Jinshanling Great Wall (金山岭长城) is one of the most beautiful Great Wall sections. It was originally built between 1368 and 1389 during the Ming Dynasty and rebuilt in 1570 under the supervision of famous General Qi Jiguang. If you want to see the original status Great Wall from Beijing, this is the best option for you.
Jinshanling Great Wall Coach Tour
If you do not want to arrange transportation yourself, and want to make things easier. You can consider our guided coach tours to Jinshanling Great wall. The tour is daily available and includes hotel pick up and drop off, shared air-con coach, English speaking guide and Chinese lunch. All there are offered at affordable price.
Check the details at: Jinshanling Great Wall Coach Tour– $55/person (Daily available, non-shopping)
How Far is Jinshanling Great Wall from Beijing?
Jinshanling Great Wall is about 140 km northeast of Beijing, about 2.5 hours drive. It is further than other Great Wall sections like Badaling and Mutianyu, but many parts of this section still keep original status of the Great Wall.
How long is Jinshanling Great Wall?
Jinshanling Great Wall is 10.5 km long. It has 31 watchtowers in total, about one every 150 meters. The advised length of hiking is 3-4 hours.
Entrance Tickets and Opening Hours
Entrance fee: RMB65 (April 1 – Oct 31); RMB55 (Nov 1- the next Mar.31)
Opening Hours: April 1 – Oct 31 8:00-18:00; Nov 1 – March 31 9:00-16:00
Cable Car: RMB40 for one way, RMB60 for round way
Official Website: http://www.jinshanlingchangcheng.com/
Service Pone: 0314-8830222
Note: If you want to enter the tourist area the second day with the same ticket, you need to register your fingerprint at the entrance gate.
Best Time to Visit
The best time to visit Jinshanling is from May to October. In one day, the sunrise and sunset present the most amazing scenery.
Advise to avoid China’s following major holidays when there many domestic Chinese tourists on the wall:
National Day Holiday (October 1–7)
Labor Day Holiday (May 1–3)
Jinshanling Great Wall Map
Hiking Routes:
Starting from check-in gate, there are three routes leading to the wall, the first one is at the left side of of the entrance gate, the second one on the left side at next fork, the third path is at the end of the road. Each way takes about 1 hour to the wall on mountain top.
There is also cable car available, it takes about 20 minutes to the mountain top, you can take it if you don’t have confidence in your physical strength.
Most visitors will take cable car to the wall on mountain top, hike from east to west and walk down from Zhuanduokou. If you want to challenge your physical strength, you can walk up to wall from Zhuanduokou and hike from west to east, walk down from Houchuankou, this way you will find the scenery gradually becomes more wonderful.
Note: The path connecting Jinshanling and Simatai is closed. It is impossible to hike from Jinshanling to Simatai. If you want to visit Simatai, You need to buy ticket from its own ticket office, which is 18 km from Jinshanling.
What to Prepare for Hiking
The steps to the wall are steep and uneven. Hikers need to be in good physical condition.
Advise to wear hiking boots to avoid sprain. Better to take snacks and bottled water to keep your energy.
Take sunglasses and sun cream, and hats during summer. Wear warm clothes and hat if you hike in winter.
Where to Stay
If you are a shutterbug and want to shoot sunset and sunrise, you can choose to stay one night in Jinshan Hotel (金山宾馆) at the foot or cheaper home stay at the entrance.
Staying overnight or sleeping on the wall is not allowed. You can do camping at the foot of the wall. Staying at a local farmer’s house is another alternative.
Where to Eat
Outside the ticket gate there is Jinshan Restaurant （金山餐厅）, which offers local Chinese food.
How to Get to Jinshanling Great Wall
Travelers can take shuttle bus to Jinshanling Great Wall:
1. Direct bus to the entrance gate of the Jinshanling Great Wall.
Get out from Exit E of Subway Line 2 at Dongzhimen, walk along Dongzhimen Wai Dajie (东直门外大街), then turn left and walk along Dongzhimen Wai Xiejie (东直门外斜街), soon you will find the open-air bus station on your left side, where you can also find buses to Jinshanling Great Wall
The bus departs at 7:40am and back from Jinshanling Great Wall at 16:00. It takes about 2.5 hours one way. The bus is only available from April 2 – Nov 14, the price is CNY50 for a single way.
2. Public bus （Available all year round）
If you miss the direct bus, you can take public bus from the same station, The bus sign shows Wangjing West (望京西) – Luanping (滦平). Get off at Jinshanling Service Area (金山岭服务区), there is free ferry bus which connects Jinshanling Great Wall.
Pick up at: 10:00 am, 11:00 am, 1:00 pm, 3:30 pm.
Return at: 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 1:30 pm, 3:00 pm
3. Private car
4 seats Volkswagen Passat or similar USD170
6 seats Buick Van or similar USD215
Let us know if you have any question about Jinshanling Great Wall. Leave your comment below and we will answer your question as soon as possible.
Video of Jinshanling Great Wall
