Episode 203 - The Mutianyu Great Wall

My family had a short holiday at Beijing recently.

In 2005, Gogo and I visited the Great Wall at Badaling of Beijing. This time we went to see that part of the Great Wall at Mutianyu.

Like Badaling, Mutianyu is situated outside the city and we had to hire a car to it.

The Mutianyu site appears not to be one promoted for popular visit as the car parks there were not designed for parking big limousines. Local tourism promotion leaflets were mostly for tours to the Badaling.

The runways of the Mutianyu Great Wall appear to be narrower (and steeper) than those in the the Badaling - hence not suitable for a large number of tourists.

Purely on the design and its setting against the mountains nearby, I prefer the Badaling Great Wall to the Mutianyu Great Wall. However, the Badaling is always packed with tourists which would greatly reduce the enjoyment of the journey. From the latter perspective, I prefer the Mutianyu Great Wall to the Badaling Great Wall.

Visitors can use the passage path leading to the wall on the top of the mountain to reach the runway of the wall. Alternatively, they can use the cable cars, which was our choice.