A Solo Traveler's Guide To Beijing

Some travelers prefer traveling alone. Beijing is a good destination for solo travelers thanks to its convenience in every aspect of life and the friendliness of locals. This is not a survival guide, but a shortcut to help you blend into the city by yourself more quickly.

What is the fastest way to learn about the city? The answer is “get a cab.” Cab drivers in Beijing know every road, are mostly local and love to talk with passengers. But it’s best that you speak at least a little bit of Chinese Mandarin, because most of them only know how to say “Hello” and “Thank you” in English. For travelers who don’t know Chinese and wish to learn about Beijing from locals, you can book a room or a bed with guesthouses, where travelers rooms together. The staff at these locations usually speak English and are more than happy to chat with you.

Similar to the cab drivers, many Beijing locals from the older generations only know some English used in daily greetings, thanks to the booming interest in English study and free English education provided by the government during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. If you find yourself lost and need to ask for directions, go to the younger generations, they all tend to speak some degree of English.

As for dining, as we all know it can sometimes be painful for solo travelers, because your stomach can’t satisfy your desire to try more delicious food. But there are quite a lot of restaurants in Beijing where dishes are served small (and most importantly cheap). For the best restaurants in Beijing you can search on our website; there are plenty of them, covering all kinds of cuisines.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.

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