Hebei

Hebei (河北; Héběi) is a province of about 75 million people that surrounds Beijing and Tianjin. Much of it lies on the flat North China Plain and is heavily industrial, so few international tourists visit. Those who do will find imperial palaces and tombs, long stretches of the Great Wall, beaches, grasslands and some of China's best skiing.

• 38.0425114.511 Shijiazhuang – Provincial capital
• 40.973889117.9322222 Chengde – Home to Hebei's best-known attraction, the Mountain Resort, a vast palace and garden complex where the Qing emperors spent their summers
• 39.93978119.588123 Qinhuangdao – Port city where the Great Wall meets the sea at Shanhaiguan
• 40.81078114.881144 Zhangjiakou – Hot springs, the Huailai Valley wine region, and some of China's best ski resorts at Chongli
• 39.51962116.700565 Langfang – Between Beijing and Tianjin; also administers the exclave that includes Sanhe, a commuter suburb of Beijing
• 39.629444118.1738896 Tangshan – Steelmaking city that alone produces more steel than the United States
• 39.048048115.9075337 Xiong'an New Area – New city around Baiyangdian Lake, still under construction, built to take over government offices and other non-core functions from Beijing
• 38.86712115.484528 Baoding – Historic provincial capital
• 38.51577114.984489 Dingzhou – Small city with the tallest surviving pre-modern pagoda in China
• 36.61161114.4893710 Handan – Home of the Xiangtangshan Grottoes, Buddhist cave temples carved into limestone cliffs
• 37.06594114.4753111 Xingtai – Industrial city with a history of settlement going back 3,500 years to the Shang Dynasty
• 37.73484115.6859912 Hengshui – Industrial city known for fine handicrafts, including glass-bodied painted enamel and inside-painted snuff bottles
• 38.30369116.8451913 Cangzhou – Home of the famous 1,000-year-old Iron Lion statue
• 38.70943116.1008514 Renqiu – Oil town, headquarters of the Huabei Oilfield

• Eastern Qing Tombs and Western Qing Tombs – The two great imperial burial grounds of the Qing Dynasty. The Eastern Tombs in Tangshan prefecture are the grander of the two, with the tombs of the Kangxi and Qianlong emperors and Empress Dowager Cixi. The quieter Western Tombs near Baoding hold the tombs of the Yongzheng Emperor and the Guangxu Emperor, the last imperial tomb built in China. China's last emperor, Puyi, is buried in a commercial cemetery next door, in a grave that differs little from a commoner's.
• Beidaihe and Nandaihe – Qinhuangdao's main seaside resorts, packed in summer with domestic tourists from Beijing and the surrounding region. Beidaihe is the older and busier of the two, popular with families and budget travelers; Nandaihe is quieter and newer, with resort communities such as Aranya that have a cultural and artistic bent.
• Baishi Mountain – One of north China's most picturesque mountains
• Zhengding Ancient City – Walled city with over 1,000 years of history as an administrative and religious center, including towering pagodas
• Hongya Valley – Walk across one of the world's longest glass-bottomed bridges
• Bashang Grasslands – Grasslands in the far north of the province, once the Qing emperors' hunting grounds at Mulan Weichang; today a mosaic of pastures, yellow canola fields and grazing sheep

Hebei means "north of the river", referring to the Yellow River, which lies to the south of the province. The region is one of the cradles of Chinese civilization, with a rich archaeological record and historic buildings more than 1,000 years old that are still standing.

The megacities of Beijing and Tianjin were carved out of Hebei, which surrounds them both. A small exclave of the province, which includes Sanhe, is wedged between the two cities. Under the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei (Jing-Jin-Ji) integration plan, much of Hebei is being drawn into a single megalopolis with the two cities, bound together by high-speed rail that puts major points within about an hour of each other. As part of the plan, three rural counties have been combined to form the Xiong'an New Area, a special zone for government offices, state-owned enterprise staff and research workers relocated from Beijing.

Most people speak Standard Mandarin (Putonghua). Standard Mandarin is based on the Beijing dialect, and accents in parts of Hebei are very close to it; Luanping County is often promoted as the area whose speech served as the model for standard pronunciation. Each city also has its own dialect, which is more common among working-class residents.

English is rarely spoken, so have your destinations written in Chinese characters and keep a translation app on your phone.

Most visitors reach Hebei from Beijing or Tianjin, which the province surrounds. Nearly every major Hebei city is a stop on one of the high-speed lines radiating out from the two cities, so a bullet train is usually the fastest way in.

High-speed trains from Beijing reach most of the province:

• South to Baoding, Shijiazhuang, Xingtai and Handan: Beijing–Guangzhou line from Beijing West Station.
• Southeast to Langfang and Cangzhou: Beijing–Shanghai line from Beijing South Station.
• Northeast coast to Tangshan, Beidaihe and Qinhuangdao: coastal line from Tianjin, the most convenient way to reach Hebei's beach resorts. Beijing–Tangshan intercity trains also run from Beijing Tongzhou Station.
• North to Chengde: Beijing–Harbin line.
• East–west across central Hebei to Hengshui: via Shijiazhuang.

Two intercity high-speed lines are especially handy:

• Ski resorts: The Beijing–Zhangjiakou intercity railway runs to Zhangjiakou, with a branch line to the ski area of Chongli, which hosted events during the 2022 Winter Olympics. It makes a quick ski trip from Beijing practical.
• From Daxing Airport: The Beijing–Xiong'an intercity railway runs from Beijing West Station via Beijing Daxing International Airport to Xiong'an, taking about 50 minutes end to end. The Huairou–Daxing Airport line also stops in Langfang.

Some places have no high-speed rail, including the Eastern Qing Tombs and the grasslands of the far northwest. For these, take a long-distance bus from Beijing:

• Liuliqiao (六里桥) bus station: to the grasslands of northwest Hebei and Inner Mongolia.
• Sihui (四惠) bus station: to Zunhua, home of the Eastern Qing Tombs.

Many travelers fly into Beijing and continue by train. Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX ^IATA) sits on the Beijing–Hebei border and has a direct rail link to Xiong'an (see above).

Within Hebei, the main airport is Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport (SJW ^IATA), which has its own high-speed rail station with trains to Beijing and other Hebei cities. Smaller airports with limited domestic flights serve Qinhuangdao (BPE ^IATA), Zhangjiakou (ZQZ ^IATA), Chengde (CDE  ^IATA), Handan (HDG  ^IATA), Tangshan (TVS  ^IATA) and Xingtai (XNT  ^IATA).

Every prefecture in Hebei has a high-speed rail station; the only region without service is the sparsely populated grassland of the far northwest. To reach county-level cities, long-distance buses are usually the best option, because many counties have infrequent train service or no high-speed station at all. Getting to more remote parts of a county may require another bus, minibus or shared taxi from the bus station in the county seat.

North of Beijing, Beidaihe on the coast is the nearest beach getaway for Beijing residents. Chengde, with its Qing Dynasty summer resort, is the most historically spectacular destination in the province. Farther west are the ski slopes of Chongli and the vineyards of Huailai, and in the northwest the grasslands where Qing emperors once hunted offer wide views and horse riding. The Great Wall runs across the north of the province from Shanhaiguan on the coast, with many partially or completely ruined sections that offer a "wild wall" experience.

Immediately around Beijing, Langfang and its exclave of Sanhe are effectively extensions of the capital, and parts of Baoding and Tangshan prefectures serve as bedroom communities for Beijing commuters. The area still has major sights, such as the Eastern Qing Tombs in Tangshan prefecture and the historic center of Baoding, the old provincial capital. The new city of Xiong'an is planned as a high-tech eco-city, and its Baiyangdian Lake is lovely for boat trips in summer.

The southern half of Hebei is densely packed with industry and farmland, but it is also rich in history and archaeology. Its religious sites include the walled city of Zhengding, the towering pagoda of Dingzhou and the Xiangtangshan Buddhist cave temples in Handan.

• Skiing – Some of China's best ski resorts are in Chongli, which hosted skiing events at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
• Diving, hiking and camping on the Great Wall – Go beyond sightseeing: dive at Panjiakou Reservoir, where a section of the Great Wall is submerged; hike the "wild" or partially restored sections (e.g. Jinshanling in Luanping County); or pitch a tent inside a watchtower to watch the sunrise over the wall (e.g. the Lower Chenjiapu section in Huailai County on the Beijing border).
• Hot springs – Hot spring resorts are found throughout the province, including around Zhangjiakou, Shijiazhuang and Baoding.
• Wine tasting – Visit the vineyards of the Huailai Valley.
• Ride across the grasslands – Horse ranches in the Bashang Grasslands offer short, touristy rides across the grassland.

Hebei cuisine is similar to Beijing's: it leans heavily toward meat and favors noodles over rice. Regional specialties vary from the coast to the grasslands. Tangshan has a wide range of seafood, while restaurants on the grasslands serve feasts of whole racks of lamb, roasted in front of diners in traditional yurts. Baoding is famous across China for its donkey meat sandwiches (驴肉火烧).

Hebei is also a major agricultural province, producing large quantities of Chinese dates (jujubes), grapes and chestnuts, and cherry growing has expanded in recent years. Local markets and grocery stores sell many varieties of jujube, which are worth trying.

Hebei has become a significant wine-growing province, with two main areas: Changli County near the coast and Huailai County northwest of Beijing. Changli has attracted substantial investment thanks to its moderate climate and varied terrain, a mix of coastal and inland plains with small, steep hills and mountains. Mountainous Huailai is known for vineyards that welcome tourists, run by companies such as COFCO, maker of Great Wall wine.

Hebei also has a taste for baijiu. Each major city has its own favorite brand, often sold in distinctively shaped bottles, and shops at expressway rest areas stock a wide selection of local spirits.

Almond drinks are popular throughout Hebei, sold either as a powder or ready to drink in cans.

Air pollution can be significant. In IQAir's 2025 rankings, Xingtai was the only Hebei city among China's 30 most polluted cities. On high-pollution days, consider wearing a PM2.5-rated mask.

• Beijing and Tianjin – The two megacities enclosed by Hebei
• Inner Mongolia – Neighbor to the north, where the Bashang Grasslands continue across the border
• Liaoning – Neighbor to the northeast, beyond Shanhaiguan
• Shanxi – Neighbor to the west
• Shandong – Neighbor to the southeast
• Henan – Neighbor to the south