Hiking The Great Wall of China

"I grew up with Nixon and whatever mistakes he made, he was a man of extraordinary political vision. China is becoming China once again."

The Great Wall of China was built over a period of 2000 years, with the first section built in the 7 and 6 centuries BC, and the last section between the 14th—17th centuries AD. It was built to resist invading armies of the North.

Originally, it was built of stone, grass and mud and the Ming dynasty had kilns along the emerging wall to make bricks. Transport was by man, donkey, mules and goats.

Today, it is possible to walk large sections of the China’s Great Wall, the length of which depending upon how much time you want to spend hiking. Various Great Wall travel options are available:

• day trips along shorter sections of the wall
• two-day hiking package with overnight on the Great Wall itself
• longer Great Wall treks of 4 days or longer

Sleeping on The Great Wall

Overnight options for these Great Wall packages are varied and interesting. Imagine sleeping out under the stars or in the shelter of a watchtower or courtyard style hotel or at the base of the wall.

Sleeping bags, mats are provided for those choosing to sleep on the wall, and your guide stays with you overnight.

Guided Hikes along The Great Wall

There are two guided hikes on the wall, one in the morning and the other at sunset, each a walk of 7km (4 miles). A bus is available for anyone preferring not to hike.

Note that the longer hike to Simatai is currently unavailable due to reconstruction and restoration work on that section of The Wall.

Among the sights visited are the Ming Tombs, final resting place of thirteen of China’s ancient emperors.

All such trips are inclusive of English speaking guide, Transportation, entrance fees and all meals including two lunches in local restaurants, one dinner and western breakfast on the wall

Extending China Tours into Asia Travel Packages

China tours combine and coordinate well with Tibet and Nepal.

For additional tours and full itineraries or to ask about other travel in china and the rest of Asia, please contact us by phone or email.

Tour options for China travel packages

We offer many custom travel options on our China tour packages. We can:

• provide a complete itinerary, including flights to and from your home country, or
• arrange an itinerary that takes you from arrival through to departure, allowing you to make your own travel arrangements between home and destination

We can assist independent and self-guided travellers, travelling alone and can arrange expert guiding in many languages for anyone seeking partial or fully guided itineraries.