Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing provided by Catherine Lu Tours
Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing
Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing
5
Book in advance
from
$210.00
per adult (price varies by group size)Reserve now & pay later: Save your spot free of charge with flexible booking.
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this reservation up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
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Tour snapshot
Duration:
8h
Hotel pickup offered
Ticket type:
Mobile
Free cancellation
- Duration:8h
- Hotel pickup offered
- Ticket type:Mobile
- Free cancellation
About
Know before you go
- Duration: 8h
- Mobile tickets accepted
- Instant confirmation
Cancellation policy
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
Available languages
English
What to expect
Know before you go
- Duration: 8h
- Mobile tickets accepted
- Instant confirmation
Available languages
English
Cancellation policy
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
What to expect
Need help booking?
Call the number below and use the product code: 37561P40
Important information
Inclusions
- English-speaking tour guide service fee
- Air-conditioned vehicle with a private driver
- Gas, toll & parking lot fees
- Lunch at the local Chinese restaurant
- Round Trip cable car or chair lift up and toboggan down the wall
- Lunch
- Bottled water
- Entry/Admission - Mutianyu Great Wall
- Entry/Admission - Ming Tombs (Ming Shishan Ling)
Exclusions
- Accommodation
- Dinner
- Gratuity to the guide and driver
- Personal Costs
Duration
8h
Departure details
- Traveler pickup is offered.
- Hotel pickup is offered. View the hotel list on our checkout page to see if yours is included among the pickup points.
Additional information
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- For the lunch, you will be taken to the authentic Chinese local restaurant catering for the locals or at the western-style subway restaurant (2 options). And the lunch has its budget
- Dress code is smart casual
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Infant (1-3 years old) are free providing they do not occupy a seat
- Extra fee is requested after 8 hours tour
- Most travelers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
Inclusions
- English-speaking tour guide service fee
- Air-conditioned vehicle with a private driver
- Gas, toll & parking lot fees
- Lunch at the local Chinese restaurant
- Round Trip cable car or chair lift up and toboggan down the wall
- Lunch
- Bottled water
- Entry/Admission - Mutianyu Great Wall
- Entry/Admission - Ming Tombs (Ming Shishan Ling)
Exclusions
- Accommodation
- Dinner
- Gratuity to the guide and driver
- Personal Costs
Departure details
- Traveler pickup is offered.
- Hotel pickup is offered. View the hotel list on our checkout page to see if yours is included among the pickup points.
Duration
8h
Return details
- Returns to original departure point
Additional information
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- For the lunch, you will be taken to the authentic Chinese local restaurant catering for the locals or at the western-style subway restaurant (2 options). And the lunch has its budget
- Dress code is smart casual
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Infant (1-3 years old) are free providing they do not occupy a seat
- Extra fee is requested after 8 hours tour
- Most travelers can participate
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
Itinerary
- You'll get picked upSee Important Information for details
- 1Mutianyu Great WallStop: 2 hours - Admission includedSee details
- 2Ming Tombs (Ming Shishan Ling)Stop: 2 hours - Admission includedSee details
- You'll return to the starting point
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
5.0
6 reviews
Excellent
5
Very good
1
Average
0
Poor
0
Terrible
0
Megan
Sandton, South Africa1 contribution
We had a day tour covering Mutianyu Great Wall, Ming Tombs and Olympics Park. It was amazing, we had lots of fun and would highly recommend it.
Jenny was our guide and she was absolutely brilliant. She was friendly and knowledgeable so we were never bored on the trip.
The driver was great too; he was polite and drove well. We did not have any traffic on the day so were extremely lucky.
Highlights:
- Mutianyu Great Wall: we visited this in the early morning around 10ish before it got too hot / crowded. We got to spend an hour on the wall which was enough as the walk was quite tiring in the sun. You could either go left with more uphill and downhill or go right which is steeper but offers a great view. We took the cable car up and the slide down. The slide is uper fun and highly recommended if not too busy / crowded.
- Lunch: this was definitely one of the highlight of the trip. We went to a very lovely local rural restaurant with a fish pond in the front. We were able to catch our own fish and had it cooked. Food was tasty as well. We preferred this to some of the more touristy restaurants.
- Ming Tombs: the history was interesting but the tomb itself was quite boring. We enjoyed Sacred Way though. It was beautiful with the green trees and stone sculptures along the pathway.
- Olympics Park: we stopped for pictures at Olympics Park and saw the Birds Nest and Water Cube.
Overall lovely day trip and highly recommended. Although the tour is slightly pricey it is defintiely worth it!!
Jenny was our guide and she was absolutely brilliant. She was friendly and knowledgeable so we were never bored on the trip.
The driver was great too; he was polite and drove well. We did not have any traffic on the day so were extremely lucky.
Highlights:
- Mutianyu Great Wall: we visited this in the early morning around 10ish before it got too hot / crowded. We got to spend an hour on the wall which was enough as the walk was quite tiring in the sun. You could either go left with more uphill and downhill or go right which is steeper but offers a great view. We took the cable car up and the slide down. The slide is uper fun and highly recommended if not too busy / crowded.
- Lunch: this was definitely one of the highlight of the trip. We went to a very lovely local rural restaurant with a fish pond in the front. We were able to catch our own fish and had it cooked. Food was tasty as well. We preferred this to some of the more touristy restaurants.
- Ming Tombs: the history was interesting but the tomb itself was quite boring. We enjoyed Sacred Way though. It was beautiful with the green trees and stone sculptures along the pathway.
- Olympics Park: we stopped for pictures at Olympics Park and saw the Birds Nest and Water Cube.
Overall lovely day trip and highly recommended. Although the tour is slightly pricey it is defintiely worth it!!
Written December 23, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Leslie M
Redondo Beach, CA24 contributions
Amanda was the BEST!!!! Booking tours with Catherine Lu before even leaving home was SO easy and we were more than impressed with the car and driver that picked us up, the details of the day flawlessly planned in advance but then executed perfectly by Amanda!!!! Amanda was our tour guide our first full day in Beijing (which was also our first full day in China) and on our 2nd day with her we got to go to the Great Wall, Ming Tombs and had a KILLER, delish, super locals lunch in between the two stops. Amanda was super flexible in allowing us as much time as we wanted at the wall walking around, in the shops afterward, etc. And she recommended to have us toboggan down the Great Wall (her favorite way to get down) which was the BEST!!! How many people can say they tobogganed down the Great Wall of China? She took SO MANY amazing photos of us during both days of tours - so many frame-able moments of all 3 of us so we didn't have to ask other travelers or take selfies. We felt safe and taken care of with Amanda and Catherine Lu from start to finish! And we even had Catherine Lu travels assist us in setting up tours in other cities throughout our time in China as well (make recommendations if they did not have a team there). ALL were wonderful.
Amanda truly made us super excited for the rest of our trip (which was a little over 2 weeks in total) she was super knowledgeable and thoughtful or our time and what we were interested in, willing to discuss more than just what we saw but historical questions we had as well as questions we had about China's culture in general and she was FUN!! And she even had a little surprise for us at the end of the day that we were able to take home with us - I'm not telling because I don't want to ruin it for others!! You can't go wrong when booking ANY tour with Catherine Lu!! Thank you!
Amanda truly made us super excited for the rest of our trip (which was a little over 2 weeks in total) she was super knowledgeable and thoughtful or our time and what we were interested in, willing to discuss more than just what we saw but historical questions we had as well as questions we had about China's culture in general and she was FUN!! And she even had a little surprise for us at the end of the day that we were able to take home with us - I'm not telling because I don't want to ruin it for others!! You can't go wrong when booking ANY tour with Catherine Lu!! Thank you!
Written November 19, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Brisvegan_Abroad
Brisbane41 contributions
Couples
We had a brief stay in Beijing and were mostly exploring on our own or with a friend but wanted a one day private guided tour to get to the Great Wall and some of the further out attractions. We called Catherine after another tour plan fell through and it would have been possible arrange the tour for that day (always useful to find companies that can make last minute arrangements) but we opted to plan the tour for the next day. We wanted to see the Great Wall at Mutianyu and the Ming Tombs. We had to pay extra because it was a customised plan, involving two out of town destinations.
Our guide Gloria and driver picked us up from our hotel. The car was perfectly comfortable. In terms of seeing the Ming Tombs, Gloria had arranged for us to go to Shendao, the walkway that the Emperor would take to pass into Heaven, which was a long tree-lined boulevard full of statues. This was the entrance to all of the Ming Tombs. Then we went to the Underground Palace to see the tomb of Dingling. We took different paths from the many other tour groups there, which meant we skipped waiting times and made it more pleasant. Then we drove to a restaurant near the Great Wall. As Gloria was vegetarian, we ate mostly vegetable dishes but we were happy with the choices (the meat dish was the only let down). We then headed to the Great Wall, got some advice about what path to take and what towers to visit, took the cable car up, walked along the wall, and took the toboggan down. Gloria opted to stay behind for one section where we wanted to climb further up the wall to Tower 1. It was difficult climbing in heavy heat, which appealled to us but we understood why someone else wouldn't want to do it when they've done it before so that was fine. Gloria even lent me her umbrella. We doubled back to meet up with Gloria in one of the towers above the start of the ride down. We had some more time left so opted to visit some local supermarkets (something we do in each country but hadn't yet managed in China) before being taken directly to the airport, where we were flying out that night. During the day there was lots of discussion about the history of China and pointing out statues and sites. We were supplied with bottles of water throughout the day. There were no shopping stops and we were able to avoid a lot of the hassling that I saw other tourists being exposed to.
This company is more expensive than other options. Whether it is worth the additional price is hard to say because we didn't try the other options. They offer nine hours in a one day tour. We didn't really use our full time and neither the guide or driver could think of things we could do where we were to see a little bit more (kind of the opposite of the glut of "factory tours" and shopping stops you can get on other tours). Gloria advised us to get to the airport very early (at least 2.5 hours before the flight) despite the fact we had already checked in online and had no check in luggage so we ended up being dropped at the airport 3.5 hours before our flight was due to leave and this ended up being a big mistake. As it turned out, the airline counters did not open until strictly 2 hours before the flight so we couldn't progress once we arrived at the airport and passed through the intial security check point and suffered a myriad of further problems (flight board said flight was cancelled, no staff from the airline accessible anywhere to discuss this, flight wasn't actually cancelled but recoded and none of this was reported anywhere, flight delayed) that led to us being essentially trapped in this very uninteresting airport terminal for five hours. Of course, Gloria could not have known all of this but should know that airlines don't allow you to check in for regional flights until 2 hours before scheduled departure. Overall, the tour was fine and allowed us to do the things we planned. The time on the tour was very stress-free, which was an oasis in Beijing. I believe Gloria was a registered tour guide, which helps to add legitimacy, and we had no trouble understanding her English, which was also helpful in navigating a city where English speakers are uncommon.
Our guide Gloria and driver picked us up from our hotel. The car was perfectly comfortable. In terms of seeing the Ming Tombs, Gloria had arranged for us to go to Shendao, the walkway that the Emperor would take to pass into Heaven, which was a long tree-lined boulevard full of statues. This was the entrance to all of the Ming Tombs. Then we went to the Underground Palace to see the tomb of Dingling. We took different paths from the many other tour groups there, which meant we skipped waiting times and made it more pleasant. Then we drove to a restaurant near the Great Wall. As Gloria was vegetarian, we ate mostly vegetable dishes but we were happy with the choices (the meat dish was the only let down). We then headed to the Great Wall, got some advice about what path to take and what towers to visit, took the cable car up, walked along the wall, and took the toboggan down. Gloria opted to stay behind for one section where we wanted to climb further up the wall to Tower 1. It was difficult climbing in heavy heat, which appealled to us but we understood why someone else wouldn't want to do it when they've done it before so that was fine. Gloria even lent me her umbrella. We doubled back to meet up with Gloria in one of the towers above the start of the ride down. We had some more time left so opted to visit some local supermarkets (something we do in each country but hadn't yet managed in China) before being taken directly to the airport, where we were flying out that night. During the day there was lots of discussion about the history of China and pointing out statues and sites. We were supplied with bottles of water throughout the day. There were no shopping stops and we were able to avoid a lot of the hassling that I saw other tourists being exposed to.
This company is more expensive than other options. Whether it is worth the additional price is hard to say because we didn't try the other options. They offer nine hours in a one day tour. We didn't really use our full time and neither the guide or driver could think of things we could do where we were to see a little bit more (kind of the opposite of the glut of "factory tours" and shopping stops you can get on other tours). Gloria advised us to get to the airport very early (at least 2.5 hours before the flight) despite the fact we had already checked in online and had no check in luggage so we ended up being dropped at the airport 3.5 hours before our flight was due to leave and this ended up being a big mistake. As it turned out, the airline counters did not open until strictly 2 hours before the flight so we couldn't progress once we arrived at the airport and passed through the intial security check point and suffered a myriad of further problems (flight board said flight was cancelled, no staff from the airline accessible anywhere to discuss this, flight wasn't actually cancelled but recoded and none of this was reported anywhere, flight delayed) that led to us being essentially trapped in this very uninteresting airport terminal for five hours. Of course, Gloria could not have known all of this but should know that airlines don't allow you to check in for regional flights until 2 hours before scheduled departure. Overall, the tour was fine and allowed us to do the things we planned. The time on the tour was very stress-free, which was an oasis in Beijing. I believe Gloria was a registered tour guide, which helps to add legitimacy, and we had no trouble understanding her English, which was also helpful in navigating a city where English speakers are uncommon.
Written July 15, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
R Anesini
Sao Paulo, SP41 contributions
I'm so glad that I had such wonderful time with our tour guide, Joyce. The Mutianyu Great Wall (best part of the wall to be visited from BJS) is really wonderful and we've got a real history class. Transportation was comfortable, with a kind driver. I strongly recommend this day tour.
Written August 28, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Steve O
broomfield5 contributions
Couples
My wife and I booked this tour online and had a wonderful full day experience touring the Long Wall and Ming Tombs with an authentic lunch in a rural restaurant. Our tour guide, Lucy, was superb. Her English and historic knowledge were excellent and she was friendly and cheerful throughout a long day. She was very patient with us as we peppered her with questions about the history of the Wall and Tombs and modern day China. She even gave his recommendations for other tours and activities in Beijing that turned out to be spot on so we feel we got more than our money's worth of information. The tour was nicely choreographed and Lucy made sure we got to spend ample time at the most relevant and interesting tourist spots. The driver was a very considerate and drove very safely. All in all we were extremely happy with our tour experience and would highly recommend Lucy if you can get her!
Written April 23, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
alohajamon
3 contributions
Family
Our tour guide Sasha was fantastic and very informative. She thoroughly explained the culture and background of the Great Wall and the Ming Tombs. It gave us a better understanding of how and why they were built. Not only was the actual sightseeing absolutely incredible, the transportation and the lunch that were included in the package were all excellent. Our driver and Sasha were both very kind and caring. They did their absolute best to make sure that we were as comfortable as we can be, and they definitely achieved that. I vehemently recommend booking this tour and hopefully you can get Sasha as your tour guide for this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Catherine Lu, our tour operator, was very responsive and efficient during the process. It was very pleasant doing business with her.
P.S. Sorry for the belated view. We just returned to the States after a long trip in Asia.
Catherine Lu, our tour operator, was very responsive and efficient during the process. It was very pleasant doing business with her.
P.S. Sorry for the belated view. We just returned to the States after a long trip in Asia.
Written August 31, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Frequently Asked Questions about Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing
- Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing will start at 8:00 AM. Discover and book Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing on Tripadvisor
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- Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing cancellation policy: For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience. Discover and book Private Full Day Tour to Mutianyu Great Wall and Ming Tombs from Beijing on Tripadvisor