Beijing Capital International Airport Travel Guide

Beijing is dynamic and crowded, enigmatic and extreme. From its distant dynastic history to explosive modern growth, the energy in Beijing is fuelled by a cosmopolitan mix of locals and expats all in search of their fortune.

Infamous Tiananmen Square is the hub of Beijing's tourist sites. It's surrounded by the grandiose Great Hall of the People, imposing Gate of Heavenly Peace with its huge portrait of Chairman Mao and the entrance to the mysterious Forbidden City. The emotional centre of the country for many Chinese still caught up in the cult of the Chairman are Mao's Mausoleum and the Museum of the Chinese Revolution and Chinese History.

Structures go up every day in Beijing but few are as controversial as the doughnut-shaped CCTV Headquarters, designed by the International Office for Metropolitan Architecture. Seven new subway lines are set to make getting around the city a whole lot easier in time for the Beijing Olympics in summer 2008.

Shopping is China's national pastime. Haggle for jewellery at Hongqiao Market and clothes at Ya Show Market. Go designer in Wangfujing or the Lufthansa Centre, and get the latest in computers and electronic equipment along Zhongguancun.

Beijingers love to be outdoors. The restaurant-ringed Houhai Lake is full of boaters in summer and skaters in winter. The 70-hectare imperial Beihai Park is a favoured promenade for young couples. At weekends, go walking in Fragrant Hills, in the north-west of the city, where 90,000 maple trees are strewn with white blossom in spring and ablaze with fiery, red leaves in the autumn.

On a summer's evening head to Houhai Lake for a Chinese massage, while you watch a crowd of all ages ballroom dance to taped music. The brightly lit Sanlitun bar district is full of lively drinking haunts, some with live music from jazz to disco. For Chinese and Western classical music, the Forbidden City Concert Hall hosts both internationals and local musicians, including the renowned Beijing Symphony Orchestra.

There are so many fantastic restaurants in Beijing it's hard to pick a really bad one. However, no trip to the capital is complete without tasting Beijing Duck, dripping in luscious plum sauce. For a quick snack try jiaozi (Chinese dumplings) stuffed with anything from pork mince to spinach and cheese. If you prefer your food hot and spicy, try gong bao ji ding (chicken and peanuts), a local staple. If you're feeling adventurous, head to Wangfujing Night Market for deep-fried grasshoppers, scorpion or snake.

Climb Prospect Hill in Jingshan Park, directly north of the Forbidden City, for a view that gives a you sense of the immensity of this architectural wonder.