"Temple of Heaven" China Things to Do Tip by Mez77

My Beijing Page

The Temple of Heaven was a delightful surprise to me. I hadn't fully researched it before I visited it, so I didn't really know what to expect.

I always like surprises, and I like them especially when there aren't a million and one tourists sharing them with me.

We must have entered the Temple of Heaven complex for the wrong end, because it seemed virtually deserted. I recommend that you buy the Y35 ticket which will give you entrance to the sights within the complex. The Y15 through ticket only lets you wander in the grounds.

The architecture of the buildings is different to all other temples that I had seen in China...numerous by this time, and that was a refreshing change. Also the gardens themselves resembled a European Forest rather than the usual manicured Chinese creations. The beautiful old trees were quite stunning (some up to 900 years old)

What I also like about the temple of Heaven is it's quirkiness. Animals were sacrificed here and there are various areas that are just ...different. Such as the wall where you can stand on one side of the complex and talk normally and the person on the other side can hear you perfectly well. I assume this only works when there isn't 50 odd tour groups in the middle...but a cool concept nonetheless.