Going to Great Wall

Posted by HkScot (1260 days ago)

Today I was approached in the street by a man taking tours to the great wall, but not one of the 6 touristy parts, one with less tourists and more countryside. It looked beautiful, but unfortunately I didn't trust the man. Anyone know a good company to use for this and how much it should cost per head? Thanks a lot.

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Posted by Rolf Streete (1259 days ago)

This is probably the Great Wall at Simatai....it is about 1.5-2 hrs out of the city and is much more rural than Badaling apparently.
You could always hire a taxi for the day....a decent Sonata should cost RMB500-600. The driver will take you out there, stay as long as you want and take you back at your leisure. You can do things how you want and as the driver has made his money for the day, is quite relexed about things. Groups always rush about and you don't enjoy the experience as much IMO. You can get a card from any cab driver (hotels reception should know some too) and you can negotiate.

Posted by HkScot (1259 days ago)

No - Simatai is indeed less touristy, but is still one of the official 6 tourist wall areas. After a bit of research on another website, I have found that a company called http://beijinghikers.com/ run excellent tours every Sunday. Thanks anyway Rolf.