[2024 Beijing Attraction] Travel Guide for Wanshou Temple (Updated Nov)
Temples
Address:
Suzhou Street, Haidian District, Beijing 100081, China
Opening times:
Open tomorrow at 09:00-17:00(Admission ends at 16:30)Closed Today
Recommended sightseeing time:
1-2 hours
Phone:
010-68456997
Beijing Tour 3: Wanshou Temple, the Little Forbidden City in Western Beijing.
Wanshou Temple was built in the 5th year of the Wanli period of the Ming dynasty (1577) as a royal temple. It underwent several large-scale renovations during the reigns of the Kangxi, Qianlong, and Guangxu emperors, and became a royal temple covering an area of 50 mu (3.3 hectares) with a combination of temples, palaces, and gardens. The east, middle, and west buildings are adjacent to each other, and the temple was once known as the "Little Forbidden City in Western Beijing."
📍Detailed address: Wanshou Temple, Suzhou Street, Haidian District, Beijing
🚉Transportation:
Bus: Take bus 300, 323, 362, 374, 482, 811, 817, 944, 967, Te 5, Te 8, Yuntong 103, Yuntong 108, Yuntong 110, Yuntong 201, etc. to Wanshou Temple.
Subway: Wanshou Temple Station, Line 16
🕙Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00–16:30 (ticket sales stop at 16:00). It is best to make an online reservation before visiting.
💰Ticket price: Regular ticket CNY 20
🌟Highlights: Wanshou Temple is actually part of the Beijing Art Museum, and is its largest "exhibit." There are currently five basic exhibitions: History of Wanshou Temple, Buddhist Sculpture Art, Auspicious and Longevity Cultural Relics, Qing Dynasty Royal Painting and Calligraphy Art, and Chinese Traditional Furniture.
Tour route: Shanmen Hall → Tianwang Hall → Huiri Changhui Hall → Anxin Jing Hall → Zhuyan Wanshou Hall → Wanshou Pavilion → Large and Small Zen Halls → Rockery and Three Bodhisattvas Hall → Qianlong Imperial Stele Pavilion.
❤Recommended reason: Appreciate the beauty of Chinese art and ancient architecture.
malachia_4558
Colorful Beijing Autumn - Wanshou Temple.
Wanshou Temple is located in Haidian District, Beijing. It was first built in the 5th year of the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty (1577) and was expanded many times during the Kangxi, Qianlong, and Guangxu periods of the Qing Dynasty. It became a famous royal temple in western Beijing. Empress Dowager Chongqing, the mother of Emperor Qianlong, and Empress Dowager Cixi both celebrated their birthdays here.
In addition to admiring the ancient buildings and cultural relics, you can also feel the peaceful and harmonious atmosphere at Wanshou Temple: winding corridors, green pines and cypresses, small bridges and flowing water, and ancient trees. Strolling through it, time seems to slow down.
⛰[Travel Guide]
🕙Opening hours: 9:00–17:00, last entry at 16:30, closed on Mondays.
💰Ticket price: CNY 20 per person, free for senior card holders.
📌Tips: Free guided tours at 10:00 and 14:00 on open days (meet at the entrance).
KALEB GOMEZ
Wanshou Temple Treasure Hunt
📍Wanshou Temple, located in Haidian District, Beijing, is now the Beijing Art Museum and was listed as a national key cultural relic protection unit in 2006. This is my third visit to Wanshou Temple. Some exhibits are must-sees every time, while others are new exhibits in the museum. Each visit brings different feelings and gains.
🏡Tickets: Adult ticket is CNY 20.
📍Subway accessible, Line 12 has a Wanshou Temple Station.
✅Wanshou Temple is a famous royal temple in the west of Beijing. It was built in the fifth year of the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty (1577) and was initially named "Imperial Wanshou Temple". It was completed the following year. In the second year of the Shunzhi period of the Qing Dynasty (1645), it was renamed "Imperial Huguo Wanshou Temple". After four dynasties of Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong, and Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty, it was expanded to its current scale. It is a royal forbidden garden integrating palaces, temples, and gardens. Currently, only the middle road and the north section of the east road are open to the public.
✅Wanshou Temple has a rigorous layout and inherits the characteristics of the combination of ancient temple architecture and garden architecture in China. It has a high artistic standard and is a concentrated embodiment of ancient Chinese architectural and garden art.
✅Stone altar: The display board introduction speculates that it is in the early Ming Dynasty style.
✅Western-style door: It was added during the renovation in the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. It is a combination of Chinese and Western styles and has several characteristics of the times. The upper part of the door is "spliced" with the traditional Chinese moon door form at the bottom through a large number of full-carved curved Baroque-style decorations, and the collision is very harmonious. In addition to this, there are also Western-style doors in the Summer Palace and Prince Gong's Mansion. If you are interested, you can check in these three Western-style door buildings.
✅There are currently permanent exhibitions with the theme of "Shou" and temporary exhibitions that are regularly updated in the museum. In addition, there are also exhibitions of architectural restoration techniques related to the major repairs of ancient buildings outdoors.
Stella Garcia
National Heritage Site: Wanshou Temple (National 6th Batch).
Wanshou Temple is located on the north bank of Changhe River on Suzhou Street. It is a national key cultural relic protection unit of the 6th batch, and a Qing Dynasty ancient architecture.
Wanshou Temple was built in the 5th year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1577). It was expanded to its current scale in the 16th year (1751) and 26th year (1761) of Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty. Wanshou Temple is divided into three routes: middle, east, and west. The middle route is built with mountain gates, Heavenly King Hall, Mahavira Hall, Wanshou Pavilion, Dachan Hall, Guanyin Hall, Imperial Stele Pavilion, Amitayus Buddha Hall, and Wanfo Tower. There are also auxiliary buildings such as side halls, side rooms, and group rooms on both sides of the main hall. The east route is the abbot's courtyard, and the west route is the palace courtyard. The palace courtyard is where Empress Dowager Cixi rested on her way to the Summer Palace.
Wanshou Temple is now the Beijing Art Museum. The ticket is CNY 20. In addition to visiting the buildings, steles, and rockeries, there are also exhibitions of Buddhism, calligraphy and painting, coins, and furniture. Unfortunately, only the middle route is currently open. It is still relatively quiet during the National Day holiday, without the feeling of rubbing shoulders in popular scenic spots.
Celeste Reed
Don't go to crowded places in Beijing during the National Day holiday! Avoid the crowds and come here.
For sisters who want to play in Beijing during the National Day holiday
If you want to find a place with few people and good photo spots
The first place that comes to my mind is "Wanshou Temple"
The red building is almost like the Forbidden City
Ancient temples, steles, and ancient trees
Walk around and take photos in the former royal temple
There are also many museum exhibitions to visit
What's more valuable is that even during the National Day holiday
There won't be too many people
🚇Direct subway access, get off at Wanshou Temple Station on Subway Line 16
🚙Convenient parking, paid parking is available on Wanshou Temple Road
📒Free stamping, a total of 31 stamps
Believe_789_Brooks
Explore the Wanshou Temple, the "Little Forbidden City" of Beijing.
There is a treasure trove in Beijing, the Wanshou Temple, also known as the "Little Forbidden City" of Beijing. Today, let's take a walk into this historic temple and feel its unique charm.
Wanshou Temple, also known as the Beijing Art Museum, has been closed for five years and is now reopened. It is definitely worth a visit. The architecture here is consistent with the style of the Forbidden City, with red walls and green tiles, window lattices and plaques, rockeries and ancient trees, murals and carvings, all showing the royal charm. Although the scale is not as grand as the Forbidden City, the "sparrow is small, but it has all the internal organs", it shows different flavors in all seasons, especially in autumn, the huge ginkgo tree is even more beautiful.
Address: No. 119, Wanshou Temple East Road, Haidian District, Beijing
Transportation:
- Subway: Take Line 16 to Wanshou Temple Station Exit C.
- Bus: Take the 300 Outer Ring Line to Wanshou Temple Station.
Tickets:
- Ticket price: CNY 20/person.
- Reservation: You can make a reservation through the "Beijing Art Museum", and the first 200 people are free on Wednesday.
Play time:
- The recommended play time is 2 hours. If you like to take pictures, you can extend the time appropriately.
Opening hours: 9:00-16:30, closed on Monday.
Photo check-in location:
1. The Qianlong Imperial Tablet Pavilion and the Wuliangshou Buddha Hall in the back garden can take photos with a super sense of hierarchy from a flat view or overhead shot.
2. The Western Gate in the back garden.
3. The rockery and wooden bridge in the back garden (open after the rainy season).
4. You can take a sense of extension of the arch at the exit.
5. Turn right at the entrance to the cultural and creative interactive area, where you can stamp for free and buy cultural and creative products.
Schedule route planning:
You can choose to go to Wanshou Temple in the afternoon. After the tour, you can also taste food in the surrounding area and feel the local customs of Beijing.
Precautions:
1. Make an appointment for tickets in advance to avoid delaying the itinerary.
2. Pay attention to the opening hours and arrange the play time reasonably.
3. Pay attention to the protection of cultural relics and the environment when taking pictures.
Come to Trip.com to book your Wanshou Temple tour, let us spend a cozy afternoon in this "Little Forbidden City" of Beijing, and feel the blend of history and culture.
xavian_3345
The museum in Zhongshan Park does not house delicate tulips
❤Recommended reason:
💐If Wanshou Temple in March belongs to the magnolia flowers of spring, then the art museum devoid of crowds is where the tulips in the abbot's courtyard bring the bright spring light of April.
👍Most recommended:
🏰Wanshou Temple, known as the 'Little Forbidden City of Western Beijing', is a large ancient architectural complex with buildings from the east, middle, and west adjacent to each other. It was founded during the Tang Dynasty, originally named Jusè Temple, and renamed 'Wanshou Temple' in the fifth year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1577). During the Qing Dynasty, it was called 'Little Ningshou Palace' because Empress Dowager Cixi often worshipped Buddha in the temple.
✅Must experience:
🎏Inside the abbot's courtyard at the very back, the newly planted tulips of various colors offer a scenic view at every step, full of sentiment in every corner. The spread of colors is like nature's palette, complementing the ancient palace lanterns interestingly.
🌷The beauty of tulips brings to mind the exuberance of youth and the vigor of life. Underneath the fine veins of each leaf and petal is the spreading radiance of beauty. The tulips present to the world their impeccable beauty, which is contagious and moving.
🌤️Come and feel the warmth and comfort of spring, and spend some good time with the tulips!
silas_atticus_winterbourne
More people are rejected than flowers bloom, and the magnolia flowers in Wanshou Temple have bloomed~ Here comes the guide!
"It's worth the trip", "I'm going to grab the cultural and creative products, if I'm late they will be gone" and so on, these are the best comments from netizens about this temple that has returned to our sight after five years of restoration and only in the past two years. There is a kind of spring in Wanshou Temple called magnolia blooming~
🌲 The trees in the temple are lush, and here you can fully feel the beauty of spring. Walking among the ancient temples with red walls and green shades, you can see many ancient trees that are still hundreds of years old. The most conspicuous magnolia trees are on both sides of the mountain gate as soon as you enter, and you can see them through the courtyard wall~
🎊 Wanshou Temple is known as the "Little Forbidden City in the west of Beijing", with the same architectural style, truly worthy of the royal temple. Some exhibitions in the temple are also very worth seeing!
🎈 Besides, buying fridge magnets and collecting stamps have also become a must-do for everyone visiting Wanshou Temple now, but I still have to say to grasp the season and cherish the current magnolia flowers, and compared to other attractions, Wanshou Temple is a less crowded niche spot. The red walls and magnolias complement each other perfectly!
💰 Wanshou Temple ticket price: 20 yuan for adults.
🚈 Subway Line 16: Wanshou Temple Station, exit C.
✨ Little tips: The opening hours are 9:00-17:00, closed on Mondays. In the next article, I will share a few photo spots~
3s@c D.@z
The magnolias at Beijing's Wanshou Temple are in bloom, adding a romantic touch to the red walls and flowers
The spring at Wanshou Temple has seen the magnolias mostly blooming, come and pick some 'cat ears' soon~
Many people come to take photos📷, the quiet environment is very relaxing...
📝This place is known as the 'Little Forbidden City of West Beijing', a temple exclusively used by the royalty, which has undergone massive renovations by emperors such as Kangxi, Qianlong, and Guangxu, resulting in an ancient architectural complex that integrates temples, imperial palaces, and gardens. The museum also houses various collections, including steles, paintings, ceramics, seals, and court embroidery, among others.
Just a ten-minute walk away is the Zizhuyuan Park, which is also worth a visit.
📍Beijing Art Museum (Wanshou Temple), Haidian District, West Third Ring North Road, Beijing (240 meters from Exit C of Wanshou Temple Station on Subway Line 16)
⌚️Opening hours: Closed on Mondays, open Tuesday to Sunday from 09:00 to 17:00 (entry stops at 16:30)
🎫: Adult tickets are 20 yuan, students 10 yuan, free for the elderly and minors🆓, free with Beijing Union Card and Veterans' Preferential Card🆓, first 200 free every Wednesday🆓
Lucy.Moore^36
Xijing Little Forbidden City Wanshou Temple - A Worthwhile Niche Attraction - Serene and Comfortable
Wanshou Temple was founded in the fifth year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1577), serving as a royal temple. It has undergone several large-scale renovations during the reigns of Emperors Kangxi, Qianlong, and Guangxu, resulting in an architectural complex that integrates temples, imperial palaces, and gardens along three routes: east, central, and west. Covering an area of 50 acres, this royal temple complex was once known as the 'Little Forbidden City' in the west of Beijing.
The Beijing Art Museum now houses nearly 50,000 pieces of ancient art, ranging from the primitive society to the Ming and Qing dynasties. The collection is extensive and mainly includes calligraphy and paintings from various dynasties, steles and famous letters, court embroidery, palace porcelain, ancient furniture, coins and seals from different eras. It also holds over one hundred thousand volumes of ancient books and texts from the Song Dynasty to the Republic of China era.
Opening Hours
Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00-16:30
Liam.Bell.39
How to take photos of the magnolia flowers at Wanshou Temple with fewer people and more flowers?
How to take photos of the magnolia flowers at Wanshou Temple with fewer people and more flowers?
In the previous article, I shared some travel and flower viewing tips for Wanshou Temple. Recently, due to the magnolia flowers, the number of visitors has been increasing and it's almost reaching the peak. Today, I'll share some photography tips to help you avoid the crowds and capture beautiful photos~
1. Right as you enter Wanshou Temple, the two gates on the left and right of the front courtyard are very classic. The red walls paired with the white magnolia flowers make for great photos. If you only want to shoot the flowers, a telephoto lens will do, but if you want to include people, many tourists choose the right gate. However, the position on the steps at the left gate is also good and usually less crowded.
2. Wanshou Temple stops admitting visitors at 16:30 and closes at 17:00. Starting from 16:00, many people have already left to prepare dinner, so the light is good and there are relatively fewer people around that time.
3. Standing in front of the railing on the side platform, you can capture the waterfall of magnolia flowers behind. When I went, the background was rather bare, but I believe it will look even better for those who visit now.
4. Use your camera to shoot upwards, and the person should tuck in their chin because the magnolia flowers are high. This way, the face appears smaller and there are more flowers in the shot.
3s@c D.@z
Wanshou Temple
Wanshou Temple (Wanshou Temple), located at No. 1 Wanshou Temple, Haidian District, Beijing, was founded in the fifth year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1577), renovated in the twentieth year of the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty (1894), and opened to the public as the Beijing Art Museum in 1985.
Wanshou Temple is divided into central, eastern, and western routes, with the central route being the main structure, the eastern route as the abbot's yard, and the western route as the official residence, covering an area of 31,800 square meters. The central route consists of eight halls, which from south to north are: the Mountain Gate, the Hall of Heavenly Kings, the Bell and Drum Towers, the Mahavira Hall, the Wanshou Pavilion, the Great Zen Hall, the Guanyin Hall, the Hall of Infinite Life Buddha, and the Ten Thousand Buddhas Tower. The eastern route features the abbot's yard. The western route features the official residence courtyard, with main structures including the main gate, longevity tea room, longevity dining room, front main hall, main hall, dressing tower, and the Great Mercy Hall. Wanshou Temple is a concentrated expression of ancient Chinese architectural and garden art, and holds significant historical value for the study of ancient garden architecture.
NIXON SMITH
Beijing's niche spot for snow appreciation, truly deserving of the title 'Mini Forbidden City' in Western Beijing
The first snow of 2024 in Beijing caught everyone by surprise. For those who prefer to avoid the crowded Forbidden City, why not visit Wanshou Temple? It's acclaimed as the 'Mini Forbidden City' in Western Beijing❗️
✅This place houses classics and suspends a giant bell, known as the site where the Yongle Great Bell tolls, and it's also a designated place for royal birthday celebrations😯. Here, you can not only enjoy the beautiful scenery but also immerse yourself in history and culture at the museum📖.
📍Beijing Art Museum (Wanshou Temple): Located within Wanshou Temple in the Haidian District of Beijing, near the West Third Ring Road, it is easily accessible by 🚇subway Line 16. The ticket price is 🎫20 yuan per person, with half-price discounts available💰
HAILEY WATERS
It is said that Cixi got the nickname 'Laofoya' here
'Wanshou Temple' is located on Wanshou Temple Road in Beijing. It was built in the fifth year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1577), and was built by Empress Dowager Li, the mother of Emperor Wanli, on the old site of Juse Temple, mainly for the collection of scriptures. In 1985, it was opened as: Beijing Art Museum. From south to north along Wanshou Temple Middle Road, there are Shanmen, Heavenly King Hall, Bell and Drum Tower, Daxiong Treasure Hall, Wanshou Pavilion, Dazentang, Guanyin Hall, Wuliangshou Buddha Hall, and Wanfo Building. The east road is the abbot's courtyard, and the west road is the palace courtyard. Empress Dowager Cixi often rested here when she visited the Summer Palace, hence the name Xiaoningshou Palace.
leonaortiz97
There is a mini Forbidden City in Beijing, where rare treasures miraculously survived disasters
Compared to the Forbidden City Museum, there is such a place in Beijing, which is known as the mini Forbidden City. The rare treasures here miraculously survived disasters, which is amazing. What happened? Many tourists may be curious and wonder where this place is? With these questions and curiosity, let's talk about the things about Wanshou Temple in Beijing today. Wanshou Temple in Beijing was built in the fifth year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1577). Its specific location is at No. 121, Wanshou Temple, Haidian District, Beijing. Wanshou Temple has a deep courtyard and a magnificent building. The corridors, imperial stele pavilions, bluestone rockeries, ancient underground palaces, and green pines and cypresses are arranged in a scattered and orderly manner, covering an area of more than 30,000 square meters. The temple is divided into east, middle, and west routes. The middle route is the main building, with a total of seven courtyards inside the mountain gate. The east route is the abbot's courtyard and garden. The west route was changed to the palace courtyard during the Qianlong period. Guangyuan Gate, known as the 'first gate of the long river', is located in front of Wanshou Temple.
WilliamMcGregor46
Beijing Wanshou Temple is less crowded and beautiful, worth a visit
⭐️Wanshou Temple was built in the fifth year of the Ming Dynasty Wanli (1577), it is a royal exclusive temple, after several large-scale renovations by the Kangxi, Qianlong, and Guangxu emperors, it formed a set of temples, palaces, and gardens. The architectural group of the East, Middle and West routes.
⭐️At present, there are many exhibitions in the museum of this building that has a history of more than 400 years, known as the Little Ning Shou Palace.
⭐️In 1985, it was renamed the Beijing Art Museum, with ancient trees towering in the courtyard, various species, wisteria, ginkgo, ancient pine, ancient locust, magnolia, etc. can be seen everywhere. The calligraphy and painting of the Qing Dynasty emperors, princes, and everyone; birthday porcelain, ornaments, jade; court weaving and other more than 50,000 pieces of art are hidden in the courtyard.
⭐️The Bell and Drum Tower plays films in a loop, historical inheritance; very exquisite Buddha mother, patriarch, main body, Bodhisattva and other statues; Vairocana Buddha statue, rockery nearby original display, auspicious objects longevity cultural relics exhibition, scholar's study, Qing Dynasty calligraphy and painting, furniture exhibition, etc.
⭐️And in order to strengthen the inheritance of traditional crafts, it has added hands-on experience including dyeing, weaving, woodworking, etc.
Stamping: There are post offices on both sides of the entrance where you can stamp for free, and the stamp surface is very delicate. The cultural and creative shop consumes 25r and can stamp 8 stamps. . The Great Zen Hall can imitate the character posts and stamp, there is a stamp that the post office does not have.
⭐️Postcard check-in: The embossed printed postcards have corresponding objects in the museum. They are the Qing Qianlong Imperial Pen Sui Chao Tujuan, Qing Kangxi Doucai Lingxian Birthday Picture Plate, Xiyangmen, Qing Guangxu Fu Character Ceiling Color Painting and Ming Huanghua Pear Carved Flower Pattern Circle Chair.
There is a cafe in the courtyard where you can take a break.
If you want to collect tickets and maps, you can get them at the visitor service center. The map manual has five different covers, very thoughtful.
🌟Tickets: 20r/person, student ticket 10r/person, free for the elderly and minors.
🌟Daily limit of 800 people, need to make an appointment in advance at the 'Beijing Art Museum', free tickets also need to be booked!
🌟The first 200 people are free every Wednesday.
Opening hours:
🌟Tuesday-Sunday, 9:00-17:00 (last entry at 16:30) Closed on Mondays, except holidays
🌟Transportation: Wanshou Temple Station of the subway, exit C is Wanshou Temple