Great Wall at Juyong Pass

Hours & Admission Price Peak Season
Apr.-Oct.
08:00-17:00
45 Low Season
Nov.-Mar.
08:30-16:00
40 Address & Phone +86 10-69771665 60 kilometers northwest of Beijing Transportation Take Subway Line 13 and get off at Longze Station in Changping District, take the shuttle bus No.68 and you will reach Juyongguan Pass. Notes

Great Wall at Juyong Pass, an important part of the Great Wall, is a famous pass in north Beijing, serving as the strategic northwest barrier to guard the capital together with Great Wall at Badaling.

About 60 kilometers northwest of Beijing is the Great Wall at Juyong Pass, one of the three greatest mountain passes of the Great Wall of China. Situated in a valley with a strategic location, Juyongguan Pass is the gateway to Beijing from north China as a military stronghold with beautiful scenery. In 1987, it was included in the World Heritage List. The Cloud Platform in the middle of Juyong Pass is extremely precious.

History

Juyongguan Pass has a long history and it got its name in Qin Dynasty (221BC-206BC). Ju means live in Chinese, Yong means ordinary people while guan means pass. It is said that when the Great Wall was built in that dynasty, the prisoners and soldiers were forced to live at this pass.

The wall was initially built in Han Dynasty (202BC-220AD) simply as a gateway between the counties. In Northern Wei Dynasty (368-534), Great Wall was built here and it became an important pass. In Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the pass was reinforced and served as a natural barrier to the capital Beijing together with Great Wall at Badaling.

Juyongguan Pass

The pass is roughly circular surrounding with walls with a perimeter of about 4,142 meters and forms a little city. There are government offices, temples and streets within the area. The pass has two surpasses in the south and north, namely 'Nan Kou' and 'Badaling' respectively. To defend it, a round courtyard is built outside the gate and both sides are erected with watchtowers and Beacon Towers.

As the military stronghold of northwest Beijing, the Juyongguan Pass has a comprehensive defense system. From north to south, it is composed of the '人' shaped wall, Badaling Pass, upper city wall, middle city wall (Juyongguan Pass) and Nankou pass. Juyongguan Pass is the commander center of the whole system.

Since Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), the pass got a great fame for its surrounding beauty with continuous mountains, verdant trees and blossoming flowers around. In order to show its ancient look, an ancient-style street is constructed between the Cloud Platform and north gate tower, makes visitors believe that they are back in ancient China.

Cloud Platform

A trip to Great Wall at Juyongguan is incomplete without a visit to the Cloud Platform. Located in the center of the pass, it was first built in 1342 in the Yuan Dynasty. Originally, there were three white pagodas on the stone made platform. However, they were burnt down and only the 9.5-meter high platform was left. In the middle of the platform's base there is an arched portal for people and carts passing by.

The Cloud Platform is famous for the stone carvings near the arched portal. Both sides of the arched door are engraved with Buddhist figures and among the space of the figures are Buddhist texts as well as words praising the construction of the pagodas written in six languages. The roof of the arched door is engraved with five groups of Buddhist figures in circular pattern, which is called mandala in Buddhism. Mandala is used to prevent monsters’ invasion during the Buddha’s’ cultivation. On the walls of the platform, there are ten lifelike figures of Buddha surrounded by many small ones as well as exquisite patterns of flowers.

As a military stronghold surrounded with beautiful flowers and lush trees in the overlapping mountains, Great Wall at Juyongguan was named as one of the eight best scenery of Beijing as early as the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234). Nowadays, more and more visitors come to the area to appreciate its unique beauty of the Great Wall.

How to Go to Juyong Pass

Take bus No. 345 (Express) from Deshengmen to Shahe and transfer to bus No. 68 (Changping);
Take bus No. 883 from Deshengmen to Nankou Dongjie, and transfer to bus No. 68 (Changping);
Take Subway Line 13 to Longze Station and transfer to bus No. 68 (Changping).

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