Traveler Description
Built in 1420 with a total area of 270 acres, this is the largest building for religious worship in China, which was originally used by the Ming and Qing emperors to pay homage to Heaven and to pray for a year of rich harvest.

Address: Qian Men Dajie, Chongwen District
Phone: 010 6702 8866

http://whc.unesco.org/sites/881.htm

Traveler Reviews

Don't short change the park!
Reviewed by A TripAdvisor Member on Aug 14, 2008


Of course you will spend time to see the Temple of Heaven and take photos here. But do spend time in the surrounding park where the natives come to relax. There the city folk play games and sing and dance. They will invite you to join in with these activities and it ibecomes a very worthwhile and memorable experience. Also there you can buy refreshments at a set price. Give yourself an hour in the park to relax and cool down if you can.

The temple of heaven
Reviewed by A TripAdvisor Member on Jan 9, 2008


This is where the emperors of China go for prayers and offered sacrifices to ensure good harvest. Amazing architecture especially the hall of prayer. The chinese incorporated their astronology knowledge into the construction of this hall.

Great park and beautiful architecture
Reviewed by A TripAdvisor Member on Sep 27, 2007


Temple of Heaven is a great Chinese experience. Located fairly central in Beijing, you can get to it easily by taxi or take the subway close and finish the trip by taxi. The buildings are absolutely beautiful, and I had a great time reading about the history of the temple and the rituals performed there. Like every other attraction in Beijing right now, parts of the temple were being renovated for the upcoming Olympics, but it didn't detract from the visit at all. What really completes the experience is the park around the temple. We passed loads of local people dancing, relaxing, or playing games as we walked to the temple. Any trip to Beijing to should include at least a half-day of time to enjoy this!

chinese flavor
Reviewed by A TripAdvisor Member on Sep 21, 2007


i would like to add that the temple of heaven is a wonderful place to visit not only for the temple itself but most importantly for the gardens around it and the incredible chinese crowds dancing, doing sports or just killing time. this is something not touristy, kind of sociological. very interesting.

A quick look at the Temple of Heaven
Reviewed by A TripAdvisor Member on May 8, 2007


A great way to start one's visit to China. We were en route to our hotel nearby from BeiJing Capital International Airport. It was an early afternoon mid-week in March 2007 when I visited China as part of an organised trip from the UK. As we walked through the park area towards the gate into the Temple of Heaven itself we came across groups of people exercising or performing in small orchestral groups. Once we were inside the gate and walking towards the Qinian Hall area we passed many people contentedly entertaining each other with music, or quietly playing cards or doing exercises in small groups. Most of the 'entertainers' were under a sheltered area and we were able to walk along outside the shelter and watch over their shoulders almost. What amazed me - coming from an environment where people perform in the open air all year round and make so much ambient noise that one group of musicians can seriously interfere with another is that the accousitcs of this sheltered area seemed to 'contain' each musical group so that they did not compete with their nearby neighbours. And make no mistake: there wasn't a lot of spare space! The sun was warm to us English folk and being mid-week I don't think there were too many tourists around. We only visited the Qinian Hall and the two or three nearby exhibitions. I had my first chance to buy anything. There is a small kiosk near Qinian which sells drinks and postcards among other things. English wasn't spoken particularly though I think I was jsut about understood. Definitely recommend this as a first visit.