Things to do during Spring Festival in Beijing

Eating in Beijing: Hot Food Spots

Donghuamen Night Market

By following the wafting aroma of cooking, tourists can find the most natural and simple flavors of Old Beijing in the street. Located at the northern entrance of Wangfujing Street, Donghuamen Night Market is the most famous snack streets in Beijing, popular with both locals, and tourists as well. After its pedestrianization, Donghuamen Snack Night Market became the No. 1 snack street in Beijing. When the night falls, the assortment of tasty snacks from both northern and southern China, plus the bustling crowds and rhythmical huckstering is another worthy attraction in Beijing.

Niujie

Niujie is located at Guang'anmen in the southern part of Beijing. The district is home to the largest concentration of Muslim people in Beijing. Here the rich Muslim culture has cultivated a distinguished cuisine. Truly this is a street of Muslim food. Today some 200 different snacks are produced at Niujie.

Sanlitun

Sanlitun is an area of cuntrasts, frequented by expats and foreign visitors. With a top-notch selection of Western and Asian restaurants, you will find anything your taste buds are looking for. Turn off one of the leafy, tree-lined streets fringed with guarded foreign embassies however, and you will find yourself on bar street, which is anything but guarded, a hubbub of nightlife and entertainment that continues into the wee hours.

Guijie (Ghost Street)

Guijie (Ghost Street) is located near Dongzhimen. This 1.5-km street is lined with over 100 restaurants, many of which are open around the clock. Business is particularly booming at night, when the street is lit-up by red lanterns, and the fragrance of chili and prickly ash is all-pervasive. The restaurants here serve a great diversity of dishes, including Sichuan, Shandong and Canton dishes, as well as snacks, barbecue, hotpot and ethnic minority dishes.

How to get there: the most convenient is to take subway Line 2 to Dongzhimen, leave through Exit A or D, then walk. Bus 107, 106, 24, 117 all directly go to Guijie.

Nanluoguxiang

Located several kilometers north of the Forbidden City and just east of Houhai Lake is Nanluoguxiang, an 800-meter long north-south alleyway filled with cafes, bars, and shops all designed in classical Chinese 'hutong' style.

This heavily renovated hutong is a heaven for backpackers. Popular spots include the Passby Bar(Western and Chinese food, gin and tonics, lovely courtyard atmosphere.), eateries like Paper, cheeky Beijing-themed T-shirt vendor Plastered 8 (www.plastered.com.cn), gig venue MAO Livehouse and the late night snack outlet Fish Nation.

Shichahai

This gorgeous spot has three lakes, Qianhai, Houhai and Xihai, all surrounded by old style Beijing houses, hutong and courtyards. Not only beautiful, this charming expanse is complete with historical architecture and a bunch of bustling bars and restaurants.

How to get there: Take Trolley Bus 111 and 118 or Bus 13, 701, 810, 850 and 823 to get off at the stop of Beihai Northern Gate, or take Bus 5 to get off at Gulou stop.