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Simatai Great Wall

  • Simatai Great Wall has only been partially repaired and so maintains a more original appearance. It is reputed by its five unique features: perilous, dense, diverse, artful and peculiar. It is a favorite place for explorer, photographers, climbers and hikers.

Profile

  • ID : 13
  • City : beijing
  • English name : Simatai Great Wall
  • Chinese name : 司马台长城
  • Type : Great Wall,
  • Level : easy
  • Kids : Possible
  • Elders: Possible
  • Best season : Spring and Autumn
  • Visiting length : 4 Hours
  • Distance to city center : 140 km

Introduction of Simatai Great Wall

  • Simatai Great Wall is located in the north of Miyun Country, about 120 kilometers northeast of Beijing City. It is a part of the Great Wall that still keeps the original appearance of the Ming Dynasty. Stretching five kilometers from the Wangjing Tower in the east to Chuanhoukou in the west, Simatai Great Wall is known for its steepness, ingenuity and unique. Densely dotted withwatch towers, this section is one of the most photographed sections of the Great Wall. Simatai Great Wall occupies a strategically important location. It is the bastion protecting the northern gateway to the capital.

Photo of Simatai Great Wall

  • This photo was taken in front of a runined watch tower while taking a hiking trip from Simatai Great Wall to Jinshanling Great Wall.
  • Simatai Great Wall photo

Highlights of visiting Simatai Great Wall

    Fairy Maiden Tower, Wangjing Tower

Helper to visit Simatai Great Wall

  • Address in English : Simatai Village North, Gubeikou Town, Miyun District, Beijing,China
  • Address in Chinese : 北京市密云区古北口镇司马台村北
  • Tel : +8610-81009999
  • Post code : 101508
  • Ticket time : 8:00-16:30
  • Open time : 8:00-18:00（April 1st - October 31st ），8:00-17:30（ November 1st - March 31st）
  • Closing time : Null
  • Location : Simatai Great Wall is around 140 km to downtown beijing

    Transportation

  • Public bus: 980,987, or 970 (Miyun Gulou Station),transfer to 25 (Simatai Village)
  • Private car is the best method to visit Simatai Great Wall with local tour operator.

Admission

  • high season : 40 RMB/person.
  • shoulder season : 40 RMB/person.
  • low season : 40 RMB/person.

Map of Simatai Great Wall

  • The watch towers of East 1 East 10 is marked on the Simatai Great Wall map. Cable car terminal is east of Tickets office. A hiking trip can be started from the entrance, board the Great Wall fro East 3rd tower and then get down the Great Wall from East 5th or 8th tower.
  • Simatai Great Wall map

Hotel Near Simatai Great Wall

  • 5 star/duluxe hotel
  • Gubei Zhiguang Hot Spring Hotel
  • Water Town Hotel
  • Beijing Gubei Water Town William Edgar Boutique Hotel
  • 3 star/comfort hotel
  • Zhenshui Inn Gubei Water Town
  • Yishi Manor
  • History of Simatai Great Wall
  • Simatai Great Wall was originally built in 550-577, during the the period of Northern Qi Dynasty. It was rebuilt and extended in 1368 of the Ming Dynasty under the supervision of Qi Jiguang, a famous general at that time. In 1987, Simatai Great Wall was acknowledged by UNESCO as one of the World Cultural Heritage Sites as part of the Great Wall World Heritage Site. It is the only part of the Great Wall that keeps the originally features of the Ming Great Wall. Simatai Great Wall was closed in 2010 and has been reopened to tourists in 2014. The Gubei Water Town was newly built on the foot of the great wall. Travelers can experience the beauty of water town at the same time.

Question or Comment



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    • Construction Features
    • Simatai Great Wall is 5.4 kilometers long with 34watch towers. It is separated by lake, named the Mandarin Duck Lake, into eastern and western parts. The western part has 18watch towers and the eastern part has 16. The western part appears gentle and the eastern part is high with steep ridges. Simatai Great Walls is often described with five words: perilous, dense, diverse, artful, and peculiar. The eastern part of the Wall was constructed on the steep ridge of the mountain, like a winding dragon jumping out of the lake. The distance between watch towers is about 100–200 meters, and the nearest two is only 44 meters apart. The structure contains single and double walls and assumes a trapezoidal shape. The watch towers are round or ablate in shape and composed of two or three floors．The roofs are flat or domical shapes.
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    Toolkits

    • Main Watch Towers of Simatai Great Wall
    • Fairy Maiden Tower With a sculpture of twin lotus flowers carved on the arched doors, it is the most beautiful among all towers. It is said that it was the dwelling place for the Lotus Flower Fairy who fell in love with a shepherd. Heavenly Ladder is the only way to reach the tower. It is a 85-degree slope stairway with 100 meters long. The narrowest part is just half a meter wide, allowing only one person to pass at a time.
    • Wangjing Tower With a height of about 1,000 meters above the sea level, Wangjing Tower is the summit of the Simatai Great Wall and the highest cultural relic in Beijing. Standing on the tower, one can see the skyline of Beijing City, so named WangjingTower(Watching Beijing Tower). The bricks built the walls here stamped with the date on which they were made and the code numbers of the armies that made them.
    • There is a 100-meter-long segment of the wall connecting the Fairy Maiden Tower and Wangjing Tower, which is called Sky Bridge.
    • Travel Tips
    • 1. In order to protect the great wall and ensure visitors security, Simatai Great Wall limited the amounts of tourists. Reservations should be made one day ahead. Please use the real name reservation. Visitors can book the ticketsof next day to 10 days. After booking information submitted, visitors will receive "the successful appointment" message, please use it within the period of validity. The visitors who don't made the reservation cannot be guaranteed to visit the great wall when they arrive.
      2. Visitors need to gather at the Gubei Water Town Entrance and wait for guiding to reach the Great Wall entrance. The distance between the two entrances is about 2.5 kilometers. visitors can take shuttle bus to the Great Wall. (Bus Time: 10:20am, 11:00am, 2:00pm, 3:00pm)
      3. Presently, only the No. 1 Tower to No. 10 Tower on the east part is open to the public. It takes about two and a half hours to reach the No. 10 Tower. The cable car is available.
      4. The west part of the great wall is closed. Hiking from Simatai to Jinshanling is not allowed now.
      5. Simatai Great Wall also offers a wide range of activities. Tourists can go boating, swimming or fishing in the Mandarin Duck Lake.
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