Visiting Beijing for Its Profound Culture Heritages & Interesting Birds
As one of the seven ancient capitals and the current capital of China, Beijing is rich in cultural relics and historic sites, such as the Great Wall, Forbidden City, and Temple of Heaven, etc. We elaborately design this trip for people who have equal interests in birds and cultural sites by combining these unmissable cultural sites with two of the best birding sites in Beijing, namely the Beijing Botanical Garden and Yeyahu Lake to provide you a unique traveling experience. By joining this tour, you will not only explore the city's interesting bird species but also get a deep feeling of Chinese traditional culture.
Tour Info Sheet
| Highlight Birds | Beijing Babbler, Snowy-browed Nuthatch, Vinous-throated Parrotbill, Pere David's Laughingthrush, Grey-capped Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey-headed Woodpecker, Spotted Dove, Azure-winged Magpie, Yellow-bellied Tit, Marsh Tit, Silver-throated Tit, Light-vented Bulbul, Chinese Blackbird, Red-throated Thrush, Dusky Thrush, Yellow-billed Grosbeak, Oriental Greenfinch, Gadwall, Chinese Spot-billed Duck, Ferruginous Pochard, Tufted Duck, Smew, Black-necked Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Eurasian Spoonbill, Bearded Reedling, Pallas's Bunting, Falcated Duck, Chinese Grey Shrike, Red-breasted Merganser, etc. |
|---|---|
| Numbers of Species to Expect | 50-80 |
| Ease of Birding | mostly easy birding with a few tricky species |
| Other Attractions | Great Wall, Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Beijing cuisine |
| Photography Opportunities | good photography chances for birds, architecture, and people |
| Habitats Covered | Sub-tropical forests, wetlands |
| Expected Climate | see details in the "pre-trip briefings" |
| Physical Requirements | mostly easy, moderate but optional in certain parts |
| Accommodation | very comfortable |
What makes this trip irreplaceable?
1. Visiting the world-renowned Great Wall, Forbidden City, and Temple of Heaven.
2. Looking for Beijing Babbler, Snowy-browed Nuthatch, Vinous-throated Parrotbill, Pere David's Laughingthrush, etc.
3. Experienced guides with great knowledge about local birds and rich experiences of guiding travelers from different countries.
4. A short program with more flexibility. This trip can be customized to meet your needs and preferences better.
5. Years of working as a local partner for some prestigious western companies specialized in birds and wildlife.
6. A strong logistic team in the office to ensure our trip goes smoothly and every participant has a comfortable and memorable journey.
Gallery
Dates & Prices
| Dates | Booking Status | Price | Single Supplement | Group Size | Guide | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Year Round | Space Available | 950USD/pax | 100USD/pax | Departure from 2 | Local Guide | Customizable |
Slide the sheet to the left to see the full sheet if you are viewing it on your phone or tablet.
The cost includes the following:
1. Private transportation throughout the trip, including pick-up and drop-off at the hotel or airport.
2. All meals from lunch on day 1 to lunch on day 3.
3. All the entrance tickets for places listed in the itinerary including cable cars and shuttle buses.
4. Hotel stays from the first day to the last day, two clients occupy one twin-bed room on a sharing basis at nice 3 or 4-star hotels in big cities and local best guesthouses in remote areas.
5. Bottled water and snacks throughout the trip.
6. Simple western breakfast whenever possible.
7. Service charges of a professional and experienced local guide throughout the whole trip.
8. China domestic travel insurance.
9. Service of all logistic supports.
The cost does not include the following:
a. Drinks during meals.
b. Extra charges due to changes in the itinerary from the client's side or factors beyond the control of AlpineBirding such as natural disasters or government policy changes.
c. Discretionary tips to guides and drivers.
d. All personal expenses such as laundry service.
e. ANY AIRFARE.
f. Any program not listed in the itinerary.
* Please be aware that the price is inapplicable during any Chinese official holidays including but not limited to Chinese New Year, Labour Day, National Day, etc. Please contact us to confirm the price if your trip date covers any Chinese holidays.
Itinerary
Tour Map
Day 1: Beijing to Yanqing via Beijing Botanical Garden and Great Wall.
Meet your private bird guide and driver either at your hotel or at your arrival airport in Beijing. Then we drive to Beijing Botanical Garden to search for some northern specials in the lush forest. We can expect some sought-after species like Beijing Babbler, Snowy-browed Nuthatch, Vinous-throated Parrotbill, Pere David's Laughingthrush, Grey-capped Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Grey-headed Woodpecker, Spotted Dove, Azure-winged Magpie, Yellow-bellied Tit, Marsh Tit, Silver-throated Tit, Light-vented Bulbul, Chinese Blackbird, Red-throated Thrush, Dusky Thrush, Yellow-billed Grosbeak, Oriental Greenfinch, etc.
In the afternoon, we will drive on to the Badaling Great Wall and visit it at a less-crowded afternoon time. The Badaling Great Wall is the best-preserved and most complete section with an extremely beautiful natural landscape. Following the visit, we will take a short ride to Yanqing to stay the night.
Day 2: Yangqing to Beijing via Yeyahu Lake.
Drive a short distance to Yeyahu Lake and spend most of the day there in search of waterfowls including Gadwall, Chinese Spot-billed Duck, Ferruginous Pochard, Tufted Duck, Smew, Black-necked Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Eurasian Spoonbill, as well as other birds like Azure-winged Magpie, Marsh Tit, Bearded Reedling, Pallas's Bunting and the sparse Falcated Duck, Chinese Grey Shrike, and Red-breasted Merganser. After our exploration, we will drive back to the downtown area of Beijing.
Day 3: Forbidden City, Hutong, and Temple of Heaven.
This morning we will visit Forbidden City, the Chinese imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty which is the last dynasty in Chinese history. It was originally built in 1406, for almost 500 years, it served as the seat-bed of the emperors in the Ming and Qing dynasties as well as the ceremonial and political center of the Chinese government. After that, we will visit one of Beijing's old hutongs, explore the unique architecture, and authentic Chinese street life.
In the afternoon, we will focus on the Temple of Heaven, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and masterpiece of architecture and landscape design. The complex was visited by emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to heaven for a plentiful harvest. Besides the culture part, we could expect some interesting birds including Eurasian Hoopoe, Grey-capped Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Tit, Marsh Tit, Light-vented Bulbul, White-cheeked Starling, Chinese Blackbird, Red-throated Thrush, Dusky Thrush, Red-flanked Bluetail, Yellow-billed Grosbeak, Oriental Greenfinch, etc.
We will drive you to the airport or back to your hotel in the late afternoon. This will conclude the services for this scheduled itinerary from AlpineBirding.
Gentle Reminder:
Gentle Reminder:
1. The bird species mentioned in the itinerary are just for your reference, it changes with the seasons. We may tune the itinerary according to the latest bird information to maximize our chances.
2. We are more than happy to assist with hotel booking, flight booking, etc. before or after the trip to make your travel more enjoyable and comfortable, please feel free to let us know in advance.
Guide(s)
We will arrange one of our best local wildlife guides for this trip who has rich experience of guiding tours in this region. The followings are some of our professional guides who have guided tours in this area for many years.
Bella Zhang
Bella, the director of AlpineBirding, graduated from Sichuan Agricultural University with a Bachelor's Degree. She joined AlpineBirding in early 2016 and became the director of AlpineBirding in 2018. She was born and grown up in a Bai ethnic family in Yunnan Province which boasts of the largest number of bird species in China. Her interests toward birds started with her observation of a Long-tailed Minivet in her mom's garden at a very young age. As she grows up, the interests and love toward birds become stronger and stronger. Because of that, she found AlpineBirding before graduation and joined the company for further learning of birds. Bella has guided a number of birding trips in cooperation with AlpineBirding guide in the past years, her passion, readiness to help, and detail-oriented attitude have won her lots of praise from our clients.
Philip He
As a half Kangba Tibetan, Philip is the main founder of AlpineBirding and is a native of Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. He has a deep love for his Kangba Tibetan heritage and the land where he was born and raised. Philip's career has gone from mining technician to a teacher, then a translator, and finally to a guide and tour operator. As a professional working in this field for more than 20 years, Philip believes travel is an art and a process of sharing and discovery. Each trip is a unique artistic work created with knowledge and expertise based on the resources available and the interests and tastes of travelers. To help more people to gain a lifetime birding and traveling experience, he established AlpineBirding with the aim to bring his professional, fun-filled tours to more people who are eager to explore birds and other beautiful attractions in China.
Linked Tours
As the only unbroken civilization in the world, the Chinese civilization has developed from its initial interpretation of the world by Ying and Yang, gone through its long course of over 5,000 years of history, it is hard to gain a comprehensive understanding of the civilization in a short trip. If your time allows, you can join our 16 days "China Wildlife & Culture Highlights" tour to get an immersive experience of Chinese culture and wildlife.
Reports
We don't have a report available for this tour at this stage, please feel free to email us, we are more than happy to answer any of your questions and share the latest bird information with you.
Testimonials
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Dear Philip and Jiawei
Thank you very much for your email and hope that you got back safely to Chengdu yesterday. We got back home a couple of days ago, but work is already busy! I hope that you had a good time surveying future opportunities near Chongqing.We had a really great time with the three of you, and talking on the way home we rated the day hike at Zhuque (along with the Great Wall) as our best day in China. The birding was better than expected there, especially with Jiawei working extremely hard to lure species out with calls - his (and your) knowledge was fantastic and I owe you for about 10-20 species that I would not have found myself. The scenery was excellent, and also the food - this was the lasting memory of the trip we had with you. We also learnt so much about China and its culture, and are indebted to you for this. I think my bird highlights were the Rosefinches and Crested Ibis. I've yet to start editing my photographs.
One thing is for sure though, that I will be back in China for a real birdwatching holiday at some stage in the future. Especially with those direct flights to Chengdu.Many thanks once again for all of your hard work.Richard and Carol / Yangxian & Beijing April 16, 2013
