Most Preserved Mutianyu Great Wall Beijing Tour

Mutianyu (Chinese: 慕田峪; pinyin: Mùtiányù) is a section of the Great Wall of China located in Huairou County 70 km northeast of central Beijing for China travel. The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall is connected with Jiankou in the west and Lianhuachi in the east. As one of the best-preserved parts of the Great Wall, the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall used to serve as the northern barrier defending the capital and the imperial tombs.

Mutianyu is actually one of the most well-preserved parts of the Great Wall of China of Beijing travel and older than the more popular Badaling section. It was built during the Northern Qi Dynasty (550-577), drastically restored in the early Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and restored again between 1982-1986 under government orders. This section of the Great Wall of China is more densely-packed with watch towers than other parts of the wall are. In addition, merlons or holes in the wall used to fire cannons are present on both sides of the wall—another rare feature. The surrounding area is covered with natural vegetation and we were lucky enough to visit while fragrant spring chestnut tree blossoms blew around us in the light wind. Blue sky was in and pollution was nowhere to be seen.

Forts were built at points along either side of the wall to provide extra layers of defense for the border troops, and the wall is additionally fortified with a heavy concentration of watchtowers. Rare along the Great Wall, one platform on the southeast side has three watchtowers abreast. The towers on the surprisingly wide wall come with fireplaces, storage areas and stairways leading up to better vantage points. The Mutianyu Great Wall continues, bit by bit, to be excavated and restored. Earlier this year (2015) three more sections and their towers were opened to visitors. What no one forewarns, though, is that there are many uphill steps along the way, some steeper than others. Happily the trek back is mostly downhill, although the steepest stairways are rather intimidating looking down according to luxury China tour packages.