The National Museum of China sits on the east side of Tiananmen Square. It is one of the largest single museum buildings in the world by floor area and holds more than 1.43 million objects — the place to understand five thousand years of Chinese civilisation, and a landmark in its own right.
The basics
- Address
- 16 East Chang'an Avenue, Dongcheng — the east side of Tiananmen Square.
- Opening hours
- Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 to 17:00, last entry 16:00. Closed on Mondays, public holidays excepted.
- Ticket policy
- The permanent galleries — Ancient China, The Road to Rejuvenation — are free but need a real-name booking. Some temporary shows, such as the recent exhibition of the Wanli empress's phoenix crown, need a separate ticket.
Booking, and how to actually get a slot
- Where to book
- The National Museum WeChat mini-program, its official account, or the website. Nothing is sold at the door.
- When slots are released
- Seven days ahead, daily at 17:00 exactly. Weekend and holiday slots go almost instantly — set an alarm and be waiting on the page.
- How to get one
- Enter every traveller's document details in the mini-program beforehand. Be on the booking page at 16:55. If you miss out, refresh after 17:30, and again before the 15:00 cancellation cut-off on the day — released slots come back.
- What entry requires
- Bring the original ID card used for the booking and go in during your slot; arriving late can mean being turned away. One account may book once a week, for up to five people.
Routes through it
The museum is far too big for one day. Pick the core galleries and accept that the rest is another visit.
- Three hours, the essentials
- In through security at the north gate, the lift down to B1 for Ancient China — allow two hours, this is where the great pieces are — up to Level 2 for The Road to Rejuvenation, then the Level 1 central hall for the ceiling, and out.
- Six hours, in depth
- The essentials route plus the thematic galleries on Levels 3 and 4 — costume, coinage, porcelain — a light lunch inside at midday, and a temporary exhibition after.
On B1, the pieces worth standing in line for
The permanent Ancient China gallery on B1 is the heart of the museum: Chinese civilisation laid out in dynastic order, and almost all of the celebrated pieces are in it.
- The Houmuwu ding
- A Shang bronze ritual vessel weighing 832.84 kilograms — the heaviest ancient Chinese bronze known.
- The Four-goat square zun
- The high point of Shang bronze casting: four rams' heads, finished to the same standard from every angle.
- The phoenix crown of the Wanli empress
- The museum's crowd-puller: 115 gemstones and 4,414 pearls, with kingfisher-feather inlay that has to be seen close. Since 2 November it has moved to North Gallery 16 for its own exhibition, and the queue is long — expect to wait.
- The Hongshan jade dragon
- A C-shaped ring of dark jade, called the first dragon of China, and the emblem of a prehistoric culture five thousand years old.
- The jade burial suit
- The highest-status Han dynasty burial garment: more than a thousand jade plaques stitched together with gold wire.
- The Tang sancai camel with musicians
- The Silk Road in one object: a camel carrying a band of foreign musicians, modelled with real liveliness.
What catches people out, and what is next door
- Getting there
- Line 1 to Tiananmen East, Exit C or D, then about 200 metres to the north entrance. The museum entrance is behind and to the right as you come up — do not follow the crowd into the Tiananmen Square channel.
- Security
- The security check is airport-grade. Arrive 30 to 40 minutes before your slot. Power banks up to 20,000 mAh are allowed; selfie sticks, tripods and flash units are not.
- Food inside
- There is simple food and coffee on B1 and Level 4, at museum prices. Bring a bottle and a snack, and eat it in the rest areas — nothing in the galleries.
- Guiding
- The Listen to the Exhibition mini-program gives a free audio guide, and volunteer guides in red vests run tours. Audio devices can also be rented inside for 48 yuan.
- What is next door
- Out of the north gate, across the road is Tiananmen Square; the Great Hall of the People is on the way, and the Forbidden City is a walk from there. The line of travel is easy, and it needs no extra booking or second security check.