Travel Tips to Tour the Forbidden City

The creation of the Forbidden city commenced in 1406 and concluded in 1430, commissioned by Yongle, the third Ming Emperor. According to popular traditional stories, about 100,000 craftsmen and more than a million labourers were employed in building it. Due to the huge number of people involved in its making, it took only 14 years. Chen Gui was the architect who designed this stunning monument. In 1911, the last emperor abdicated the throne but continued to stay in the inner courtyard area until 1924. Soon after, he was expelled, and the palace was thrown open for the public as a museum on 10^th October 1925. A fun Forbidden City fact is how the place got its name. The palace got its name‘Forbidden City’as people were prohibited to enter it without the emperor’s permission. The majestic palace served as a powerful political centre for over 500 years up until the Qing Dynasty ended after the peasant uprisings. The Palace Museum was declared an important national cultural and historical relic and brought under state protection in 1961. In 1987, UNESCO declared the Forbidden City a World Heritage Site.

A captivating Forbidden City fact is that during the Sino-Japanese war, many of the cultural relics and rare treasures were shifted to Shanghai to protect them from being destroyed due to the war. Later, they were moved to Nanjing and subsequently to Sichuan province. In 1947, the treasures were brought back to Nanjing. In 1951, the majority of the artefacts were returned to the Palace Museum and re-opened to the public. However, some part of the treasure is still held at the Taipei National Palace Museum. The museum over the years has suffered wear and tear. Hence, massive restoration and renovation work began in 2002 and is likely to conclude by 2021.

Another fascinating fact about Forbidden City is that it covers an expanse of 720,000 square meters. This makes it at least three times bigger than France’s Louvre Palace. To get a perspective about the grand palace's size, it may interest you to know that the Kremlin measures up to 275,00 square meters while the Vatican measures up to 440,000 square meters. The sheer scale and span of the ancient palace are bound to impress the tourists. The remarkable structure comprises over 90 palace quarters, 980 buildings, and more than 8,728 rooms. A visitor may require more than a day to explore the whole palace complex. Situated in the northern direction of Tiananmen Square, the rectangular-shaped Palace Museum is fenced by a moat which is 52 meters wide and high walls which are 10 meters high. Each wall has a gate. The total distance between the north and south gates is 961 meters while it measures up to 753 meters between the west and east gates. All the four corners of the high walls consist of uniquely-structured towers which offer a spectacular view of the entire palace and the city beyond.

The Forbidden City is a masterwork of ancient Chinese architecture. It is home to some of the well-kept beautiful medieval wooden structures. Marble, golden bricks and Phoebe Zhennan wood were some of the materials employed in building this palace. The roof ridges have an array of auspicious animal statues like phoenixes, dragons, lions to summon good fortune and prosperity. Yellow and red are the two prominent colours that embellish the Forbidden City, which has yellow roof tiles and red walls. The colour yellow represents the centre’s earth elements. The emperors believed that the stately palace was at the centre of the world from where their reign extended to other parts of the world. Thus, the yellow colour denoted the emperor’s royal dictum. The colour red on the walls, pillars, windows, doors signified happiness, celebration and fortunate times. All gates except the East Glory gate or Donghua Gate are bedecked by a nine-by-nine (number nine suggests eternity and supremacy in Chinese culture) selection of gilded door-studs.

The Palace complex is composed of an Inner residential court and a formal Outer Court. An intriguing Forbidden City fact is that the Outer Court is devoid of trees, whereas there are many to be found in the residential Inner Court. According to prevalent theories, the Outer Court was witness to many solemn public ceremonies during which the emperors demonstrated their imperial dignity and supreme ‘godly powers.’ Having trees perhaps would have disrupted or hindered the majestic display. Also, no trees offered a clear and distinct line of sight and deprived any probable assassins a place to hide. Possibly for the same reason, it was not allowed to plant any trees along the roadway that connected the Tiananmen Gate to the Meridian Gate. The Outer Court comprises of prime structures like the Hall of Central Harmony, the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Preserved Harmony where key events and rites took place. The Hall of Supreme Harmony or Tai He Dian is the most significant hall as it has the dragon throne of the emperor, flanked by two elephants signifying peace. It is the highest building in the complex for no other structure could be higher throughout the emperor’s rule. The imperial family resided in the Inner Court. Thus, it was accessible only to the royal family and their helpers, court ladies. The Inner Court prominently has three palaces namely The Quanqinggong or Palace of Heavenly Purity, the Kunninggong or the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, the Jiaotaidian or the Hall of Union along with courtyards and gardens. It also comprises of two more palaces, the Fasting Palace and the Hall of Mental Cultivation (the Yangxindian) reserved only for the emperor.

The Palace Museum owns various galleries that exhibit the imperial treasure for the delight of the tourists. Tourists visiting the Forbidden City must see the calligraphy and paintings placed in the Literary Glory Hall. Among the famous ones is the Emperor Taizong Receiving the Tibetan Envoy of the Song Dynasty and Zhao Mengfu’s transcribing a eulogy into regular script. Visitors may also find the ceramics and porcelain collection from the Song Dynasty and Tang Dynasty kept in the Martial Valor Hall fascinating. The notable ones include the tricolour pottery camel figurine during the Tang Dynasty and the Black-glazed vase with ripple patterns. Gold and silverware displayed in the Great Balance Palace are also sights to behold. The most noteworthy are the Gold Pagoda for containing hair and the Gold Tea Bowl inscribed with characters for Happiness and Longevity. The collection of jade articles positioned in the Accumulated Purity Palace is worth seeing. It comprises of gems like the Great Jade Dragon of Hongshan and the Red Sandalwood three-panel Ruyi Scepter of the Qing Dynasty. Visitors may also find the roof designs very enthralling. It may be interesting to note this Forbidden City fact that the imperial complex has around ten different varieties of the roof such as pyramidal-hipped roof, single-eave hip roof, hipped-gable roof. The museum also holds an incredible collection of mechanical timepieces (over 1000 pieces) belonging to the 18^th and 19^th century. The impressive assortment contains both foreign-made and Chinese clocks. The first mechanical clock was supposed to be brought by a priest in the year 1601.

Tourists can enter only through the southern Meridian gate or Wumen and exit the museum through the northern gate (Gate of Divine Might) or Shenwumen, thereby having one-way south to north route. To journey the central axis, one should have a minimum of four to five hours at hand. But in case one wishes to explore the imperial palace at length, a whole day would be required. Tourists can reach the Forbidden City via subway or bus. One can board Subway Line 1 and deboard at either the West Station or Tiananmen East Station. Then look for the prominent Tiananmen Tower and advance to the north to reach the Meridian Gate. The other alternative is to board Subway Line 2 and get down at Qianmen Station. From there, one can walk in the northern direction towards the Tiananmen Tower and then get to the Meridian Gate. Several buses also ply that can help tourists reach the Tiananmen East Station including bus 1, 2, 52, 59, 82, 120, Tourist Bus Line 2 and Sightseeing Bus Line 2. Busses that will help visitors get to the Tiananmen West Station are bus 1, 5, 52, Tourist Line 2 and Sightseeing Bus Line 1, Line 2.

The entry ticket fee varies depending on the month you chose to see the Forbidden City. Usually, from April to October, the ticket fee is CNY 60, and from November to March, it is CNY 40. Separate entrance tickets are required to visit the Treasury Gallery, Watch and Clock Gallery. Children lower than 3.9 feet don’t need an entry ticket. But they must be escorted by an adult. Minors (aged 6 to 18) need to pay CNY 20 as entrance fee. Senior citizens aged 60 and above may avail a discount of 50 percent upon providing a valid passport or ID. It is wise to buy the tickets online as the museum’s daily visitor capacity is 80,000. The certified booking website does not offer services in English. Therefore, it is maybe helpful to purchase tickets through a travel agency or known Chinese friends. The option of buying tickets from the ticketing window at the Meridian Gate is also available.

The peak season for travelling to the Forbidden City is generally from April to October. So, you can plan your trip accordingly. It is a good idea to visit the Forbidden City on a weekday to avoid the rush and extensive lines that possibly form on weekends. It may also be wise to refrain from visiting on national holidays such as National Day Holiday (October 1-7), Labor Day Holiday (May 1-3). The Palace Museum is open all days except Mondays and Chinese statutory holidays. In April to October, the ticketing time starts from 8:30 am till 4:00 pm, operating hours start from 8:30 am till 5:00 pm and entry time begins from 8:30 am till 4:10 pm. In November to March, the ticketing time starts from 8:30 am till 3:30 pm, the operating hours start from 8:30 am till 4:30 pm and the entry time begins from 8:30 am till 3:40 pm. To evade the crowds, arriving early at 8.30 am or after 2 pm may work best.

The Forbidden City is a multifaceted and elaborate destination steeped in rich Chinese culture and history. Therefore, it is prudent to explore it with a well-informed guide who can help you understand its background and the varied bewitching aspects in detail. If you want to know about all the alluring Forbidden City facts, then hiring a local expert is a great idea. His first-hand knowledge can help you create a unique and memorable tour for yourself by uncovering the best possible things to see. You can easily decide on what to see, where to go, and what not to miss. Most tourists tend to go through the more popular six halls in the central axis of the complex and finish their tour with an outing to the imperial garden. But in case you have the time, and inclination to explore deeply, taking a tour of the less-visited halls in the flanks of the central axis can be highly rewarding. You may avoid the crowds and also gain a more profound understanding of Chinese culture and history. Some highly-recommended things to see are:

A trip to the collection halls which can provide the visitors to get a glimpse of the extravagance of the Chinese emperors may also prove to be worthwhile. The more distinguished exhibitions include the following:

The time constraints notwithstanding, allow yourself half a day at least to enjoy the place and learn about its different facets. See the main palaces, priceless displays, and get a literal overview from the Jingshan Park. If you have travelled this far to Beijing, do invest some of your time to get introduced to this magnificent edifice. Taking a brief tour may give you a quick snapshot and save some time. But it certainly won't do justice to this stunning, one-of-its-kind marvel of the world. To avoid huge crowds of tourists or being bogged down by never-ending queues, plan a trip on a weekday. Travelling during the off-season (November to March) may also work best. The ideal period to visit can be mid-October to November end. Besides, this phase offers comfortable temperatures and lesser crowds.

If you wish to admire the magnitude of the Forbidden City, a hilltop view of the complex should be on your itinerary. One can enjoy an elevated view of the majestic palace from Jingshan Park or Scenery Hill. Most of the inspiring Forbidden City pictures that we see on social media are usually taken from Jingshan Park. The place can provide you with the chance of gaining a bird’s-eye view of the grand palace. You can successfully marvel at the vast scale and splendor and the beautifully integrated Fengshui design of the complex.