Beijing/Huairou

Huairou District (怀柔区; Huáiróuqū) is a district in the far north of Beijing Municipality. It is a mix of rural and urban settlements. Mutianyu, one of the most popular sections of the Great Wall of China for international tourists, is located in the district.

Climate
Huairou, located in the north of Beijing, is shaped by nature's climate. The place experiences a continental climate typical of Beijing, with sharp seasonal changes. In summer, Huairou, like the rest of Beijing, is hot and humid, sunny, and the lakes and mountains are especially charming at this time. Visitors can swim in the cool waters and enjoy the pleasant summer in Huairou.

In spring, Huairou area is often attacked by sandstorms, wind and sand rage, and the sky is dark. This may not be the best time to travel. However, Huairou has a pleasant climate in other seasons, which is warm and dry. Although the summer is hot, it also attracts a large number of tourists to experience the charm of this area. Winter is a different scene, Huairou winter is cold and dry, although there is not much snow, but the scenery is intoxicating. Temperatures can easily fall below -10 degrees Celsius, and summer temperatures can easily rise above 30 degrees Celsius.

By train
Huairou has no subway access, but two suburban railway lines are accessible. The new Beijing–Shenyang high-speed railway also has a station in Huairou: Huairou South railway station, located in Yangsong Town which is adjacent to several film studios. The station is quite far from downtown Huairou, buses No. H6, H68 and H84 run to Huairou from the South Square bus stop.

By bus
Huairou is served by Buses No. 916, 916 express, and 866. The former two leave from Dongzhimen and the latter leaves from Wangjingxi Subway Station. 916 takes about two hours to get to Huairou so it is not recommended. It is also faster to get on 916 at Houshayu station of Subway line 15 and it takes about an hour to get to Huairou. 916 express is significantly faster and it takes about 1.5 hours to get to Huairou; 866 is even faster and it often takes less than 1 hour to get to Huairou (This is because 916 express takes detours in downtown Huairou to serve more communities, while 866 goes straight to the Huairou Bus Terminal). The service times for 916 express are 5:50-20:00 for Dongzhimen, 4:30-18:50 for Huairou Bus terminal, every 10–15 minutes. Those of 866 are 6:50 to 21:00 for Wangjingxi and 5:30-20:00 for Huairou, every 15–30 minutes.

Mutianyu Great Wall
Mutianyu (慕田峪 Mùtiányù) is not as easy as the Badaling section in Yanqing District to reach via public transportation. Getting there often involves a taxi ride, public bus or tour bus.

By bus
It is possible to take public buses to Mutianyu, you can take bus No. 916 express (from Dongzhimen) to Huairou Beidajie station, and walk across the street, and take bus No.H24, which takes you to the 4th parking lot of Mutianyu. Note that H24 runs only twice a day (8:40 and 15:45). You want to get on the 8:40 bus so the latest 916 Express you'll have to get on at Dongzhimen is the 7:15 one (assuming the Expressway is traffic-free). So maybe you're better off with a taxi or tour bus, unless you're traveling on an extremely tight budget. See the details about the card on in the Beijing section.

By tour bus
A recommended tour is the Mubus. It's really just a shuttle that picks you up from and drops you back at downtown Beijing. Costs you ¥80.

Great Wall


See Great Wall for general information on the Great Wall. Sections are listed from west to east.



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