Beijing: Strategies: Lay of the Land: Beijing Orientation

Beijing Orientation

Dead simple. The emperors built the Forbidden City in the middle of the city, capital of a nation they considered the center of the universe, hence the term Middle Kingdom, with China being in between Heaven and Hell. The Forbidden City complex is along a south-to-north strip, away from Tiananmen Square. All roads head out from there—and are mostly straight, with the exception of the five ring roads that allow speedier circumnavigation. Choosing a hotel close to the Square, along Chang’ an Avenue (where the bespectacled man with the striped shopping bag bravely faced up to the tank, back in 1989), makes it easy to get your bearings. Most of the top hotels are located along or just off the avenue. It is a spread-out city, with slow-moving traffic, so give yourself plenty of time between venues.