Summer Palace
Although it is far out in North West Beijing, and you most likely will have to take the subway and a bus to get there, Summer Palace is completely worth the trouble.

This is one of the most beautiful historic sites in Beijing. When you visit there you will probably ask yourself (especially if you have been to the Forbidden City) why did the emperor spend only his summers in that place.

The Summer Palace is huge. It takes nearly half a day for the complete tour and since it is more than an hour away from the city center it is very time consuming. Take that into you consideration and plan ahead. It's better to get there early to make sure will have time to see it all with running from one place to the next.

Don't forget to bring your own snacks and water since there are not many restaurants there and because the park is so big you sometimes walk for a long time without encountering one. Same goes for bathrooms, when you see one don't think "oh I will just go to the next one". The next one might be an hour walk away.

There are many things to see in the Summer Palace. We recommend taking a walk at the lake side, get to the 17 Arches Bridge, see the Marble Boat and just wonder around at north section of the park.

Directions:
Summer Palace is located at the north east of Beijing, between the fourth and fifth ring roads. Taking a taxi from the city center to the Summer Palace will cost a lot of time and money.

The closest subway station is WuDaoKou (Exit B). From there you can either take a taxi (about 25 Yuan) or go a bit west toward the bus stops (go right from exit B) and take bus 331 (usually a bit crowded) to YiHeYuan station. Another option is to go to XiZhiMen and take bus XXX.