Beijing Travel Diary: 3-day sightseeing tour

I’m from Singapore and flew all the way to Beijing, China, with my best friend. I’ve long dreamed of seeing China’s famous imperial landmarks in person. We saved an average of SGD 260 per person by avoiding overpriced scalper tickets, unnecessary optional extras, and detour‑related transport costs.Tip:If you need any help, you can contact the tour guide Kai I recommended. His WhatsApp number is +86 18907331470

Click here for a detailed itinerary.

1. Cost Guide

There are 2 of us in the group. We originally planned an independent trip to Beijing. After checking many travel guides, we found the total estimated cost would be around SGD 2200.
 My friend recommended Kai, a Beijing‑based travel planner. He helped us customize our private itinerary, booked hotel, attraction tickets and private transfer vehicles. We saved roughly SGD 520 in total! Kai is a local private guide, very patient and accompanied us throughout our entire journey. "Strongly recommend!"

This is Kai's WhatsApp +86 18907331470

Email: zhangjiajiekai@outlook.com

2. Daily Itinerary

Day 1: Tiananmen Square - Forbidden City - Jingshan Park

Early in the morning, we set off with Kai, our English-speaking driver-guide. While wandering through the imposing palaces of the Forbidden City, Kai told us fascinating royal anecdotes and little-known historical stories.
 After exploring the palace complex, we climbed up Jingshan Park. Standing on the peak, we enjoyed the breathtaking panoramic bird’s-eye view of the whole Forbidden City, sea of golden roofs stretching far into the distance.

• Kai pointed out subtle architectural designs that we would have totally missed without professional explanation.
• Bring sunscreen and bottled water, there is limited shade when hiking Jingshan.

Day 2: Tiananmen Square & Forbidden City, Shichahai Hutong with Mei School Peking Opera

Our second day began at the Summer Palace. We leisurely roamed the Long Corridor covered with beautiful ancient paintings and strolled along the bank of Kunming Lake. The peaceful lake scenery was incredibly relaxing.
Later we visited the Old Summer Palace. Walking among the weathered stone relics, we could deeply feel the heavy history behind this once magnificent royal garden.

• We met an elderly artist sketching the lakeside scenery beside Kunming Lake.
• We bought traditional Beijing walnut cakes as snacks near the south gate of Summer Palace.

Day 3:Mutianyu Great Wall, Temple of Heaven & Liulichang Cultural Street

On our final day, we first visited the Temple of Heaven. We explored the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and tried the famous Echo Wall. It was incredible to experience the brilliant acoustic design of ancient Chinese architecture. Afterwards, we headed to Lama Temple. The quiet atmosphere, towering Buddha statues and unique Tibetan-style buildings brought us a peaceful and spiritual experience.

•  If you whisper closely on the Echo Wall, your voice can travel a long distance to the other end.
• Small cultural souvenir shops are located near the temple entrance, great for picking up little gifts.

3. Experience with Guide Kai

• I have been communicating with Kai for half a month. His attitude is very good.

• We talked a lot and found that the local tour guide's plan is better than our travel guide! A lot of money and time have been saved.

• When visiting Beijing, people often ask him for help with planning and booking (saves money and effort, can have a great time and make friends).

4. Personal Suggestion

• No need to spend energy studying travel guides and experiences (many are plagiarized).

• Recommendation: Directly ask a familiar local tour guide for a free guide (saves money and energy every time I travel).

• Personal feeling: High cost performance, great deal; we had a very free and enjoyable time.

• Gratitude: Extremely grateful to Kai, the tour guide, for planning the itinerary throughout; my friend and I had a great time! So I want to give Kai a little advertisement.

Share kai's whatsApp: +8618907331470

Kai 's email address: zhangjiajiekai@outlook.com

Kai's wechat ID: s1025566476