{"id":22454,"date":"2021-10-04T22:13:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-04T14:13:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/?p=22454"},"modified":"2021-10-05T10:20:04","modified_gmt":"2021-10-05T02:20:04","slug":"the-old-world-charm-in-beijing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/beijing-travel\/beijing-attractions-tips\/the-old-world-charm-in-beijing","title":{"rendered":"The Old World Charm in Beijing (Tips, Photos & Map)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Plan your Beijing tour<\/a>? If you are looking for an old world place in Beijing, Shichahai area north of Beihai Park is a must on your travel plan. Shichahai retains much of its old world charm  though with a bit gentrification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shichahai was once part of the starting point of the World Cultural Heritage-crowned Grand Canal in Yuan Dynasty 600 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Shichahai” literally means “Ten Temple Lakes”. There used to be 10 Buddhist temples which surrounded today’s three lakes – Qianhai Lake, Houhai Lake ( Back Lake) and West Lake, which are generally known as Shichahai Lakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information on Shichahai, check out my another article How to Visit Shichahai<\/a> .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shichahai ( Qianhai Lake + Houhai Lake ) Area<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Shichahai is teemed with the former palaces of ministers, temples, well-kept quaint and traditional hutong lanes and siheyuan ( Chinese quadrangles) as well as residences of celebrities in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shichahai is now full of the old world air with its attractive vibe, a  lively place rife with people; chic and quaint bars and restaurants; old Beijing snacks and food; old Beijing symbols and special products; the old world charming of the Ming and Qing buildings, boating on Shichahai lakes  and the list of its old world charms is much longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take subway line 6 and get off at the station of Beihai North ( \u5317\u6d77\u5317) and exit from Exit B. Then walk along the sidewalk to the east for about 200 meters, you will see crowds of people on your left side and now you are on the entrance to Shichahai area. The entrance has a large archway engraved with the four Chinese characters “\u8377\u82b1\u5e02\u573a\u201d \uff08 Lotus Market).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Lotus Market entrance to Shichahai area<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The lake you see on your right side is known as Qianhai, or Front Lake, one of the three connected lakes in Shichahai  area. The west bank of Qianhai Lake is flanked by rows of bars and restaurants. People go boating on the and flying kites in the sky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Qianhai Lake ( Front Lake)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The west lake shore of Qianhai Lake is flanked by rows of bars and restaurants. When night falls, all the buildings are neon-lit with multi-colors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The west lakeshore of Qianhai Lake is flanked by rows of bars and restaurants<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Bold enough to have a bite of a scorpion<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bold enough to have a bite of a scorpion<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Try some old Beijing snacks, sugar-coated fruits, yoghurt…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Try some old Beijing snacks, sugar-coated fruits, yogurt……<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Two girls are walking past a stand selling old Chinese paintings and other local art products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Two girls are walking past a stand selling old Chinese paintings<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Waiting in line before a stand for a taste of candyfloss, a kind of local cotton candy in Beijing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Waiting in line before a stand for a taste of candyfloss<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Wandering in the old world lanes in Shichahai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Wandering in the old world lanes in Shichahai.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

A street cleaner is driving a cart passing through a 800-year old lane known as Yandai By<\/a>w<\/a>ay<\/a>, a well-kept world street that showcases Beijing\u2019s past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A street cleaner is driving a cart passing through a 800-year old lane<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Shichahai is shot through with chic bars and restaurants. Hiding yourself in one of the bars and escaping the hustle and bustle of the old world temporarily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shichahai is shot through with chic bars and restaurants.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Shichahai is a perfect place to mix with the locals and the Chinese from other parts of China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shichahai is a perfect place to mix with the locals<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Boating on the lakes reminds you of the past. The local boat company uses the paddle boats 7 meters in length and 1.7 meters in width. It is made in line with the old Chinese traditional painting dating to the Song Dynasty 800 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Boating on the lakes reminds you of the past<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The sunset glow over Shichahai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The sunset glow over Shichahai and the night view.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The sunset over Houhai ( Back Lake\uff09.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The sunset over Houhai ( Back Lake\uff09<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Sunset glow over Silver Ingot Bridge, a bridge linking a narrow channel connecting Qianhai Lake and the Houhai Lake, the hub of Shichhai area with surrounding quiet hutongs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sunset glow over Silver Ingot Bridge<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Tip:\u00a0 Hassle-free Beijing Guided Tours<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you don\u2019t want to go the do-it-yourself route and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours,\u00a0 here are some options for guided tours to Beijing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Car Rental in Beijing<\/a>
Beijing Day Tour<\/a>
Beijing Tour Packages<\/a>
Great Wall Tour<\/a>
Beijing Winter Tour<\/a>
Beijing Tours<\/a>
China City Tours<\/a>
China Tour<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further Readings<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n

Best Time to Visit Beijing<\/a>
How to plan a trip to Beijing<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to visit Shichahai<\/a>
Houhai Winter Ice Skating Rink<\/a>
Sunset Over Houhai Lake in Beijing<\/a>
The night view of Shichahai<\/a>
Shichahai, a nice place to walk at night in Beijing<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top 10 Attractions in Beijing<\/a>
How to Visit Forbidden City<\/a>
How to Visit Temple of Heaven<\/a>
How to Visit Summer Palace<\/a>
How to Visit Ming Tombs<\/a>
How to Visit the Great Wall of China<\/a>
How to Visit Tiananmen Square<\/a>
How to Visit Hutongs<\/a>
How to Visit Olympic Sites<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top 10 Markets in Beijing<\/a>
Top 10 Shopping Malls in Beijing<\/a>
Beijing Shopping<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wangfujing Night Snack Street<\/a>
Qianmen Commercial Street<\/a>
Beijing Huguosi Street<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any questions, just drop a line.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Plan your Beijing tour? If you are looking for an old world place in Beijing, Shichahai area north of Beihai Park is a must on your travel plan. Shichahai retains much of its old world charm  though with a bit gentrification. Shichahai was once part of the starting point of the World Cultural Heritage-crowned Grand Canal…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[3609,3610,3608,3611],"class_list":["post-22454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-beijing-attractions-tips","tag-beijing-old-places","tag-beijing-old-residential-area","tag-beijing-old-world","tag-old-beijing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22454","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22454"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22454\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28110,"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22454\/revisions\/28110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tour-beijing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}