Beijing, abbreviated as “Jing”, historically known as Yanjing and Beiping, is the capital, municipality directly under the Central Government, national central city and mega-city of the People’s Republic of China. Approved by the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council, it serves as China’s center of politics, culture, international exchanges, and scientific and technological innovation. It is one of China’s national historical and cultural cities and ancient capitals, as well as a world first-tier city. As of October 2023, Beijing administers 16 districts.
Located in northern China and the northern part of the North China Plain, Beijing borders Tianjin to the east and is surrounded by Hebei Province on all other sides. Its terrain is high in the northwest and low in the southeast. Surrounded by mountains in the west, north and northeast, the southeastern part is a plain gently sloping toward the Bohai Sea. Major rivers flowing through the city include the Yongding River, Chaobai River, North Grand Canal and Juma River. Beijing features a warm temperate semi-humid and semi-arid monsoon climate, with hot and rainy summers, cold and dry winters, and short spring and autumn seasons.
Beijing is the seat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China, and the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China. Having successfully hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, it is the world’s first “Dual Olympic City”. As one of the birthplaces of the Chinese nation, a world-famous ancient capital and a modern international metropolis, Beijing gathers outstanding traditional Chinese cultural heritage dating back to the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Boasting numerous scenic spots and cultural relics, it ranks first globally in the number of World Cultural Heritage sites.
Beijing owns 7 World Heritage Sites, the largest number across the globe, and is the world’s first capital city home to a Global Geopark. More than 200 tourist attractions are open to the public, including the Forbidden City — the world’s largest imperial palace, the Temple of Heaven for imperial heaven worship, royal gardens such as Beihai Park, the Summer Palace and the Old Summer Palace, as well as the Badaling Great Wall, Mutianyu Great Wall, and Prince Gong’s Mansion — the world’s largest quadrangle courtyard complex.
In Beijing, there are a total of 7,309 cultural relic sites, 99 Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level (including the Beijing sections of the Great Wall and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal), 326 municipal-level protected cultural relics, 5 national geoparks and 15 national forest parks.
In 2021, Beijing received a total of 260 million tourist visits.
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