The Forbidden City

Lying at the center of Beijing, the forbidden city or Gu Gong in Chinese, is one tourism site that you shouldn’t miss when travelingto china. Let’s visit it and learn more about the grand imperial palace

Stepping into the forbidden city, you are transported to a time of emperors and concubines. It was the Chinese imperial palace for twenty four emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Built from 1406 to 1420, it is the world’s largest palace complex covering an area of 74 hectares and consisting of 980 buildings with more than 8,700 rooms. It is surrounded by a 52 meter-wide moat and a 10 meter-high wall. It’s said that a million workers, including one hundred thousand artisans, were driven into the-long term hard work to build this place. The name forbidden city itself refers to the fact that back then no one could enter or leave the palace without the emperor’s permission.

The forbidden city is devided into two parts. The southern part, or the outer court, was the area where the emperor exescised his supreme power over the nation. The northern part, or the inner court, was a place where he lived with his royal family. The forbidden palace now functions as the palace museum and houses numerous rare treasures. It has been listed by UNESCO (United Nation Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization) as a world cultural heritage since 1987 and has become one of the most popular tourist attractions world-wide.

As Beijing provides comfortable public transportation, you can take a taxi, a bus or a subway and get off at Gu Gong station to get to the forbidden city. Normally, visitors enter the palace through the Meridien gate (South Gate). This imperial palace opens from 08.30-17.00 at a ticket price of CNY(Chinese Yuan) 60 or around 84,000. Make sure you spare 3-4 hours for the trip as you will not be able to explore the hug area of the palace in just one or two hours. You get to see splendid painted decorations on these royal architecture wonders, and the grand and deluxe hall, with their surprisingly magnificient treasures. Don’t forget to bring a camera to capture the beautyof the palace.

The forbidden city is usually crowded especially during holidays such as May Day, National Day Holiday in the first week October, and summer holiday. The number of visitors is usually limited up to 80,000/day during these periods. Better not go there on these days. The entrance ticket can be purchased on the spot or online. Have fun exploring this ancient Chinese heritage!