The Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace combo tour packs two of Beijing's biggest sights into a single small-group day: a fast-tracked morning at one of the Great Wall's best-preserved sections, followed by a guided afternoon walk through the Summer Palace, China's best-preserved imperial garden. A home-style lunch at a local farm restaurant sits between the two, so you're not scrambling to find food on your own between stops.
What makes the Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace combo tour special?
Most visitors treat the wall and the Summer Palace as two separate trips, which means two separate mornings lost to driving time. This tour's whole point is combining them into one day without feeling rushed: a VIP fast-track pass gets your small group past the public shuttle bus queue at Mutianyu, buying back time that goes straight into your visit instead of standing in line. The lunch stop at a local farm restaurant, serving home-style chicken and seasonal vegetables, is a small but genuinely nice touch that a lot of combo tours skip in favor of a generic buffet.
What should I expect on the Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace combo tour?
The day starts with hotel pickup for hotels inside Beijing's 2nd ring road, with your exact pickup time confirmed the day before by message or WhatsApp. At Mutianyu, you get about 2 hours on the wall, with an optional round-trip cable car or toboggan ride available to add at checkout. After lunch, the afternoon shifts entirely to the Summer Palace, where your guide leads an 80-minute walk covering the garden's history and legends. Between May and roughly September, you can also add an optional boat cruise across the lake for a different angle on the palace grounds. Note that this tour needs a minimum of 3 travelers to operate; if that number isn't met, you'll be notified at least 2 days ahead with a guaranteed full refund.
Want a closer look? Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace Combo Tour, from $89 See timesWho should book the Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace combo tour?
This suits travelers with one full day to give Beijing's two biggest sights and who'd rather not spend a second day on logistics for the Summer Palace alone. It's a good fit for small groups and couples comfortable with a tour that caps out around 9 travelers, and for anyone who wants a guide's context on both the wall and the palace rather than visiting either one solo. If you only want the wall and would rather skip the Summer Palace, our Mutianyu Great Wall shuttle tour or Mutianyu private tour are simpler, more focused options.
Short on time? Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace Combo Tour, from $89 See timesPrices and what's included
Prices start from $89 per person, covering a licensed English-speaking guide and air-conditioned vehicle, hotel pickup and drop-off for hotels inside the 2nd ring road, entrance fees to both Mutianyu Great Wall and the Summer Palace, lunch at the farm restaurant, and bottled water. The Imperial Ferry Boat ride at the Summer Palace, gratuities, and other beverages are not included and can be added or purchased separately. A Spanish-speaking guide option is also available if that suits your group better than English.
Ready to see prices? Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace Combo Tour, from $89 See timesGetting there
Pickup is included directly from your hotel, as long as it's inside Beijing's 2nd ring road; hotels outside that zone should confirm pickup arrangements with the operator before booking. Comfortable shoes are the main thing to bring, since the day covers walking at both the wall and the palace grounds. Children under 1.2 meters tall don't need a separate ticket for the ski-lift or toboggan if your group adds that option at Mutianyu.
Want a closer look? Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace Combo Tour, from $89 See timesInsider tips
Book with some flexibility in your schedule, since this small-group tour needs at least 3 travelers to run and will be cancelled with a full refund, not rescheduled, if that minimum isn't reached. If you're visiting in summer, the optional lake cruise at the Summer Palace is worth the extra cost for a genuinely different view of the grounds than you get walking the shoreline. The toboggan slide down from Mutianyu can be closed by weather or long lines on busy days, so don't count on it as your only plan for the descent; the cable car or ski-lift is always the reliable backup.
Short on time? Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace Combo Tour, from $89 See timesHow does this compare to other Great Wall tours from Beijing?
If you'd rather focus on just the wall without the Summer Palace add-on, see our Mutianyu Great Wall shuttle tour for a budget option or our Mutianyu private tour for a flexible private schedule. If you want the wall's most classic view instead of Mutianyu, our Badaling Great Wall bullet train day trip is the better-known section, and photographers chasing golden-hour shots should see our Great Wall sunrise and sunset photoshoot. For more on the wall's history, the Great Wall of China's own Wikipedia entry is a useful read before you go.
Ready to see prices? Mutianyu Great Wall and Summer Palace Combo Tour, from $89 See times