5 Places to Visit in Beijing in February

If you travel to Beijing in February, you will find that many temple fairs, large and small, are being held everywhere. These temple fairs have the same purpose to ring out the old year and ring in the new year. Though the themes may vary among different temples, the activities can be generalized into three groups. First, prayer for blessings. Tourists can light candles, ring the bell, beat the drum and burn incense. Second, folk art performances; the jubilant atmosphere is livened through acrobatic performances, folk dances, Beijing Opera and some chess games. Last, but not least, no one can resist various traditional snacks at Beijing temple fairs. The fragrant sesame pastry, fried lotus root and sugar-coated haws (Bing Tang Hu Lu) are definitely worth trying. The best places to visit in Beijing in February for temple fairs include Ditan Temple, Longtan Temple, Summer Palace, Daguanyuan and Badachu.

See also: Best Temple Fairs in Beijing

During Chinese New Year, many Chinese people also like to pray for blessings and make wishes before the Buddha. Yonghe Temple is the most popular temple in Beijing to do this. Thus, visiting Yonghe Temple can be another auspicious thing to do in Beijing in February. Yonghe Temple is a special Tibetan Buddhist imperial temple. In addition to praying for blessings, tourists can appreciate the august figures of Buddha and the architecture, both in Tibetan style and Han Chinese style. The top three attractions in Yonghe Temple are the five-hundred-arhat relief, carved from sandalwood, a shrine carved from silkwood, and Maitreya Buddha, carved from a single block of sandalwood. Tourists can also feast their eyes on Thang-ga (Buddhist scroll paintings) and other exquisite cultural relics.

Badaling Great Wall is the most well-preserved section of the Great Wall and also the one nearest to downtown Beijing, and thus one of the top places to visit in Beijing in February. Though the weather is cold, and the vegetation could be desolate, such scenery only serves as a foil to the Great Wall’s magnificence. Moreover, if you visit here on a snowy day, you will find the Great Wall more solemnly fascinating. Badaling Great Wall has 12 towers in the north and 7 towers in the south. Upon ascending the eighth tower in the north (Guan Ri Tai), you can enjoy a bird-eye’s view of the winding Great Wall. If you are too tired to climb, you can take the cableway directly to the tower. Time permitting, you can also visit the Badaling Ski Resort, about 8km (5 mi) away. Apart from the ski slopes for various levels, this place also provides tourists with slopes for quad bikes, and snow tubes. The thrill will never stop when you try dog sledding, bungee jumping, snow sauna, DIY ice carving, and so on!

 Recommended Tour:   One Day Private Badaling Great Wall Hiking from $102

This natural oxygen bar is another nice place to visit in Beijing in February. Huaibei International Ski Resort nestles besides the Great Wall and upon the lofty mountains. You are able to easily overlook this landscape by cable car. Skiers can flex their muscles on three elementary slopes, seven intermediate slopes and one high-level slope. In addition to skiing, snow quad bikes, horse sledding and ice climbing are also worth trying. Children can have a lot of fun in the snow park. What’s more, the equipment hall, dining hall and villas will spare you troubles and help you enjoy quality time.

Given the chilly weather in February, Xiaotangshan Hot Spring should be added to the list of what to do in Beijing in February. The hot springs here have an average temperature of between 40 - 60℃(104 - 140℉), and contains many mineral salts to help you stay healthy, such as strontium, lithium, selenium and metasillicic acid. Nowadays, many hot spring clubs in Xiaotangshan area can meet people’s demands for both privacy and relaxation. Tourists can be gratified through a Chinese herb hot spring, sand hot spring, sauna, fish pedicure, and so on.