Leaving Town: A Final Round-Up of Options to Get Away for the Beijing Holiday

So, as usual, we love Beijing, the weather's cooling (a bit), everyone's off, and the skies are blue (for the most part). But this holiday, well ... it's a bit different than average autumn occasion. A bit less festive, perhaps? Sounds like a good one to get away for a few days.

As such, here is a round-up of a whole bunch of places we've recommended for short retreats, both inside and outside of Beijing.

Staycations: We look at getting away while staying local back at the beginning of the year with this look at staycations. Some form of the packages mentioned is available year-round, contact the hotels for details and current offerings. The Rosewood Beijing also has a summer package running throughout the summer that may appeal during this period.

Beijing environs: There are places like Cuandixia that are villages within Beijing city limits. A 400-year-old village with more than 70 preserved courtyards, Cuandixia village is a popular day trip, located about 90km away from Beijing. The village is sometimes called the “Potala Palace” of the Beijing region due to its location on a slope. While that may be a bit of a stretch, the area and surrounding scenery is beautiful and makes for a good 12-to-36-hour escape if you have returning visitors who can’t be bothered going to the Great Wall yet again.

The Shanli Lohas Retreat offers a slowed down pace of fresh air, clean water, local produce, simple but clean lodging. The resort has two types of courtyards Leyou, roughly translated as “Happy and Relaxed”, and Lehuo, roughly translated as “Happy and Lively”. Leyou courtyards are a slightly more expensive than Lehuo, but provide a nicer décor. Furthermore, there are a one-room or two-room courtyards, which accommodate two or four people respectively.

Beidaihe and Qinhuangdao: Beidaihe’s cool coastal climate and proximity to Beijing have made it a favorite getaway for Chinese and foreigners alike since the early 20th century. While the city of Qinhuangdao itself is mostly a port town, although it is also known for its water sports, but the best beaches are to be found in the district of Beidaihe, just south down the coast. This might be a nice three-day window to learn sailing with Beijing Sailing Center, based in Qinhuangdao. More on these sister beaches here. By the way, some people (mostly real estate developers) are now refering to Qinhuangdao as Dongdaihe, although we're not sure how you could get any more dong in that there daihe.

Qingdao: The Qingdao Beer Festival just ended -- and that's a good thing. As any resident of a summer beach city or town will tell you, is the first weekend after the season ends. That weekend is, lo and behold, this coming holiday weekend. Get down there and have the beach to your relative self. Learn more about traveling to this city here.

And finally, where we'd go if we had our druthers: Busan, South Korea. If you're looking for a beach holiday, consider somewhere not as immediately obvious: South Korea.

Except for the occasional typhoon, Busan, South Korea's second-largest city, is famous for Haeundae Beach, which every October also plays host to the Busan International Film Festival, Asia's biggest cinema gathering. Anyway, forget the film festival.

Busan, formerly known as Pusan, enjoys the same basic weather that makes the autumn the best time to visit Beijing: warm days, cool nights, and big high-pressure systems that keep the skies blue and clear. Like the Jersey Shore after Labor Day, the beach in Busan is empty, even though the days are warm enough for tanning and the water still pleasant for swimming.

Eat some awesome food like barbecue or chicken and hof (chicken and beer in the local vernacular) and otherwise enjoy an empty seashore. Korean Air flies non-stop to Busan, which is also served by Air China, Asiana, and Hainan Airlines.

Have a wonderful holiday! Tell us where you're going in the comments section below.

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