Beijing Hutong Inn, Beijing

Hutongs of Beijing

Advantages: Beautiful buildings and a look at life for many ordinary citizens of Beijing
Disadvantages: Can be busy and cramped

A hutong is an ancient alleyway or lane found in Beijing which can date back as far as the Yuan dynasty of China in the 13th century. The crisscrossing alleys can now offer a glimpse of another part of this ancient city that is quite different to the major attractions such as the Summer Palace or the Forbidden City. The tiny, twisted and interconnected lanes wind through whole areas of the city of Beijing. The lanes are lined with traditional stone houses all arranged in quadrangles, so four houses around a courtyard, which are beautiful old fashioned buildings. They often involve carved pillars, window frames and doors and the open spaces of the courtyard lets in air and light to otherwise quite cramped areas-some of the lanes really are tiny with less than a metre of breadth. Most of the hutongs are still used as housing and are ...

flyingllamas 07.08.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Hutongs, Beijing

Hutong tours

Advantages: great to see some culture
Disadvantages: small streets

The hutongs is small alleyways crisscroding east west acoss the city. They are small narrow street which one car could fit down. In some places only a bike could fit down them.It is a great opportunity to see some culture of Beijing and how people lived in the past. People still live here but not as many as there used to be as younger generations prefer to live in modern homes. Some of the hutong and courtyard homes are protected by Beijings Cultural Relic's Protection Association however many others are being bulldozed so there are getting less and less available. We got a rickshaw ride around the hutongs which had been arranged by a tour operator. Beware it is abit rough around the edges and quite dirty in places however it was worthwhile to see how people of beijing live. At times I felt very enclosed in. Once on the rickshaw ride ...

DeniseKelly40 27.08.2007 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Hutongs, Beijing

A living history of life in Beijing

Advantages: It's a great insight to the living and breathing history of life in Beijing from the local perspective
Disadvantages: If you go indepently you may get lost.

The Hutongs are a large expanse of "ancient alleyways" (semi- literal translation) which house a large number of Bejing's families right in the heart of the city. It is really worth visiting, as it gives a more grassroots perspective on living and breathing in Beijing as opposed to the vast imperial palaces like the Forbidden City. What is so great about the Hutongs is that despite all the upheaval that this great city and China has witnessed, they are still very much a functioning part of the city- with hundreds of families still resident. The organic nature of the Hutongs means that they have sprawled across a large area of central Beijing- easily accessibly from the Tiananmen Square, the shopping district of Wangfujin (if you walk behind the main street), and HouHai (which is a wonderful bar and restaurant district spanning ...

njim274 22.09.2005 (23.09.2005) · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Hutongs, Beijing