Forbidden City Guided Group Tour with Entry Tickets|Multi‑Departs
Recommended by 98% of travelers
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Beijing, China
- 2 to 3 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Discover the stories behind Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City during a small-group walking tour in Beijing. Explore all the key sites including the Imperial Garden, and discover fun facts about the Ming and Qing dynasties from your guide. Alternatively, explore Jingshan Park, where you can enjoy panoramic views of Beijing's cityscape, including an unparalleled view of the Forbidden City, instead of Tiananmen Square.
- Use a prebooked ticket to access the Forbidden City
- Hear stories relating to the Ming and Qing dynasties
- Visit the Meridian Gate, Imperial Garden, and more
- A small group means more attention from your guide
What's Included
- Group tour includes a professional guide
- Fobiddden city entrance fee
- If you choose the Tian'anmen Square option entry ticket is included
- If you choose 2 Hour Forbidden City Tour, you will only visit Forbidden City
- Hotel pick up and drop-off
- Gratuites
- Meals
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
Type to search
End point
- China, Bei Jing Shi, Xi Cheng Qu, 景山景山西街44号南门 邮政编码: 100006
Tour will end at the north gate of the Forbidden city
Itinerary
Make your own way to the Beijing Planning Exhibition Hall, Lao She Tea House, or Donghuamen to meet your guide and small group and head to the entrance of the Forbidden City.
Enter with your prebooked ticket in hand. Make your way to a quiet seating area, and learn about the palace and the Ming and Qing dynasties from your guide. Many say that a visit to the Forbidden City is more about the stories than the sightseeing, and your guide will tell all the tales to make your visit complete.
Check out the Meridian Gate, halls of harmony, heavenly purity, earthly tranquility, and unity; and the tree-lined pathways of the Imperial Garden as well as many other significant sights. Read the Itinerary for a full list of attractions that are seen on the tour.
Continue to Tiananmen Square, in the geographical heart of the city. Once of the world’s largest central squares, Tiananmen Square covers a vast amount of open space. Stand amid the history as your guide explains its past and points out its significant buildings.
Otherwise, head to Jinshan Park and walk up to the summit of Jinshan Hill and enjoy sweeping views over the Forbidden City and Beijing.
Enter with your prebooked ticket in hand. Make your way to a quiet seating area, and learn about the palace and the Ming and Qing dynasties from your guide. Many say that a visit to the Forbidden City is more about the stories than the sightseeing, and your guide will tell all the tales to make your visit complete.
Check out the Meridian Gate, halls of harmony, heavenly purity, earthly tranquility, and unity; and the tree-lined pathways of the Imperial Garden as well as many other significant sights. Read the Itinerary for a full list of attractions that are seen on the tour.
Continue to Tiananmen Square, in the geographical heart of the city. Once of the world’s largest central squares, Tiananmen Square covers a vast amount of open space. Stand amid the history as your guide explains its past and points out its significant buildings.
Otherwise, head to Jinshan Park and walk up to the summit of Jinshan Hill and enjoy sweeping views over the Forbidden City and Beijing.
Beijing (Pass By)
1
Tiananmen Square
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
The Palace Museum
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
3
Hall of Great Harmony (Taihe Dian)
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
4
Hall of Preserving Harmony (Baohedian)
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
5
Palace of Heavenly Purity
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
6
The Imperial Garden of The Palace Museum
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Infants must sit on laps
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Most travelers can participate
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Your passport name and number are required at time of booking (for all participants)
- Please don't forget to bring your passport, you may be refused entry without it.
- 0-3 Years old infant is free, children have to purchase tickets as well
- Tian'anmen Square might close without advance notice due to government activity, if this happens you will skip the Square
- Tour departs punctually. Please arrive 10 minutes early. Once the tour left, you are unable to join the tour, and this tour is not refundable.
- Chinese citizens, including customers from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, need to reserve the tickets for the Palace Museum 7 days in advance. Once the tickets for the Palace Museum are sold out, it will be impossible to participate in this itinerary. In addition, according to the regulations of the Palace Museum, Chinese citizens can only choose to reserve tickets with their ID cards. Therefore, when making a reservation, it is necessary to submit the Chinese name and ID card number, and on the day of the tour, the submitted ID document must be presented to join the tour group.
- In case of peak travel seasons and when all the tickets reserved online for the scenic area are sold out, tourists are required to go to the ticket office of the scenic area by themselves under the guidance of the tour guide to handle the purchase of paper tickets on-site. Please be informed.
- Since this is a small - group itinerary, your punctual arrival at the meeting point is essential for a seamless travel experience. Tiananmen Square and the Palace Museum have strict regulations and procedures. If you are late, it may unfortunately prevent you from joining the tour and entering the Palace Museum. Due to the unique nature of the itinerary arrangements, in the event that lateness causes you to miss the tour, we regret that we will not be able to process a refund. We highly recommend that you communicate with your hotel in advance to accurately confirm the travel time from the hotel to the meeting point and make sufficient preparations. This way, you can embark on your journey with ease and enjoy every moment of it.
- In Peak season, the security checks at Tiananmen Square are particularly stringent. If the waiting time exceeds one hour, we recommend considering a bus ride that passes by the square. Given the sweltering heat, waiting in line for an extended period increases the risk of heat - related illnesses. Additionally, spending too much time at the square could detract from your experience at the iconic Forbidden City, which is a highlight of our tour. We will only proceed with this alternative if the majority of the group is in agreement. Please keep this in mind as we plan our visit.
- This tour is not recommended for travelers with physical/visual impairments or mobility restrictions due to varied terrain (underground passages, stairs) and the length of the tour. Please note that this tour covers 4 hours of walking.
- This tour is not recommended for travelers with physical/visual impairments or mobility restrictions due to varied terrain (underground passages, stairs) and the length of the tour. Please note that this tour covers 4 hours of walking.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 100 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 2,095 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Michael_F, Jul 2026
Vivian was an amazing tour guide, who brought so much humor, energy, and care to the experience. She was very clever about how to navigate lines & crowds, hooked us all up with the best angles for photos, and was flexible with the preferences of folks in the group. My friend and I were very interested in the history of the sites we saw, and Vivian was eager to answer our questions and discuss fine details. We adored her!
sellsoap, Jul 2026
May was a lovely and knowledgeable guide. She is patient and accommodating with the group while also keeping all on track for the half day tour. She kindly offered to take pictures for all of us on the tour. It really feels like she enjoys her job and values those she is leading. Thank you, May!
Walid_E, Jun 2026
Very informative. Our guide Vivien gave all the historical background while moving around. Adds a lot of value to what you see and walk through. Makes it a totally different level of engagement
Jaypee_V, Jun 2026
The tour guide was just focused on getting good reviews from guests. I wasnt able to take good photos atleast as he would not give time and he would not assist.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Dear guest, we’re truly sorry to hear you were unsatisfied with your two-hour shared group tour of the Forbidden City, and we’d like to clarify the actual arrangements of our itinerary here.
This is a compact two-hour group sightseeing tour covering hundreds of years of Ming and Qing dynasty history together with ancient imperial architectural norms. It is objectively impossible to cover every single detail within such a limited time frame, so our guide arranges the tour to focus on core, representative historical knowledge to ensure all group guests can grasp key background stories efficiently as scheduled.
Before and during the tour, our guide clearly informed all visitors that once the guided explanation segment wrapped up, every guest would have full free time to wander the palace courtyards independently, take photos freely, and explore any areas they were interested in at their own pace. The guided route follows a fixed unified schedule to accommodate all members of the shared group, as we cannot pause repeatedly for individual photo-taking requests which would delay the whole team and impact the experience of other tourists.
We always aim to deliver balanced, comprehensive explanations for all group visitors rather than focusing on reviews alone. We regret that our fixed group schedule arrangement did not match your personal travel expectation of extended photo time, and we suggest private customized tours for guests hoping for fully flexible, unrushed sightseeing and photography time in the future.
Best regards,
Qing
Robyn_D, Jun 2026
Tour guide was amazing and so informative ! Would highly recommened !
Anson was amazing , very friendly , we had a great time !! 5 stars
Michael_W, Jun 2026
It was very helpful to visit these spots with a tour guide. Our guide, Jay, was very knowledgeable about the area and really made the experience more enjoyable. He also provided us with great tips about what to do in Beijing.
Reginald_G, Jun 2026
Great tour guide, very flexible! Vivian was very knowledgeable and because we were a smaller tour she catered to our needs and interests. She was very flexible and we got a lot done in the 3 hours!
Angela_G, Jun 2026
Jimmy was a great tour with very clear English. He took us to the main sites of the Forbidden City but also to some area off the beaten track. There was plenty of interesting information and facts and I appreciated that at each part of the Forbidden City, he gave us time to wander around and look at our own pace. He was also very helpful in taking pictures even though there were multiple groups of people.
curtis_m, Jun 2026
Great experience for our family! Leo was very knowledgeable and friendly. Helped us to learn so much and to get us where we needed to be on time. He was an amazing guide! Five stars all the way!
Wendy_H, Jun 2026
We had a great time touring Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City with Moko. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and funny. It was a great blend of history and modern insights.
Fiona_S, May 2026
Our guide Vivian did a fabulous job sharing her extensive knowledge of The Forbidden City. Make sure you have your walking shoes on and be ready to hear a lot of fascinating information. There is a lot to see!
Ilinca_S, May 2026
Miko was amazing, he was very nice and he explained everything in perfect detail. Our visit wouldn’t have been the same without him. I recommend the tour 100%
Saqib_Q, May 2026
The guide's English wasn't great. And her ability to convey what we saw wasn't great either. She was polite, friendly and listened - but didn't have what it took to educate and inform us.
Julia_H, May 2026
We are so glad we booked the tour and had an amazing tour guide Anson. Anson was very organized, friendly and knowledgeable! Anson also made all the history very interesting to listen too with some good humour ☺️ the tour made everything more relaxing and easy for us, so I would 100% recommend, especially considering the crowds!
Mark_M, May 2026
We had a great time - Lily guided us through with a lot of rain and explained details of the vast palace which we would otherwise have known very little about. There was a bit of a line at security but not much any group could do about this.
Alissa_H, May 2026
Tour guide abandoned me, so I'm currently touring Forbidden Palace myself. tour group was too large and she couldn't handle group size.
Bill_V, May 2026
Waited in line for over an hour and gave up.
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Gourav_G, May 2026
Mike was amazing to talk to, he knew what he was talking about. Loved it.
Felt pricing was a bit on a higher side but its okay!
Acacia_B, May 2026
Our tour guide Mumu was friendly, engaging and funny. We had a great time! Would definitely recommend if you have time and want to learn the history of the forbidden city.
Natalia_C, May 2026
Great tour guide, amazing experience 🥳
The tour was quite tiring but awesome, definitely worth it 💕
Wojciech_B, May 2026
Learned a lot, Mike is a very good guide. We unfortunately were not able to enter Tianmen square due to long queues but it was outisde organizer's control.
Kazimierz_B, May 2026
So amazing! Very efficient tour. Mina was a great tour guide. We got through the lines quickly and learnt so much history!
Exsus_O, May 2026
Jimmy was amazing! Very knowledgeable about the Forbidden city and also got us through the queues really quick as well. Highly recommend 10/10.
Ivana_H, May 2026
Padma was our tourguide and she was absolutely amazing with a big smile! She knew her way around the Forbidden city and was super knowledgable about the history. She helped us through the security checks and kept making sure we were having a great time! At the end of the tour she gave us tips on what to see in Beijing. We enjoyed her tour and would deffinitely go again next time :)
Lisa_N, Apr 2026
We couldn’t get tickets to Tiananmen Square and the forbidden city. We couldn’t book tickets for the day ourselves and decided to do a tour instead. We were told that visiting these places could take the entire day and hours could be spent waiting in line but our guide, Li Yanmin, expertly guided us through the area while also telling us facts and history. One word to describe her was EFFICIENT. We didn’t realize just how big the area was and felt like we covered a good amount of ground in just 4 hours. We so appreciated her guidance and highly recommend this tour
April_T, Apr 2026
Mike was our tour guide and he was excellent. He was very informative, took care of the group, and allowed us to take breaks when necessary.
He had so many fun facts and lots of great information. Thanks Mike!
Darshika_S, Apr 2026
Vivian is very knowledgeable and made sure we all stayed together. She even offered to take pics for us. Taking away one star as I feel it was a lot of walking in 4 hours. Could have built in some rest time as we were all very tired and when given an option to sit for 10 mins or see some buildings most preferred to take a break.
Tatiana_C, Apr 2026
When in many reviews I read that it’s hectic to get to the FC during the weekend I was sceptical, as I was not willing to spend half of the day in the line. Our guide Andy got us in express line skipping everything. Very informative and interesting tour. One thing to remember to bring some snacks especially if you are taking a tour during the lunch time.
Julie_S, Apr 2026
A great tour of Tianamen Sq and Forbidden City. Our guide Vivian was brilliant - incredibly knowledgeable about the history and the buildings and delivered all the information in a precise yet entertaining manner. It was our last afternoon in Beijing so didn’t want a tour that lasted too long and this was perfect, in 3 hours we felt we had learned so much - although it would have been possible to stay longer if we had the time. Would highly recommend Vivian and this tour.
Alexander_S, Apr 2026
Our guide Vivian was great. She was very informative and able to answer all of our questions and helped us with group photos
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