Baoding

Baoding (保定 Bǎodìng) is a city in Hebei in north China with a number of notable historic sites.

Understand

Location in China

Administratively, Baoding is vast with the prefecture's land area encompassing 11 million inhabitants. The metro area has a population of 2 million. There are several outerlying counties far from the center. In the north is Yi County has a multi-site tourist complex centered on the Western Qing Tombs that includes a Yishui Lake and a historic town. In the northwest of Baoding Prefecture is Laiyuan County which includes Baishi Mountain, one of north China's most picturesque mountains.

Baoding was razed by the Mongols in the 13th century but was reconstructed under the Yuan dynasty, during which it received its contemporary name. It flourished as a cultural hub throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties. During the Qing Dynasty, Baoding housed the Viceroy of Zhili, a key administrative role overseeing Zhili Province—now primarily Hebei. This position held significant sway in imperial court politics, given the province encircled Beijing. The viceroy's office is now a museum.

Get in

By plane

Inter-provincial bus travel to Baoding from Beijing Capital International Airport and Beijing Daxing International Airport.

High speed rail from Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport to Baoding East takes about 30 minutes.

By train

1 Baoding Station is near the city center. It offers less frequent train services from Beijing Station. Travel times vary between approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes to 2 hours and 10 minutes by high-speed rail.

2 Baoding East Station is roughly 7 km east of the city center, serves trains from Beijing West Station and Beijing Fentai Station. The journey by high-speed rail typically takes about 40 to 50 minutes.

Get around

Taxis are plentiful. There is no metro system. Notably, some of the regular city buses are given a sort of fake 'antique' or actual 'museum' feel with plastic lining made to look like wood and some local specialties like ornate fans or bottles of liquor exhibited inside.

See

Central Baoding

Tangut dharani pillars

• 1 Tangut dharani pillars (西夏文石幢 xī xià wén shí zhuàng). The Western Xia empire was destroyed by the Mongols in the 14th century, however a community of Tangut people from the Western Xia erected these pillars far away in Baoding in the 16th century. It is one of the few examples of the complex Tangut script found outside of Western China. (updated Dec 2016)
• 2 Baoding Museum (保定博物馆, 保定市博物馆), 1032 Qiyi East Road, Lianchi District (莲池区七一东路1032号) (take bus no. 4, 27, 29, 39, 61, 70, 806 or Tourist Bus 3), ☏ +86 312 4446098. Tuesday to Sunday 09:00-17:00 (doors closed at 16:30), closed on Mondays. The Baoding Museum is a large museum with a lot of city and Great Wall history. Free. (updated Dec 2022)
• 3 Baoding Natural History Museum (保定自然博物馆), Southeast corner of the intersection of East 3rd Ring Road and Dongfeng East Road, Lianchi District (莲池区东三环路与东风东路交叉口东南角方向) (take bus K1, Tourist Bus 1 or Tourist Bus 3), ☏ +86 312 5897333, +86 312 5950132. 09:00-17:00, no entry after 16:30, closed on Monday (except when Monday is a public holiday). Opened in early 2024, this new museum is a branch of the Paleozoological Museum of China, which is based in Beijing. It is many times larger than the Beijing branch and claims to be one of the largest natural history museums in Asia. Notable items in the museum’s collection include the world’s only complete skeleton of a Chinese velociraptor and some well-preserved pterosaur eggs. No longer free: they charge ¥40, and the only payment method accepted is WeChatPay, but there may be someone around who can help you circumvent that. (updated May 2024)
• 4 Office of the Viceroy of Zhili (直隶总督署, Zhili Governor-General’s Office), 301 Yuhua West Road, Lianchi District (莲池区裕华西路301号) (bus nos. 1, 4, 6, 8, 12, 26, 35, 39, 66 and K1), ☏ +86 312 2066455 (tourist services), +86 312 2016547 (complaints), +86 312 2066444 (office), bdzlzds@163.com. 08:30-17:30 (March 16 to November 14), 09:00-17:00 (November 15 to March 15), no entry in last 30 minutes, closed on Monday. Built in 1729, this was the office of the Viceroy of Zhili from the time of its construction up until the fall of the Qing Dynasty. It is considered to be the best preserved Qing-era provincial governor’s office in China and has thus become one of the most popular attractions in central Baoding. ¥30. (updated May 2024)
• 5 Baoding Zoo (保定市动物园), 688 Yonghua South Street, Lianchi District (莲池区永华南大街688号) (take bus no. 3, 21, 26, 36 or 60 to get to the north gate (which is on the west side of the zoo); take bus no. 7, 19, 32, 39 or 66 to reach the east gate), ☏ +86 312 2023516, +86 312 5012111, bddongwuyuan@163.com. 07:30-17:30. Standard adult tickets are ¥15 during peak season (April to October) and ¥10 during the off-peak season (November to March); children under 1.2 meters and adults over 60 can get in for free. (updated May 2024)
• 6 Baoding Military Academy Museum (保定军校纪念馆), 585 Dongfeng East Road, Lianchi District (莲池区东风东路585号) (take bus no. 5, 17, 22, 26, 55, 61, 101, Tourist Bus 1 or Tourist Bus 5), ☏ +86 312 5056806, junxiao1902@163.com. The Baoding Military Academy was one of the top military academies in China during the early 20th century. It was founded in 1902 by the Viceroy of Zhili, Yuan Shikai, and continued to operate until 1923. Around a third of the army officers who fought for China during the Second Sino-Japanese War received training here, including Chiang Kai-Shek. As of May 2024, the museum is closed for renovations. Free. (updated May 2024)
• 7 Hebei University Museum (河北大学博物馆), Hebei University Wusi Road Campus North Side, 180 Wusi East Road, Lianchi District (莲池区五四东路180号河北大学五四路校区北院内) (take bus no. 17, 22, 27, 29 or 70), ☏ +86 312 5977063, hbdxbwg@hbu.cn. Open to the general public on Saturdays only; opening hours are 09:00-11:30 in the morning and 15:00-17:00 in the afternoon; no entry is permitted in the last 30 minutes before closing time. Visitors are required to make a booking on the museum’s WeChat account before visiting the museum. (updated Jun 2024)

Greater Baoding

• 8 Yesanpo National Park (野三坡 yě sān pō). Yesanpo is a burgeoning tourist area in Laishui County, with an area of 600 km². It is a national key scenic area, scenic natural landscape, trees flowers and trees mainly springs cave. It is 100 km away from Beijing.  

Imperial tombs

• 9 Western Qing tombs (清西陵 qīng xī líng). A UNESCO World Heritage Site. In addition to the tombs in Baoding, there are more of them in the surrounding Yi county. Four Qing Dynasty emperors are buried here, including the Yongzheng Emperor, the third emperor after the Qing conquered China, who reigned over an era of prosperity, and the Guangxu Emperor, the penultimate emperor in Chinese history. The tomb of the Guangxu Emperor, the last imperial tomb to have been built in Chinese history, was the only one of the four to have been looted, and hence is the only one whose burial chamber is open to the public. The grave of Puyi, China's last emperor, is in a nearby commercial cemetery, though it differs little from other modern-day graves.  
  • Yishui Lake. A man-made lake not far from the Western Qing Tombs. There is a walking path to the area's mountain top with views of the steep rock cliff. (updated Nov 2020)
  • Taihang Water Town. A big reconstructed historic town near the Western Qing Tombs. It resembles Gubei Water Town in the Miyun District of Beijing. Activities include drinking a shot and smashing the bowl (from Shanxi) and buying local specialties like cigars (the tobacco leaves are grown locally). Stroll around at leisure and have a cup of coffee by the canal. (updated Nov 2020)

Nearby

• 10 Baiyang Lake (白洋淀 bái yáng diàn). China's largest natural lake offers peaceful water scenes and expansive lotus gardens. Boats are available for small groups, and some islands on the lake have restaurants that cook with local ingredients and hotels for overnight stays. (updated Dec 2016)

Learn

Baoding hosts two key provincial universities: Hebei University and the Agricultural University of Hebei (AUH). These institutions draw a handful of international graduate students, who are drawn to the affordable tuition and living costs, and a good education in specialized fields such as crop production and soil management at AUH.

Buy

Baoding Balls

Xidajie (West Street) is the main historical shopping street in the area, reopened in 2022 after renovations. A bustling hub for visitors, this street draws comparisons to Nanluoguxiang in Beijing and other historical shopping streets across China. One thing that sets Xidajie apart is a unique local offering: a shop specializing in Baoding balls (look for the storefront with the big sign 保定铁球). These traditional Chinese relaxation tools, consisting of two metal balls that are rotated in one hand, are a famed cultural hallmark of the city.

Eat

Donkey burgers

Baoding is famous around China for donkey burgers (驴肉火烧), which are sandwiches stuffed with donkey meat.

Go next

• Shijiazhuang - the modern day provincial capital to the south
• Zunhua - Visit the Eastern Qing Tombs after seeing the Western Qing Tombs