Other Place

Beijing


Like the Alamo for homeless hutong venues, this courtyard contains craft-beer bar El Nido, cocktail den Fang Bar, and Komex taco joint LA Palms – three grizzled victims of the 'Great Brickening' circa 2017 when dozens of hutong businesses had their windows and doors blocked up. No wonder it feels a little wild here, partying like each night might be their last!


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Beijing attractions

1. Bell Tower

0.47 MILES

The restrained, grey-stone edifice of the Bell Tower (Zhonglou) is arguably even more charming than its resplendent other half, the Drum Tower (Gulou),…

2. Drum Tower

0.55 MILES

Venerable bastions of time-keeping, the Drum Tower and its counterpart the Bell Tower were for centuries the tallest buildings in Beijing, lording it over…

3. Mao Dun's Former Residence

0.59 MILES

This largely renovated residence was the home of Mao Dun, the pen name of Shen Yanbing (1896–1981), a well-known author. He lived at the back courtyard…

4. Confucius Temple & Imperial College

0.62 MILES

An incense stick’s toss away from the Lama Temple, China’s second-largest Confucian temple is a haven of scholarly calm and contemplation. Come to wander…

5. Silver Ingot Bridge

0.73 MILES

Tourist bottleneck and historic view, this stumpy bridge (rebuilt several times), divides Houhai and Qianhai lakes. On a perfectly clear day looking west…

6. Qi Baishi's Former Residence

0.78 MILES

Known for the whimsical, often playful style of his watercolours, Qi Baishi (1864–1957) was an influential Chinese painter who lived in Beijing from 1917…

7. Lama Temple

0.78 MILES

Converted from a princely residence to a lamasery in the 18th century, the Lama Temple extends through a crescendo of ever more divine halls in a whirl of…

8. Ditan Park

0.83 MILES

Beijing is surrounded by four heavenly altars, or tán, and Ditan (Altar of the Earth), situated in the north within grounds that are today a public park,…