The Temple of Heaven is the complex where the Ming and Qing emperors sacrificed to heaven and prayed for the harvest — the largest surviving ancient sacrificial site of its kind in the world. Red walls, blue tiles and old cypresses carry the whole walk.
- Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿)
- The landmark, unmistakable: three round tiers of blue tile, built from 1420, holding together without a single nail — it is timber joined to timber. It is a different thing in person.
- The Echo Wall and the Imperial Vault (回音壁与皇穹宇)
- The round wall around the Imperial Vault of Heaven is the Echo Wall. Stand at opposite ends, put your mouth to the brick and speak quietly, and the other person hears you plainly. The Triple Sound Stone in the courtyard returns your handclap several times over.
- The Circular Mound Altar (圜丘坛)
- The round stone platform where the emperor made his sacrifices. Stand on the centre stone and speak, and your voice comes back fuller than it left.
- The Danbi Bridge (丹陛桥)
- A raised ceremonial way running north to south, its surface higher at the north end — the old reading is that you rise with every step. Old cypresses line both sides.
- The Long Corridor (七十二长廊)
- A shaded gallery under the trees, red walls and painted beams against the cypresses. Made for walking slowly.
Routes through it
- The easy classic (east gate in, south gate out; 3 hours)
- In at the east gate, the Long Corridor, the Hall of Prayer, the Danbi Bridge, the Imperial Vault and Echo Wall, the Circular Mound Altar, out at the south gate. No doubling back, flat and slightly downhill the whole way, which is why it works with older visitors and children.
- The sacrificial order (south gate in, north gate out; 3 hours)
- In at the south gate, the Circular Mound Altar, the Echo Wall, the Danbi Bridge, the Hall of Prayer, out at the north gate. This is the emperor's own order, south to north, and it feels like it.
Tickets and hours
Opening hours
- Park gates
- Peak season, 1 April to 31 October, 6:00 to 22:00. Low season, 1 November to 31 March, 6:30 to 22:00, with last entry at 21:00.
- The core sights (Hall of Prayer, Echo Wall, Circular Mound and the rest)
- Peak season 8:00 to 18:00; low season 8:00 to 17:00, with admission stopping half an hour before.
- Note
- The core sights close on Mondays for routine maintenance, public holidays excepted. On a Monday you can walk the outer park but not go inside the buildings.
Ticket prices
- Combined ticket (strongly recommended)
- 34 yuan in peak season, 28 yuan low season, covering the park plus admission to the Hall of Prayer, the Imperial Vault, the Echo Wall and the Circular Mound. On a first visit this is the ticket — the park ticket alone does not get you into any of them.
- Park ticket
- 15 yuan peak, 10 yuan low season, for the outer park and the cypresses only. The ticket for a Monday, or for someone who just wants an evening walk.
- Booking
- Book by real name through the Visit Parks or Temple of Heaven WeChat account or mini-program. At the gate you can also scan your ID card straight through.
After dark, and where to shoot
- The Hall of Prayer lit up
- The floodlights run on Fridays, Saturdays and public holidays only, switching on with sunset — about 17:30 in winter, 19:00 in summer — and off at 21:00 sharp. The buildings are closed by then, so you shoot from the Danbi Bridge and the outer square, where the blue hour does the work.
The best positions
- Hall of Prayer from below
- Stand by the white marble balustrade and shoot upward from low, or sit on the high stone terrace and put the blue tile against blue sky.
- Depth on the Danbi Bridge
- Stand mid-bridge and use the straight line of the causeway to take the eye out of the frame.
- The red wall as a frame
- Use the north wall, or the upturned eave of a gate opening, as a foreground frame around the distant hall.
- The best hours
- 08:00 to 10:00 for soft light and thinner crowds; the hour before sunset for the low sun turning the glazed tiles gold.
Getting there
- East gate (the best option)
- Line 5 to Tiantan Dongmen, Exit A — you come up at the east gate itself. The easiest of the four.
- West gate
- Line 8 to Tianqiao, Exit C.
- South gate
- Several bus routes stop at Tiantan South Gate, which is where the sacrificial route starts.
- North gate
- Buses stop at Tiantan North Gate too. Fewer people come in this way, and the avenue of trees inside makes a good photograph.
What catches people out
- Wear the shoes
- The park is large: two to three hours to walk it, and ten thousand steps without trying. Wear trainers.
- Bring water
- Prices inside are high. Bring a bottle.
- The touts at the gate
- Do not buy a guided tour from anyone at the gate. There is an official paid guide service inside, and audio guides to rent.
- Sun
- Much of it is open sky and it burns on a clear day. Take sun protection.
- Autumn and the old trees
- The park holds a great many cypresses several hundred years old, and early November is when the ginkgos turn. Walking among them is the part people remember.