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Forbidden City (Imperial Palace)

No.4 Jingshanqian Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing 100009, China
010-85007422, 85007421
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As featured in 3 days in Beijing
Ranked #10 of 959 attractions in Beijing
Type: Historic Sites, Architectural Buildings, Castles, Landmarks/ Points of Interest, Museums
Activities: Group tours/walking tour
Fee: Yes
Recommended length of visit: 2-3 hours
Owner description: Consisting of more than 9,000 rooms and spread over 250 acres, this huge palace complex was built in the 15th century and later extensively renovated... more » Owner description: Consisting of more than 9,000 rooms and spread over 250 acres, this huge palace complex was built in the 15th century and later extensively renovated and restored during the Qing Dynasty in the 18th century. « less
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4,136 reviews from our community

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canada
Top Contributor
173 reviews 173 reviews
77 attraction reviews
Reviews in 79 cities Reviews in 79 cities
73 helpful votes 73 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed May 24, 2013 NEW

The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. That's a long time ago. Stop and think of it. And the Chinese rulers yesterday or today have a slow efficient way, strict way, a different way all together. It is part of a visit to Beijing, you kind of have... More

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See 2 more reviews by monicdavid for Beijing
Launceston, Australia
Reviewer
4 reviews 4 reviews
3 attraction reviews
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 24, 2013 NEW

We watched the Last Emperor on DVD the night before we left for China. It helped us all to appreciate the Forbidden City, especially the children who had little knowledge of Chinese history before this trip. As we walked through we could imagine Puyi living there. It's a must see.

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See 3 more reviews by themwoodies for Beijing
Perth, Australia
Senior Reviewer
8 reviews 8 reviews
6 attraction reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
4 helpful votes 4 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 24, 2013 NEW

Yes it's crowded, but that is China- get use to it! Go back in time and enjoy looking around at a leisurely pace. Get a guide if you can afford it, my wife is a Beijing'er so I was very lucky to have her explain everything. It's huge and just like in the movie Last Emperor, make sure you take... More

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Albury, Australia
Senior Contributor
21 reviews 21 reviews
13 attraction reviews
Reviews in 8 cities Reviews in 8 cities
5 helpful votes 5 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 23, 2013 NEW

This tour is a must for beijing. Once you enter, you must complete the tour as there is no turning back. Some of the halls are massive. In contrast the rooms for the masters were quite small. That a city after so many hundreds of years still exists is remarkable. There has een fires there, but those buildings have been... More

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Ipswich, United Kingdom
Senior Reviewer
6 reviews 6 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed May 23, 2013 NEW

Trip to forbidden city was very entertaining as it is difficult to believe that chairman Mao would want to keep all this historical past of Chinas old emperors with all their connections to lots of concubines and the way they lived in the past.Our guide was very knowledgable and made it a good experience

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London, United Kingdom
Top Contributor
122 reviews 122 reviews
29 attraction reviews
Reviews in 46 cities Reviews in 46 cities
27 helpful votes 27 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 23, 2013 NEW

This is a sprawling complex and is very busy with Chinese visitors who flock to this impressive palace. However despite the crowds it's a great place to visit and you get a real feel of how the emperors used to live.

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See 4 more reviews by JPY for Beijing
Beijing, China
Senior Reviewer
6 reviews 6 reviews
6 attraction reviews
4 of 5 stars Reviewed May 23, 2013 NEW

I was expecting little bit more out of my visit here. It contained a ton of walking. At some points the crowds of people were so ridiculous of not letting other people through to take a quick photo of the Emperors room etc. the garden was magnificent and was probably the only part out of the whole 'city' I enjoyed.... More

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See 5 more reviews by Linda L for Beijing
Los Angeles
Top Contributor
120 reviews 120 reviews
25 attraction reviews
Reviews in 76 cities Reviews in 76 cities
83 helpful votes 83 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 22, 2013 NEW

It's an imperial wonder and a great experience, just be prepared for a LOT of people. Still, a "must-see". We went with a private guide and that made all the different - he pointed out so many things, architectural and historical, that we would otherwise have missed.

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See 6 more reviews by Lanie54 for Beijing
Washington,DC
Top Contributor
75 reviews 75 reviews
41 attraction reviews
Reviews in 23 cities Reviews in 23 cities
22 helpful votes 22 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 22, 2013 NEW

Of course, everyone must visit the Forbidden City while in Beijing. Our guide navigated our small group to the most important areas. It was not quite as overwhelming. After visiting, see the movie "The Last Emperor." It was made there.

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See 5 more reviews by amieduvin for Beijing
Greensboro, North Carolina
Senior Contributor
28 reviews 28 reviews
10 attraction reviews
Reviews in 15 cities Reviews in 15 cities
29 helpful votes 29 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 22, 2013 NEW

I'd recommend watching the Last Emperor prior to visiting, the movie isn't historically accurate but does provide some context that will make your visit more interesting.

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See 4 more reviews by richard b for Beijing

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