1 day in Beijing

[taoscowboy]

Several new Oceania itineraries have a 1 day port stop in Beijing. How much can be seen in 1 day? Is it possible to see the Forbidden City, Tian'anmen Square and visit the Great Wall all in that 1 day?

[Pet Nit Noy]

Several new Oceania itineraries have a 1 day port stop in Beijing. How much can be seen in 1 day? Is it possible to see the Forbidden City, Tian'anmen Square and visit the Great Wall all in that 1 day?

When I read your question, I thought the Oceania planners had lost their minds. Tianjin, the port for Beijing, is over 170 kilometers away from the city and the drive time is estimated to be somewhat over 2 hours. Those facts make a one-day port call to Beijing unappealing. So I looked at Oceania's cruise finder to identify itineraries in Asia. I discovered a somewhat different picture, at least in 2018, than the one you painted.

There are eight Asian cruises, two of which include a port call in Beijing: Insignia's March 15 cruise ends in Beijing and its April 4 cruise begins in Beijing. Starting or ending a cruise in Beijing changes everything. Oceania is clearly assuming its clients will either arrive in Beijing several days early or stay several days beyond the cruise itself because the answer to your question is, "No. You can't see enough to make a one-day port call a meaningful visit."

The Forbidden City is worth a half-day tour. Badaling, the most common entry point to the Great Wall is a one-two hour drive from the city. A visit to Tiananmen Square can last anywhere from 5 to 45 minutes depending on how much you want to see at close range. And you haven't even mentioned other equally appealing places: the Summer Palace, the Ming Tombs outside the city, the Temple of Heaven, and more.

Based on my own visits to Beijing, I'd either leave the March cruise one day early and check into a city hotel or I'd arrive one day late for the April cruise, having stayed in the city for several days already. I wouldn't sink 4 hours into commuting time just because I've paid for an extra night on board a ship that's docked 170+ kilometers from the place I really want to be.

Edited April 18, 2017 by Pet Nit Noy

[RJB]

When I read your question, I thought the Oceania planners had lost their minds. Tianjin, the port for Beijing, is over 170 kilometers away from the city and the drive time is estimated to be somewhat over 2 hours. Those facts make a one-day port call to Beijing unappealing. So I looked at Oceania's cruise finder to identify itineraries in Asia. I discovered a somewhat different picture, at least in 2018, than the one you painted.

There are eight Asian cruises, two of which include a port call in Beijing: Insignia's March 15 cruise ends in Beijing and its April 4 cruise begins in Beijing. Starting or ending a cruise in Beijing changes everything. Oceania is clearly assuming its clients will either arrive in Beijing several days early or stay several days beyond the cruise itself because the answer to your question is, "No. You can't see enough to make a one-day port call a meaningful visit."

The Forbidden City is worth a half-day tour. Badaling, the most common entry point to the Great Wall is a one-two hour drive from the city. A visit to Tiananmen Square can last anywhere from 5 to 45 minutes depending on how much you want to see at close range. And you haven't even mentioned other equally appealing places: the Summer Palace, the Ming Tombs outside the city, the Temple of Heaven, and more.

Based on my own visits to Beijing, I'd either leave the March cruise one day early and check into a city hotel or I'd arrive one day late for the April cruise, having stayed in the city for several days already. I wouldn't sink 4 hours into commuting time just because I've paid for an extra night on board a ship that's docked 170+ kilometers from the place I really want to be.

Could have not said it better. A few years ago we ended a cruise in Beijing and stayed 3 additional nights in the city and it was still not enough time to see everything, but better than nothing. One of the great cities of the world. :):):)

[cbb]

Please keep in mind that this might not be O's fault that Beijing is only a 1 day stop and not an overnight.

 

ATW16 was to be an overnight in Beijing and the Chinese government abruptly changed that while we off the east coast of Africa. We solved the problem by signing up for the Xian & Beijing "overland" excursion as quickly as we could and so did Don and Betsy Horner.

 

Others took a bullet train from an overnight in Shanghai to Beijing and spent the night in Beijing thus being able to see both the Wall and the Forbidden City.

 

Previous replies are correct-you can't drive there, see the Wall and the Forbidden City area and drive back in the single day.

[taoscowboy]

Thanks for the info but you did not look deep enough. Oceania has in fact several 2019 excursions with a 1 day stop in Beijing that is not at the start or finish of the cruise; the stops are for 10 or 11 hours. That is why I was asking. What does one do if they have only 1 day other than get off the ship and try to meet it at another port?

[cbb]

yes, in fact i did look deep enough. If the Chinese govt doesn't give them permission to dock overnight then their itineraries must only be 1 day, or skip the port entirely.

[TrulyBlonde]

Thanks for the info but you did not look deep enough. Oceania has in fact several 2019 excursions with a 1 day stop in Beijing that is not at the start or finish of the cruise; the stops are for 10 or 11 hours. That is why I was asking. What does one do if they have only 1 day other than get off the ship and try to meet it at another port?

 

I would typically choose O for this cruise but the Beijing portion is not enough time. I have booked Regent for end of March 2019 and the tour to Great Wall etc is all included. It was the best itinerary for this trip that I could find. You may consider looking into it.

[sfvoyage]

Beijing is a fascinating city with so much history and sights to see, it takes at least 4 full days to do the "must sees".

 

I don't recommend rushing through cities like this while on a cruise. In fact, I think of cruising not as traveling, but as a lifestyle. I don't pretend to be able to explore or discover much during the few hours, or even an overnight, at a port. Plus, a cruise takes us to ports; I won't try to squeeze in an inland-trip for the day, or on an multi-day itinerary, rejoining the ship at a later port.

 

When cruising, I'd prefer to take advantage of the strength and appeal of cruising and stick with visiting the ports (superficially, given the time constraints) and save the in-depth explorations by land on other trips. Of course, there are exceptions: for destinations like the Arctic and Antarctica, and island-hopping in Polynesia, etc., cruising is the perfect way to go!

[wcc19]

On our Nautica cruise in March we had a one day stop there, almost 12 hours. You can't see both Beijing and the great wall - you have to choose one or the other. We chose the wall and have no regrets about it. Perhaps we will return one day and see Beijing.

We took the Oceania excursion because it is a long drive and so much could go wrong in that part of the world.

[Pet Nit Noy]

Thanks for the info but you did not look deep enough. Oceania has in fact several 2019 excursions with a 1 day stop in Beijing that is not at the start or finish of the cruise; the stops are for 10 or 11 hours. That is why I was asking. What does one do if they have only 1 day other than get off the ship and try to meet it at another port?

 

The 2019 itineraries aren't showing on my cruise find feature, but I went elsewhere and saw what you were talking about. Major sigh!

 

Every day, cruisers arrive at the port of Le Havre, France and some fraction of them take a three-hour trip each way to Paris. Or they arrive at the port of Warnemunde and make a two plus hour trip to Berlin. These people have made a personal calculation that seeing even a small fraction of a great cities is worth a multi-hour train/bus. I would not be one of those travelers.

 

Oceania is now adding Beijing to that list of distant-from-their-port cities. Oceania has decided there will be enough people happy to visit Beijing at all that they're willing to spend at least four hours of a 10-hour port call in transit. If those cruises are slow to sell, perhaps Oceania will go back to beginning/ending in Beijing.

 

I've spent eight days in Beijing over two separate trips. I wasn't bored even on the last day. Using the example of the March 7, 2019 Nautica cruise (Hong Kong to Shanghai) I would be frustrated and angry at myself for booking a cruise that wasted time visiting Pusan, Incheon, at sea, and Dalian instead of extending time in Beijing. Staying one more day in Beijing wouldn't satisfy me either.

 

Ultimately, that's why, as much as I love to cruise, I'm still taking more land trips than cruises.

Edited April 18, 2017 by Pet Nit Noy

[RJB]

On our Nautica cruise in March we had a one day stop there, almost 12 hours. You can't see both Beijing and the great wall - you have to choose one or the other. We chose the wall and have no regrets about it. Perhaps we will return one day and see Beijing.

We took the Oceania excursion because it is a long drive and so much could go wrong in that part of the world.

Smart way of getting into the city. I don't think you can see a good part of Beijing in one day, ie 8 hours after the ride in and giving enough time to get back. So much to take in. It could take 4 to 5 hours to go thru the Forbidden City. The Winter Palace, the Summer Palace....and so much more. Need many days to get a good look.

[pinotlover]

We spent 6 days, last May, in Beijing as part of a Uniworld tour/cruise. 3 days with Uniworld and three days on our own. Busy the entire time and still things we missed!

[taoscowboy]

Thanks for all your good perspectives on the need for more in-depth time in Beijing; makes a lot of sense.

[potterhill]

We have been to Beijing twice and would return in a heartbeat. The first time for 4 days, and in 2013 we were there for a week prior to our cruise. Without question, if I only had one day I would go to the Wall. We did it both times and loved every minute.

 

Mo

 

 

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[Go-Bucks!]

I was really surprised to see that the Beijing stop on the RTW 2019 cruise is for just one short day (7a-6p). The itinerary is:

 

4/7 - Beijing

4/8 - Sea Day

4/9 - Shanghai

4/10 - Shanghai

4/11 - Shanghai

 

Will O let us go into Beijing on 4/7, then stay there on our own for 2-3 days, taking a train down to Shanghai and joining the ship there? Will China allow this?