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The Temple of Heaven is prominent because of several things. The Temple was constructed during the 15th century and was the place for holding royal prayer ceremonies during Ming and Qing dynasties. The Temple area is larger than the Forbidden City, as the Emperor wasn’t allowed to construct his residence larger than the residence dedicated to heaven.
Due to its high importance, being “a symbol of the relationship between earth and heaven”, it was inscribed, as UNESCO World Heritage site.
Practical Details for Visiting Temple of Heaven
Opening Times
I had heard a lot about the park around the temple, which is famous for the morning routines of dancing, martial arts, music. Locals come here during early mornings, more so on the weekends to practice. So to enjoy all of this, in addition to visiting the Temple itself, go early in the morning.
The park is open from 6-6.30am (depending on the season), while the major sites open at 8am. I would say arrive before 8am, if you can to people watch and avoid the crowds as much as possible. This will also ensure that you will get to the sites as soon as they open.
We arrived at about 7am and wandered around the park before visiting the Hall of Prayer upon its opening. That was a good idea because we didn’t have to explore it with the sea of people. Plus, we entered from the East Gate, as opposed to the popular South gate (see the map and route below), which also contributed to ease of our exploration. By the time we got to the Circular Mound though within a couple of hours, the place was full of tour groups and impassable.
Note: Some of the smaller buildings (such as Hall of Abstinence) are closed on Mondays, however, none of the major sites close, so this shouldn’t significantly affect your visit.
How to Get to the Temple of Heaven
You have two main options for starting your visit of the Temple of Heaven. You can either go from South, which is not very easily accessible by public transport or from the east – Tiantan East metro station.Â
Coming from the East Gate is easiest. The closest metro station is Tiantan East Gate station. walk to the right after getting out of the metro station and you will see the East entrance in less than a minute.
Tickets for the Temple of Heaven
Through ticket:Â 35 yuan (high season price) – includes all entrances.
General admission ticket: 15 yuan (high season price) – only for the Tiantan park entrance. I don’t suggest this, as visiting the sites is a great experience. Getting those tickets separately is just more hassle and will end up more expensive.
There are several options for purchasing the Temple of Heaven tickets:
- In-person at the gates: While this can work out well, if you arrive very early, it’s still risky. The queues can become long, especially on the weekends and holidays. When we visited, there were no queues for tickets early in the morning. The locals have yearly passes, as I heard.
- Using Wechat app: This is slightly more budget friendly than third parties. You can buy tickets here, when they officially become available 7 days before your trip. You will have to have your bank card linked (they accept all major versions) and will need to upload your passport copy. I hated the app’s interface and it kept throwing me out, so can’t recommend it. But try it yourself, maybe it will be easier.
- Through the third party websites: There are several options for this – you can use the Chinese Trip.com or Klook, GetYourGuide or several other agencies. This option is significantly more expensive, unless they offer “discounts”. However, if WeChat doesn’t work for you and there is a risk of huge queues during your visit – in high season, on the weekends or holidays, this can be a more convenient option.
Whichever option you choose, make sure that you are getting the combination ticket with all entrances included and not just the park entry tickets. Besides, you need to provide your passport details and carry your Passport with you – you will need to provide it with your ticket.
If you don’t wish to navigate the temple independently and prefer to be accompanied by a local guide, you can either request one upon purchasing the tickets at the ticket office (if available) or select one of the guided private or group tours in advance.
If you have very limited time and don’t expect to return to Beijing, you can consider a 1-day whirlwind tour of the major sites in Beijing.
How Much Time Do You Need to Visit Temple of Heaven
As I mentioned above, the Temple grounds are quite spacious. Except for visiting the temple buildings, you should explore the park and see people relaxing and exercising here. Therefore several hours would be good. We spent about 4 hours here and were able to do everything we wanted from wandering the park to exploring all three major sites and the halls, pavilions and towers. You can also quickly go through the major sites within 2 hours, if you are in a rush. So expect to spend 3 to 5 hours here, depending on your itinerary.
The Map of the Temple of Heaven
To better orient yourself, here is TravelChinaGuide’s map of the Temple complex, which I found most useful for planning our route. However, this map doesn’t show all the green spaces of the park.
The park is mostly accessible – the pathways are flat and smooth enough for wheelchairs. Main halls have the ramps incorporated. Similarly it’s not difficult to walk for the older people. Mom navigated the whole area without any difficulties.
The sightseeing route
Actually, the East Gate is the best to come from not only because it’s easily accessible by metro, but also to see the locals performing their daily exercises. For this, don’t follow the main road straight from the east gate, but wonder to your right and walk around the park. You will see people practicing their singing skills, learning or practicing martial arts, dancing, etc.
After wandering around here, get to the corridors (Seventy two long corridors on the map above). This area is also full of people sitting around and playing different board games, knitting or doing other handcrafts. It’s definitely interesting to see. Wonder around the corridors, sit for short and experience the local customs. They are very friendly and welcoming.
Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests
By these corridors you will end up at the entrance of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests. This site was used to hold sacrificial ceremonies for, obviously, praying for good harvests and to express gratitude for them. The corridors you just walked, were used to bring the goods for the ceremony.
The hall was rebuilt at the end of the 19th century. The Hall is surrounded by several constructions, where the goods were stored, where the emperor rested before and after the ceremony, etc.
The Temple itself is wooden construction with no nails. It has lovely white stone base (three levels), which gives it unique appearance.
By the way, the corridors and the Hall were not very crowded by the time we were there at about 9.30, as the tourist groups coming from South still haven’t gotten here. When we headed south, we encountered hordes of people, so definitely get here early, if you manage.
If you have a lot of time, before heading South by the main Danbi bridge, you can go west and visit the rose garden, flower garden and the Palace of Abstinence.
Imperial Vault of Heaven
The Danbi or the red step bridge is connecting the Hall of Prayer to the Imperial Vault of Heaven. The bridge is very wide, as it had ceremonial purpose. The Vault is constructed in the same way as the Hall of Prayer you just visited, but on a smaller scale. It only has one level of the white stone base.
The main thing that everyone is interested in here is the Echo Wall surrounding the Vault. The idea of the wall is that you can speak in a low voice on one side and another person will hear you on the other. Well, we didn’t get to experience this, I guess simply because it was too loud around. The place was swamping with very loud tour groups. If you come earlier, maybe you will be able to understand, why the wall is called Echo wall 😊
Another interesting thing here are the three echo stones in front of the vault. You will find people standing here and clapping or jumping. The thing is that standing on the first one, if you clap, you will here echo once, on the second stone – twice and on the third – three times. Again, this is impossible to experience with so many people around. We heard nothing 😊 but as I read, if it is quiet around, it does work.
Circular Mound Altar
Circular Mound Altar is located south of the Vault. The building has three levels of white marble stone base (like the Hall of Prayer) with an empty circular platform on top. The central stone here – the Heart stone is a place, where you should stand to hear your voice become louder. The Altar is constructed with the multiples of nines – nine stones, nine steps, etc. This symbolizes the nine layers of heaven. The altar was used for sacrificial ceremonies during the winter solstice.
Note: you can find toilets nearby the entrance to the Vault and the Altar. The area around is very lively, with children playing ball games, small shops and sitting places.
To finish your visit, you have an option to leave from the South gate and find a bus, which is a complicated thing for foreigners, as all bus routes and schedules online or on the spot are only in Chinese. You can also do as we did and walk back to the East gate through the park and get on metro, that should take you 15-20 mins and you can again enjoy the park grounds, which are lovely.
During your walk you can again see people exercising. We spotted a group performing martial arts. It’s also a great peaceful stroll in this area, as tour group rarely reach here.
See also:
Detailed information about other sites in Beijing here.
Hello I am Ket,
A traveler, planner, and sweet tooth behind Hit the Road Ket.
Travel isn’t just my passion – it’s a lifeline for my mental health. Having lived in three cities and explored 60 countries (and counting!), I created this blog to share my experiences, smart tips, and itinerary advice with fellow travel lovers. I’m all about making the most of limited time, finding scenic routes, and turning every trip into something memorable – coffee in hand, of course.
