[maggy79]

Hello
im sorry if this question has been asked before, but i am new a new user.
My husband and i have just moved here from australia...does anyone know the best way to travel to the great wall from HK? do you fly or drive? and what is the best part of the great wall to see?
thanks

[KnowItAll]

Fly to Beijing and take a taxi / bus / private car to the Great Wall.

[francocw]

Or you can take direct train to Beijing from Hong Kong. That takes about 24 hours

[greenietea]

there are two sites at the great wall that are opened for tourists. one is Ba Da Ling and the other is Chu Yung Kuan.

Ba Da Ling is the better place though. you can either hire a taxi or take the public bus (no. 919) from the city. it takes two hours or so. it's pretty safe. and make sure you don't join the local tours that are handing out fliers at the Tiananmen Square. they're not trusted.

have fun at the great wall

[Mariposita]

if you're going during peak season, avoid badaling at all costs! It's far too crowded nowadays and when your car/bus gets stuck in traffic you're there forever. Besides, Badaling has become too touristy/commercialized. I suggest going to the further sections of the Great Wall such as Mutianyu or Simatai. In those areas the climbs are more challenging but there are less overly-recontructed parts and you get to see the original ming dynasty parts of the wall! Very cool and much less crowded so you don't have people in your way half of the time.

It's a rip off if they just take you to Chuyungkuan because it's just a site rather than the grandiose climbs and magnificent views you get at other parts of the Great Wall.

Once you're in Beijing it's easy to book a trip to the Great Wall. My suggestion is to talk to the concierge and they'll give you tips. You can go on a grayline coach which is good value and a guaranteed trip for 2. If you have more than 2 people, it probably is better value to rent a private car. We had a really nice, knowledgable driver when I went with a couple friends from the UK and he was telling us the history of the place we were passing through etc. etc. although I had to do quite a bit of translation.

[monarch_50]

To see a better part of the Great Wall, try Mu Tian Yu. This is a less frequented, and less touristy, section of the Great Wall. There is a cable car connecting to an upper stretch of the Wall. Alternatively, one can walk up/down to reach the higher part of the Wall without using the cable car.

[sewage]

Your hotel concierge will probably just point you to a Great Wall tour that they are affiliated with. If you can, do it alone but if you do not know Chinese, then it will be a bit difficult.

I went to the JianKou part of the wall, which was entirely un-reconstructed and rather steep in parts. It was also illegal to go to those parts but no one really checks, so I've been told. I was literally the only person up at the wall (while the taxi driver waited down below).

[back2HK]

Sightseeing in China by yourself can be quite a challenge.

Try Dragon Air - www.kaholidays.com/

Easter is a good time - it can be too cold before that..

Cheers

[bluepiggy]

If you don't mind the the low temp., it's actually the best time because there's no crowd. We were there during the Christmas holiday and it was empty (well, almost, we saw 3 other tourists). It was covered in snow but the sun was up so excellent photo op. And no taunts too so we enjoyed the serenity of the place - it was amazing! And yeah, we went to Mutianyu. Either you take a cab or a hotel-arranged car, it's safe. I find people in Beijing are actually quite pleasant ('cept the spitting ).

[monarch_50]

I was at two sections of the Great Wall last week and the temperature was just around 10 degrees. We went to this village near Huang Hua Cheng where one can walk up to a restored section of the Great Wall and there is no charge. Our friend took us in a car and it is about two hours from the East Third Ring area. One can tour the village area, have lunch at of these farm-stay places (like B&B) or even spend a night there if one wishes. One can then walk up a hill and come to this section of the Great Wall (we had picnic lunch there) and then walk further to a small fort area called Yao Zi Yu, with interesting village houses.

Another day we went to this place called Nan Ye which requires a right turn on Huang Hua Zhen (which is about two km before Huang Hua Cheng). This is an unrestored section but very original in appearance. One needs a taxi driver who needs to know the way to these places.

A safer bet is to go to Mu Tian Yu or Si Ma Tai. These are restored sections, with more people, and with a small fee payable.