Most Famous Beijing Hutongs Spot for Beijing Tour

The Hutong, an old-style city alley or lane, is one of the most distinctive features and must-see attractions in Beijing during Visit china. There are thousands of hutongs in the city, many of which were built during the Yuan (1206-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. We list the most famous hutongs that all travelers to the capital city shouldn't miss in order to get a better experience of the unique culture of ancient Beijing.

Beijing hutongs are now endangered. Many hutongs Beijing tours are very dilapidated, and the courtyards in them are badly in need of repair, and covered with rubbish. In recent 30 years, as the modern city developed, many huge building have been built around the city, with the old and compact hutongs seemingly out of place. Therefore, hutongs and courtyards were torn down, and acres of old streets have disappeared. On average 50 Hutongs are disappearing annually. When the hutongs and courtyards are destroyed, the traditional hutong culture and Beijing characters are also destroyed.

The naming of these different lanes is very interesting on China tour packages. In ancient times the names of them were passed by word of mouth among people; there were no signposts. It was not until the Ming and Qing dynasties that the names were written down gradually. Generally speaking, the naming methods can be categorized into ten kinds. Some main naming methods were to name them after the symbol construction in a lane, the local language, the markets and the local positions. For instance, the Skewed Tobacco Pouch Street, also called Yandai Xiejie, was named so because it is not straight. Mamei Hutong was named after the old Beijing language. In later years the government changed their original names into more formal ones, which sounds more refined. If one wants to know the original names of them, a tour to these feature lanes should not be missed.