Qianmen Shopping Street

Qianmen Street lies on Beijing's historic central axis just south of Tian'anmen Square and the Forbidden City, the imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) to the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The commercial street took shape about 570 years ago and reached its peak of importance in the 1920s and 1930s, garlanded with restaurants, theaters, silk stores and tea houses.

A highlight of "Qianmen Jie" is its pedestrian-only status, the second in Beijing, which makes strolling through the shops much more relaxed and enjoyable. The only transportation on the street is a tram line operating two restored tram cars that were once operational in the area many decades ago. A short ten-minute ride will take you between the north and south ends.