nearby north gate of the Worker's Stadium (separate entry below). Sanlitun has near legendary status amongst travelers, but you are just as likely to be irritated by pushy bar-owners or DVD sellers as you are to be charmed by its bars. Sanlitun is considered the 'old' nightlife district since Beijing started opening Western style clubs before 2005 in other areas, which means it is worth going to but if you are looking for the younger, party crowd then there are better places to go.

Sanlitun can be accessed by subway at Tuanjiehu Station on Line 10. It is west of Chaoyang Park and southwest of Liangmaqiao.

Most of the nightlife in Sanlitun is concentrated around Sanlitun SOHO and Tai Koo Li, with expensive restaurants and shops. Nightclubs litter the region around Sanlitun and the Worker's Stadium. Nightclubs will look favorably on people who look non-Chinese and groups with more than 2 women. Some nightclubs put restrictions on clothing, and wearing any unfashionable clothing will lead to being charged money in these clubs. Contacting PRs can be an easy way of entering clubs for free. However, many of the free drinks in clubs are low-grade alcohol.

The main strip of bars along the east side of Sanlitun Lu (usually called Sanlitun bei or north) are interchangeable and unremarkable bars, but the drinks can be cheap, and this is where the doormen will try to lure you in to their club with special offers. Two other clusters are set back from the street:

The south section is south of Gongti Beilu. Take your first left into what looks like a parking lot and walk past The Bookworm to find the bars:



The "pedestrian" side street with more casual (and cheaper) bars is along a couple small back streets immediately behind 3.3 Mall, north of the Village. Here you will find:



Worker's Stadium
The number of bars and clubs in the area around Worker's Stadium has increased as Sanlitun has been minimised by the city development. Now, the Worker's Stadium area shoud be considered a separate bar area. In fact, there are three distinct areas: the North Gate (Gōngtī Běi Mén) with the Kro's Nest, Vics and Mix; the huge entertainment complex on the West side (Gōngtī Xīlù); and Face Bar just on the south side of the Stadium.

Chaoyang Park West Gate
There is a bar area west of Chaoyang Park.



Splurge

 * Sureño is the Mediterranean restaurant on the lower ground level of the Opposite House, with an open kitchen and a wood-fired oven.
 * Mesh is a cool, contemporary lounge where the city's well-heeled professionals come to wind down and chat over inspiring cocktails and a great selection of wines.
 * Bei Restaurant has contemporary Asian food, inspired by the cuisines of Northern China, Japan and Korea. The Chef de Cuisine, Max Levy, has trained under some of Japan's sushi masters.
 * Sureño is the Mediterranean restaurant on the lower ground level of the Opposite House, with an open kitchen and a wood-fired oven.
 * Mesh is a cool, contemporary lounge where the city's well-heeled professionals come to wind down and chat over inspiring cocktails and a great selection of wines.
 * Bei Restaurant has contemporary Asian food, inspired by the cuisines of Northern China, Japan and Korea. The Chef de Cuisine, Max Levy, has trained under some of Japan's sushi masters.
 * Mesh is a cool, contemporary lounge where the city's well-heeled professionals come to wind down and chat over inspiring cocktails and a great selection of wines.
 * Bei Restaurant has contemporary Asian food, inspired by the cuisines of Northern China, Japan and Korea. The Chef de Cuisine, Max Levy, has trained under some of Japan's sushi masters.