ALL ABOUT THE MUBUS TOUR TO THE GREAT WALL AT MUTIANYU
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The Great Wall of China is undoubtedly one of the biggest bucket-list items on any traveler’s itinerary. So it is probably near the top of your list of things to do during your time in Beijing. But what is the best way to get there, what is it like, and what do you need to know?
During my three weeks in Beijing I took an organized tour to the Great Wall at Mutianyu. I had a great time and felt it was good value for money but there were some things I wish I had known ahead of time.
Read on for some general info about visiting the Great Wall and a detailed review of my tour. If you don’t want to hear every little detail though you can jump straight to a quick verdict and my top 20 tips for a successful visit of this imposing monument!
Where to visit the Great Wall of China
While the Great Wall does not go through Beijing, it isn’t very far away and Beijing makes an excellent base to see this new wonder of the world, either independently or on an organized excursion.
There are several sections of the wall that are popular and well-suited for a sight-seeing trip. The most common are:
- Badaling
- Mutianyu
- Jinshanling/Simatai
I only had time to visit one of these destinations so did some research in order to decide which one. Here is what I found:
Badaling – most popular in China
The section at Badaling is said to be the most impressive and it is also the easiest to get to (you can take a train). However, it is the most popular with Chinese tourists and by far the most crowded.
Mutianyu – most popular with international tourists
Mutianyu has been developed for tourism and offers the most “fun” activities, like a toboggan ride and a cable car. It is popular with international tourists and there are many organized tours offered.
Jinshanling/Simatai – further away and ideal for an overnight visit
The sections at Jinshanling and Simatai are connected. As they are quite a bit further from Beijing (about 2.5 hours by car) they are ideal for an overnight stay. Gubei Watertown, a recreated traditional village, is attached to Simatai. This is also the part of the Great Wall you can visit at night.
My decision for Mutianyu
Based on all this, I originally planned to visit Gubei Watertown and the Simatai part of the Great Wall. Not least because I had seen Gubei Watertown in a Chinese reality dating show and it looked adorable!
However, getting there turned out to be a bit too complicated and time-intensive for my taste and I ended up cancelling. While this was the right decision for me I still think it would make for a great experience (maybe next time).
Anyway, at that point it was down to either Badaling or Mutianyu. I ended up choosing Mutianyu and think it was the better choice. The wall was much more crowded than I expected so I am glad I didn’t go to an even busier section!
When to visit the Great Wall
In June the mountains were a beautiful green and the sky bright blue – but it was hot
Best time of year
The timing of your trip to China is probably influenced by all kinds of things, like vacation times and flight prices. Luckily, the Great Wall is impressive in all seasons.
However, if you do have the chance to choose freely, pictures I saw of the wall in autumn are stunning. The colorful fall foliage makes it look even prettier. Alternatively, spring is an excellent time of year with good weather without the heat.
I went in June (as this was when I ended up in China during my six month Asia trip). The wall looked beautiful surrounded by green mountains with a clear blue sky above. However, it was quite hot! Hotter than I would have liked to be honest. Visiting the wall involves a lot of walking and climbing steps and heat and humidity are not your friend!
Best time and day of the week
While you may be locked into a specific season for various reasons, you can probably choose the exact time for your visit. Weekends and Mondays are the busiest so best avoided! Weekends for obvious reasons, Mondays because many of the main tourist sights in Beijing are closed on that day so the overflow visits the wall.
My decision
I did know about this when I booked my tour but I already had a lot of days filled with other plans and wanted to go on a sunny day (maybe not the best decision in hindsight). So I went ahead and booked a Monday. It was fine but was indeed busier than I expected.
As for time of day, I strongly recommend you take the earliest tour you can. Mine left at 8 am and we got to Mutianyu around 9:20 am. At that time the crowds were still quite manageable. But a good two hours later (when people on 10 am tours from Beijing were arriving) it was getting unpleasantly crowded.
Review of my Tour to Mutianyu with tips
Seen from the outside the wall does make a formidable obstacle
Booking my Tour
As mentioned above, I had gone back and forth a bit and then decided on visiting Mutianyu on a Monday. There were numerous different tours and I ended up booking the MuBus Great Wall tour on GetyourGuide.
My main reasons were that this tour had many reviews, the rating was very high, the price quite affordable, and the start/end point was easier for me to get to then some other tours.
I (luckily) ended up choosing the 8 am tour in English (for obvious reasons) with lunch buffet included. The total cost for the bus ride, shuttle, entrance fee to Great Wall, and lunch was USD 29.50. My main reason for booking the included lunch was that I was struggling a bit with deciding on and ordering food so that was an easy way to make sure I would get a proper meal.
before the Tour
Soon after booking the tour the tour guide contacted me via Whats App to confirm the meeting point and time. This message also included my confirmation number (36). I didn’t know it at that time but this number is quite important on the MuBus tour. Basically, you become this number and anytime there is a roll call or anything is given out, you will need to know your number. So make good note of it!
How I almost missed the Tour
I was staying in Haidian, straight across town from the meeting point which was at Dongzhimen Station near the CBD. But I left quite early and was not at all worried. Still I almost missed the bus!
Why? A combination of a simple misunderstanding and being a bit too sure of myself!
My first mistake was that I felt sure I would easily find the meeting point. Usually, the subway exits are very clearly marked so I thought finding exit B1 would be easy. But either this one specific exit was not as well-marked as others or more likely I just wasn’t at my best early in the morning.
For whatever reason, I used a different exit and then spent the next 10 minutes running up and down the street, looking for B1. It took quite a while for me to admit that indeed I was having a problem and if I didn’t find it soon I would be late (though I did not yet realize how close I was cutting it).
Eventually I did what I should have done right away: Click on the meeting point in the GetyourGuide app, open it in AMaps (NOT Google Maps!), and follow the instructions. Once I did that finding the right exit was easy!
Second, the instructions said for the tour at 8 am please be there 15 minutes early. To my mind, that meant the tour would start at 8 am and you should try to be there a bit early so there is a buffer in case anything goes wrong (like say you don’t find the right exit).
What it actually means is that the group will start walking towards the bus right around 7:45 am so you HAVE to be at the meeting point before (or at the very least) by 7:45 am. (There were several groups and if I had been a couple of minutes later I might have been able to join one of those. However, they likely would not have been in English)
When I finally found the right exit, MuBus employees were waiting there. Once I showed them my confirmation they sent me to the right line for my group. Here I had to show my confirmation number – from that point on I was no longer Kitty but #36!
Just embrace being a tourist!
I got one of those famous stickers and just minutes after I arrived our group started walking towards the bus. This was one of those typical “follow the flag” group situations.
Lessons learned:
Make a note of your confirmation number
Use AMap and the meeting point location to find the right place
Be sure to be there well before the 7:45 am meeting time
Bus Ride to Mutianyu
The buses can’t park near the meeting point so your group will walk to the pickup point and wait for the bus to come. Once it arrives, everyone quickly hops on.
The bus was nice and modern with air conditioning. The buses do get filled up so as a solo traveler you may have to sit next to a stranger.
Our drive to the tourist center at Mutianyu took just under 90 minutes. But of course this can vary somewhat depending on weather and traffic.
Short history lesson
As soon as we set off, our guide gave a short history lesson about the Great Wall, its purpose, and history. This is a good introduction but it is not a detailed or very specific talk. If you are a history buff you might want to either study up before or choose an excursion that concentrates more on imparting knowledge.
Don’t get me wrong. It was absolutely fine for me. But overall, this tour is more a well-organized transportation option with pre-purchased tickets and all the logistics taken care off. It is not so much a guided history experience (and the low price reflects this).
The flyer lays out the different options quite clearly
Info about logistics
After the short history comes the more important part: logistics. First our guide gave out flyers that showed the different options for additional purchases. Then she went through them and explained them quite well.
Basically, there are three components that you may pay for on the bus:
Cable Car/Toboggan Rides
The Great Wall at Mutianyu is basically split in two sections. Each section has its own cable car. The Western section has an enclosed cable car and you buy a ticket for the return trip for RMB 140. The Eastern section has a chairlift and for RMB 140 you can either take the chairlift up and down or use the toboggan ride to get down.
It is best if you decide on your favorite option before the tour – you will have to make your decision fairly quickly on the bus. Theoretically, you could also not buy any cable car tickets and walk up and down. However, I strongly recommend you buy the cable car ticket unless you are very athletic and up for a real hike!
Just walking along the wall is quite exhausting (especially in the heat) and there are plenty of steps. I gave up halfway but I wasn’t the only one. I saw plenty of visitors looking extremely exhausted just exploring the wall. As the cable car ride takes several minutes hiking up would be quite exhausting.
I am not a great fan of chairlifts or tobboggan rides (and we were advised that there is usually at least an hour waiting time to use the toboggan) so I decided on the Western section.
Lunch Buffet
I had prebooked (and paid) the MuBus lunch when I booked my tour. However, if you didn’t you can add it on in the bus. It was RMB 80 in addition.
Souvenirs
There were several souvenirs on offer – I didn’t buy any and feel they are of the least importance.
After the guide explained all the options, she went through the bus to collect payment for cable cars/lunch/souvenirs. You can pay with cash (I did) but WeChat or Alipay are prefered.
All this took quite a while and by the time the guide had collected all the money we were at the parking lot. But we still had to make a quick emergency stop as someone got car-sick and had to throw up. So don’t forget to take precautions if you tend to motion sickness!
Lessons learned:
Consider ahead of time what options you want
Do buy a cable car ticket, the visit is exhausting enough without the climb
Be prepared for spending quite a bit of money on top of the tour price
Have either enough cash with you or be sure your Alipay/WeChat works
Take precautions against motion-sickness
Do NOT forget your passport as it serves as your ticket
At the Tourist Center
There are restrooms (squat and European) conveniently near the entrance
Once off the bus we stopped at the entrance to the tourist center for a quick restroom break. After, we walked towards the MuBus building. The tourist center is a fair-sized plaza with numerous tour organizers, shops, restaurants, souvenir stalls etc. If you decided against the lunch buffet it would be easy to get food and drink here.
The MuBus building serves as the meeting point for the return as well as a lunch venue
After a couple of minutes we got to the MuBus house. Inside there is a small waiting area. There we had our numbers called and each got an envelope. The envelope had coupons for a small bottle of water, a discount for buying drinks at MuBus, lunch (if purchased), and a cable car ticket for the Eastern side if selected.
Envelopes with coupons are given out by confirmation number
The Western cable car (which I had booked) does not use conventional tickets but instead scans your passport. This also applies for all other tickets/check-points (shuttle bus, entrance to wall). So do not forget your passport at the hotel!
Free beverages at the MuBus building
Aside of the free bottle of water, MuBus also provides various beverages to drink there as well different snacks to take with you. I wasn’t shy and took a small selection of different peas, crackers, etc. These came in handy later on for a little snack.
Getting to the Wall
There are plenty of stores, restaurants and amenities at the tourist center
After getting the coupons and picking up my water bottle I was on my own. This tour is basically a guided transfer, not a proper tour of the wall. It works wonderfully if you basically want to tour independently but need an easy way to get to Mutianyu and want to save time and effort in buying the various tickets.
However, everything is well organized at Mutianyu so you won’t get lost even if you don’t speak any Mandarin! I followed the general flow of people to the end of the plaza. After a quick passport scan it is time for a shuttle ride. There was a line but the process is very efficient. Buses come one after another and are filled quickly so it did not take long.
One of several ticket checks – don’t forget your passport!
The bus ride to the entrance path is fairly short, about 5 minutes. Once off the shuttle, there are different paths: you can start hiking up to the wall (not recommended unless you know exactly what you are in for), take the Eastern chairlift just about 30 m in, or go further to the Western cable car. On the way you will have your passport scanned twice more (once for the Great Wall, once for the cable car).
I am always a bit nervous (what if my passport doesn’t scan right) but it went off without a hitch.
Western Cable Car
Back in the hotel and even in the bus I was considering booking both cable cars (or going up one and down the other) so I could experience ALL of the Great Wall. Eventually I decided just on one part – RMB 280 was a lot of extra money and I was trying to stick to my budget. This turned out to be lucky as I had severely underestimated both the heat and the physical exertion needed for exploring the wall. I ended up not even doing the whole Western part.
However, this does mean that I can’t speak at all to what the ride up to the Eastern section or the toboggan ride is like (I didn’t even see them). The above picture with the entrance to the cableway was as close as I got. Sorry!
The Western Cable Car fits up to 6. Whether the compartments are filled completely depends on how busy it is and how the party sizes line up. It is a nice, smooth cable car ride with a good view. The ride took about 3 minutes – not long but walking uphill the same distance would take quite some effort.
On the Wall
The Cable Car takes you up to the station near Watchtower 14. To the right of the station there are a couple of stalls selling drinks, food, and souvenirs. It is strongly recommended to get some water there if you don’t have enough with you. There are surprisingly few places to replenish along the way. I did have the small MuBus bottle and that was just about enough.
Luckily, the wall wasn’t too busy at that time. There were already quite a few people so it was hard to get a good photo. But it wasn’t a squeeze or unpleasant.
The views of both wall and surrounding mountains are quite impressive! I walked along from watchtower 14 to watchtower 19. While the walk isn’t difficult per se, it is quite a bit of ups and downs and combined with the heat it was more exhausting than I had expected. There were also not really any benches or other places to sit along the way. However, people did make use of various steps or the ground.
At Watchtower 18 there was a small stall selling souvenirs but more importantly water and snacks. Nearby there were also some public toilets.
Watchtower 19 was different from the rest – you could go inside and climb up steps for a better view. It was quite busy though so it took a while to either go up or down the ladder!
The next part of the path seems to be under renovation. You can’t walk on the wall itself but there is a path with steps right next to it. This is actually quite nice as it a) gives you a good view of the outside of the wall and b) offers more shade. This section is very steep though!
And here is also pretty much where I gave up. I walked up the steps maybe a third of the way to tower 20. But when I found a seat with a decent view over the nearby mountains, I sat down to have a small snack and a short rest. And then I decided that this was it for me!
So how hard is the climb? It isn’t undoable. Most people kept pushing on and that included families with small children. However, a lot of people were quite out of breath and looked exhausted. And I decided I would rather enjoy the view for a while and not overdo it.
Do I regret it? Maybe slightly as I did not see the view from tower 20 which is a highlight of this section of the wall. But I had been walking massive amounts for days, it was hot, I was sweaty, and while I could have made it I don’t think I would have enjoyed it. So all in all, I am happy with my decision.
Lessons learned:
Make sure you have enough water with you
Wear sturdy shoes, the stones can be uneven or slippery
Wear sunscreen and a hat, there is little shade
Gear your activities to your personal energy and fitness
The Way back
After enjoying my snack, the view, and people-watching for a while (it is quite fun to see everyone’s exhaustion) I started to make my way back. As I got closer to the cable car the wall path got more and more crowded. At one point passing through a watchtower there was basically no movement anymore. I was extremely glad that I had gotten there earlier in the day when there weren’t so many people yet!
Near the cable car station there is a side path with a nice view. I spent a little time there and then still bought a soda and hung out a little longer. But around 12:30 pm I made my way to the station, scanned my passport, and took a cable car back down.
The shuttle waiting line moved again fast (no passport check here) and around 1 pm I was back at the tourist center. While everything was very well organized, the whole process – taking the cable car, walking to the shuttle, taking the shuttle, walking through the plaza – does take a while.
Lunch
Once back at MuBus, I headed upstairs to the dining room. After turning in my coupon I was assigned a table.
The buffet was really very nice! It included a large variety of foods: pizza, various dumplings, salad, rice, soup, fruit, a number of hot dishes, fried chicken etc. There really was something for every taste (though I am not sure how well it catered to vegetarians/vegans). Everything I tried was delicious.
Should you get the lunch option?
This is harder to answer. The food has a great variety and tastes good. I am not a big eater so it was a bit wasted on me. Also, there are plenty of other restaurants and food stalls around. So if you aren’t sure how hungry you will be, how much time you will have, or if you need to save money another option may be better. But overall I would say the buffet offers pretty good value and is a good way to relax after being out in the hot sun.
Return to Beijing
After lunch (and a bathroom break of course) I went back downstairs to check in for my return trip. Again they check off your number and then send you to the waiting area.
The way it works is this: At some time around 2 pm the first bus to Beijing will leave. After that, they wait until 40 people are checked in for the return (and sitting in the waiting area). Whenever a bus is “full” they will announce it and everyone heads out to go to the bus.
This means that you will not necessarily ride on the same bus as on the trip there and you may not have the same tour guide. Our guide did tell us which bus she would be on, but I went back earlier.
The advantage is of course that you can somewhat decide how long you want to stay, the first bus left a little before 2 pm and the last for the morning tours was slated for 3:30 pm. There was even the option to ask to take an even later bus at 5 pm. So if you wanted to hike even further (of if you misjudged the time) you could do so (provided the bus wasn’t yet full).
The slight disadvantage was that the return bus I went on was Mandarin speaking so I have no clue what the guide was saying. However, this is less of an issue on the way back so I didn’t really mind.
The return drive took again about 90 minutes and I was back at Dongzhimen Station at 4 pm.
Lessons learned:
Lunch is delicious but may not be worth it if you don’t eat much
Do consider that getting from the Wall to the MuBus Center will take a bit
You can tailor the length of your stay to your preferences (within reason)
You may not have the same bus/guide as before
The bus ride on the way back may not be in English
Would I recommend this tour?
Yes, I absolutely would recommend the MuBus tour to the Great Wall at Mutianyu as long as you understand what you are getting and that is what you are looking for.
This is not: a cozy opportunity to connect with other travelers, a tour tailored to your specific wishes, a true guided experience (as far as historical facts etc. are concerned)
This is: a very well organized transfer to Mutianyu with a good explanation of the logistics. All the tickets etc. are purchased for you, you can explore the wall independently and stay longer or shorter depending on what you want to do. I felt the value for money was very good and the organization was excellent.
A quick note: While the tour with included lunch was good value you will spend an additional RMB 140 for the cable car so the day will be more expensive than it looks at first.
What about the Combo with the Summer Palace?
MuBus also offers the Mutianyu Great Wall excursion in combination with the Summer Palace (select a date and scroll through the options). While I did not go on that one, I did visit the Summer Palace on a different day and it also requires a lot of walking and is exhausting.
So I would only recommend this tour if you REALLY want to see both sights (they are well worth a visit), have a very limited time in Beijing, and have good stamina/fitness. It will be a long and tiring day (but both the Great Wall and the Summer Palace are must-sees). Personally I would do them on different days though if at all possible.
All my tips in one Place
If you are like me and too impatient to read through everything, here are my top 20 tips for this excursion in one place. Many will apply for any visit to the Great Wall at Mutianyu but some are specific to the MuBus tour.
- If possible visit Tuesday to Friday
- Take the earliest tour time you can!
- Make a note of your confirmation number
- Use AMap and the meeting point location to find the right place
- Be sure to be there well before the 7:45 am meeting time
- Consider ahead of time what options you want
- Do buy a cable car ticket, the visit is exhausting enough without the climb
- Be prepared for spending quite a bit of money on top of the tour price
- Have either enough cash with you or be sure your Alipay/WeChat works
- Take precautions against motion-sickness in the bus
- Do NOT forget your passport as it serves as your ticket
- Make sure you have enough water with you on the wall
- Wear sturdy shoes, the stones can be uneven or slippery
- Wear sunscreen and a hat, there is little shade
- Gear your activities to your personal energy and fitness
- Lunch is delicious but may not be worth it if you don’t eat much
- Do consider that getting from the Great Wall to the MuBus Center will take a while
- You can tailor the length of your stay to your preferences (within reason)
- You may not have the same bus/guide as before
- The bus ride on the way back may not be in English
Conclusion
The Great Wall is one of the world’s most famous sights and deserves its fame. While each of the popular sections has pros and cons, Mutianyu is a great choice for tourists in Beijing as it is less crowded than Badaling and closer than Simatai.
MuBus offers a very efficient way to explore the wall independently at a reasonable price. It does exactly what is promised in the itinerary and as long as that is what you are looking for you will have a great time!
