# Olympic Park and Bird's Nest, Beijing

> Beijing's Olympic Park is the 2008 Games site in the north of the city: the Bird's Nest stadium, the Water Cube and a vast forest park. Walking the plaza is free. The stadium interior is open daily 10:00–22:00, roughly ¥50–100 (unofficial). Take Metro Line 8 to Olympic Sports Center, allow 90 minutes and come at dusk.

Web page: https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-olympic-park

- City: [Beijing](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing), China
- YesGo score: 30/100 (Yes, if nearby)
- Time on site: 1 h 30 min
- Entry: Park free; Bird's Nest ≈ ¥50–100
- Opening hours: Plaza free to walk; Bird's Nest daily 10:00–22:00, last entry 21:00 (shorter on event days); Water Cube 10:30–21:00, last entry 20:00; Forest Park from 6:00, last entry 20:00–21:00 by season
- With kids: Fine with kids
- Plaza: Free, no booking — you can walk between the venues in the evening
- Bird's Nest hours: Daily 10:00–22:00, last entry 21:00; on concert and match days 10:00–13:00/15:00 or closed
- Bird's Nest ticket: Unofficial: ¥50–80 for the standard tour, about ¥100 with the rooftop skywalk
- Water Cube hours: 10:30–21:00, ticket desk to 19:50, last entry 20:00
- Water Cube ticket: Unofficial: ¥48; children under 1.2 m free
- Olympic Tower: Under renovation; no reopening date announced
- Olympic Forest Park: Free; from 6:00, last entry 21:00 in high season, 20:00 in low season
- Metro: Line 8: Olympic Sports Center for the Bird's Nest; Olympic Park (also Line 15); Forest Park South Gate
- Payment: Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign Visa/Mastercard; cash as a backup
- For taxis: 奥林匹克公园 (Olympic Park) or 鸟巢 (Bird's Nest)
- Coordinates: 40.00303, 116.38667
- Facts checked: 04.11.2026

## Key facts

- **2008** — Summer Olympics: opening and closing ceremonies, athletics and swimming were held here (source: English and Russian Wikipedia)
- **Two Games** — the Bird's Nest is the only stadium to stage the ceremonies of both a Summer (2008) and a Winter (2022) Olympics (source: English Wikipedia; Beijing Municipal Government)
- **80,000 seats** — today; 91,000 in 2008 including temporary stands (source: English and Russian Wikipedia)
- **≈ 121,000 t** — of steel; designed by Herzog & de Meuron with Chinese architects, Ai Weiwei as artistic consultant (source: English Wikipedia)
- **≈ 1 km** — length of the skywalk route on the stadium roof (source: National Stadium official site (n-s.cn))
- **178 m** — each side of the Water Cube, 31 m tall and clad in ETFE ‘bubbles’ (source: English Wikipedia)
- **Ice Cube** — the pool was turned into the curling venue for the 2022 Winter Olympics (source: English Wikipedia; water-cube.com)
- **680 ha** — Olympic Forest Park, Beijing's largest city park (source: Beijing Municipal Government (english.beijing.gov.cn))
- **246.8 m** — Olympic Tower to the eaves; opened to visitors on 8 August 2015 (source: Chinese and Russian Wikipedia)
- **≈ 11 km** — north of Tiananmen Square as the crow flies (source: YesGo calculation from Wikidata coordinates)

## Beijing Olympic Park tickets: what's free and what you pay for

The park itself is free: there's no gate or ticket for the central plaza, the boulevard or the Olympic Forest Park. You pay only to go inside the venues. The Bird's Nest's official site lists three tour types — standard, VIP and a rooftop route — but no prices. Guidebooks put the standard tour at **¥50–80** and the version with the skywalk at about **¥100**; figures vary between years and sellers, so treat them as unofficial.

The **Water Cube** is about **¥48** (unofficial), including its indoor light show, and children under 1.2 m go free. The water park and the skating rink in the Ice Cube are separate tickets. Agents also sell combined Bird's Nest and Water Cube tickets.

Buy through an agent such as Trip.com, or at the ticket desks by the venues, and carry your passport — many Chinese tickets are real-name. Pay with **Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign Visa or Mastercard**; keep some cash in small notes as a backup.

> **Check for concerts before you go** The Bird's Nest is a working stadium. On concert and match days it opens for tours only until 13:00 or 15:00, or not at all — the stadium posts these notices a few days ahead. The plaza stays open, so you can still see the building from outside. The Olympic Tower's observation deck is closed for renovation.

## Bird's Nest and Water Cube opening hours

According to its official site, the **Bird's Nest** is open for tours **every day from 10:00 to 22:00**, with last entry at 21:00. The **Water Cube** runs on low-season hours of **10:30–21:00**: the ticket desk closes at 19:50 and the last entry is at 20:00. Big swimming events, such as the short-course world championships, can limit tourist access.

The best time is **late afternoon into dark**. By day the plaza is huge, flat and shadeless, and hot in summer. After sunset the stadium glows red, the cube turns blue and changes colour, and the boulevard fills with Beijingers out for a stroll. Tour the stadium at 17:00 or 18:00 and walk out into the lights.

In winter a paid ice-and-snow park sets up beside the Bird's Nest — fun with children, but a separate ticket.

## How to get to Beijing Olympic Park by metro

1. From Tiananmen Square, take **Line 1** from Tiananmen East one stop east to **Wangfujing**.
2. Change to **Line 8** northbound: Jinyu Hutong, Nanluoguxiang, Shichahai, Gulou Dajie, Beitucheng — the ninth stop is **Olympic Sports Center** (Aoti Zhongxin, 奥体中心).
3. Walk a few minutes north to the Bird's Nest. The tour entrance is on the **west side** of the stadium, facing the central boulevard.
4. For the Water Cube, the tower or the north end of the plaza, stay on one more stop to **Olympic Park** (奥林匹克公园, also Line 15); for the Forest Park, one more to **Forest Park South Gate**.
5. Allow about 30 minutes from the square. From Qianmen at the south end of the square, Line 8 runs straight through with no change.
6. Fares depend on distance: from Tiananmen it's ¥4–5 one way. Buy a single ticket at the station machines; guides say Alipay's transit QR code also works for foreign cards.

## Is Beijing Olympic Park worth visiting?

Yes, for an evening. It's the one big Beijing sight that is at its best after dark, it costs nothing to walk, and the Bird's Nest is one of the most recognisable buildings of the century. It's also a welcome contrast to the imperial palaces: wide, modern and calm.

Paying to go inside is worth it if you like sport or architecture — the steel lattice looks completely different from within, and the rooftop skywalk shows the whole axis. The Water Cube's interior is essentially a modern pool, so most visitors are happy with the outside view. If your time in Beijing is short, give the Forbidden City and the Great Wall priority and come here on an evening you'd otherwise spend in the hotel.

## What to see at the Olympic Park

- **Bird's Nest** (National Stadium, 鸟巢) — the woven steel oval. Inside: the 80,000-seat bowl, an exhibition on the two Olympics and the VIP halls.
- **The skywalk** — a roughly one-kilometre route around the stadium roof, looking down into the bowl and out along the boulevard.
- **Water Cube** (National Aquatics Center, 水立方) — the blue bubble box. Inside: the Olympic pool, an upper viewing gallery, a water park and the “Light of Water” show several times a day.
- **Ice Cube** — the 2022 Winter Olympics curling venue; the ice centre entrance is on the Water Cube's south plaza.
- **The central boulevard** — the broad pedestrian axis running north. Kite flyers by day, crowds under the lit-up stadiums at night.
- **Olympic Tower** — five ‘blades of grass’ topped with discs that echo the Olympic rings. Admire it from outside while the deck is closed.
- **Olympic Forest Park** — lakes, a hill and running loops at the north end, free.

## Olympic Forest Park

The green northern half of the complex covers **680 hectares** of woodland, lakes and hills — Beijing's largest city park, according to the Beijing government. Entry is **free** and needs no booking. It opens at 6:00; last entry is 21:00 in high season and 20:00 in low season, with closing an hour later.

Locals come here to run the loops, cycle and walk by the water, not for Olympic buildings. The Olympic Tower stands just south of the park, and the nearest station is **Forest Park South Gate** on Line 8. With children, or if you need a break from the crowds downtown, spend the afternoon in the park and walk south to the stadiums at dusk.

## Before you go: checklist

- [ ] Checked there's no concert or match at the Bird's Nest today
- [ ] Original passport with me
- [ ] Alipay or WeChat Pay works with my foreign card, plus some cash
- [ ] 鸟巢 and 奥林匹克公园 saved to show a taxi driver
- [ ] Water and a hat — the plaza has no shade
- [ ] Timed to arrive before sunset for the lights

## Olympic Park vs Temple of Heaven vs Summer Palace

|  | Olympic Park | Temple of Heaven | Summer Palace |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| What it is | Olympic plaza, stadiums and a forest park | Park with imperial altars | Lakeside imperial park |
| Park entry | Free | ¥10 Nov–Mar, ¥15 Apr–Oct | ¥20 Nov–Mar, ¥30 Apr–Oct |
| Booking | Not needed | Passport, 1–7 days ahead | Passport, 1–7 days ahead |
| Evenings | Lit-up stadiums — the best time | Park to 22:00, halls closed | Closes at 19:00–20:00 |
| Metro | Line 8, Olympic Sports Center | Line 5, Tiantandongmen | Line 4, Beigongmen |

The Olympic Park is modern Beijing and the only one of the three best seen in the evening. The [Temple of Heaven](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/temple-of-heaven) and the [Summer Palace](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-summer-palace) are history — save them for mornings and daytime.

## Beijing after dark compared

Beijing's best evening spots, rated by YesGo.

- [National Centre for the Performing Arts (The Egg)](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/national-centre-for-performing-arts) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · ¥40 building visit, half price ¥20
- [Wangfujing Street](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/wangfujing-street) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free
- [Beijing hutongs](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-hutongs) — YesGo score 42/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Free; rickshaw about ¥100–200
- [Nanluoguxiang](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/nanluoguxiang) — YesGo score 40/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free, open 24 hours
- [Houhai Lake and Shichahai](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/houhai-lake) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Free
- [Olympic Park and Bird's Nest](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-olympic-park) — YesGo score 30/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Park free; Bird's Nest ≈ ¥50–100
- [Central Radio & TV Tower](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-tv-tower) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · CNY 90
- [Gubei Water Town and Simatai Great Wall](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/gubei-water-town) — YesGo score 16/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · ¥140 entry; ¥170 with Simatai wall
- [Longqing Gorge](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/longqing-gorge) — YesGo score 16/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · ¥40, boat ¥100

## Along Line 8: hutongs by day, Olympic Park by night

Everything sits on one metro line: Nanluoguxiang's lanes, the Drum Tower and Houhai Lake by day, then north to the stadiums for sunset. Add them to your route — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

1. [Nanluoguxiang](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/nanluoguxiang) — YesGo score 40/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free, open 24 hours
2. [Drum and Bell Towers](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-drum-and-bell-towers) — YesGo score 34/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · ¥30 for both towers
3. [Houhai Lake and Shichahai](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/houhai-lake) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Free
4. [Olympic Park and Bird's Nest](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-olympic-park) — YesGo score 30/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Park free; Bird's Nest ≈ ¥50–100

## Good to know

The Olympic Green lies on the northern extension of Beijing's historic central axis, but it isn't part of the UNESCO listing, which covers the 7.8 km from Yongdingmen Gate to the [Drum and Bell Towers](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-drum-and-bell-towers). The 2022 Winter Olympics mountain events took place far away in Yanqing and Zhangjiakou; here you'll find the stadium, the Ice Cube and the indoor arenas. The area is often called the Olympic Green, while the metro station is signed Olympic Park.

## Tips

- Arrive an hour before sunset: tour the stadium in daylight and walk out into the lights.
- Get off at **Olympic Sports Center** and leave from **Olympic Park** station — you walk the whole boulevard once, south to north.
- There's no shade on the plaza: bring water and a hat in summer, or start in the Forest Park.
- If the Bird's Nest is closed for a concert, the outside view is unaffected — the walk is still worth it.
- Google Maps is blocked in China without roaming or a VPN — download an offline map and save 鸟巢 for taxis.
- Pair it with the hutongs: Line 8 runs straight from here to [Nanluoguxiang](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/nanluoguxiang) and [Houhai Lake](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/houhai-lake).
- After a concert, Line 8 trains are packed — wait half an hour or book a DiDi in Alipay.

## Questions

### Is Beijing Olympic Park free?

Yes. The plaza, the central boulevard and the Olympic Forest Park are free to walk. You pay only to go inside venues such as the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube.

### How much is a Bird's Nest ticket?

The stadium doesn't publish prices online. Guides quote ¥50–80 for the standard tour and about ¥100 with the rooftop skywalk; check when you buy.

### What are the Bird's Nest opening hours?

Daily 10:00–22:00, last entry 21:00, according to the official site. On concert and match days it closes to tours early or for the whole day.

### How do I get to the Olympic Park by metro?

Line 8 to Olympic Sports Center for the Bird's Nest, or Olympic Park station for the Water Cube and the north end. From Tiananmen, change from Line 1 to Line 8 at Wangfujing; about 30 minutes.

### Which metro station is closest to the Bird's Nest?

Olympic Sports Center (Aoti Zhongxin) on Line 8, a few minutes' walk south of the stadium.

### Is Beijing Olympic Park worth visiting?

Yes, as an evening walk: it's free, the lit-up stadiums are spectacular, and it's an easy ride on Line 8. Go inside the Bird's Nest if you like sport or architecture.

### Can you go up the Olympic Tower?

Not at the moment: the tower is being renovated and no reopening date has been announced. It's still a fine sight from the boulevard and the Forest Park.

### Is the Water Cube open to visitors?

Yes, daily 10:30–21:00 with last entry at 20:00 in low season. Tickets are about ¥48 (unofficial); access can be limited during big swimming events.

### How long do you need at the Olympic Park?

About 90 minutes for the plaza and a Bird's Nest tour; half a day if you add the Water Cube and the Forest Park.

## How we checked

Bird's Nest and Water Cube hours come from the venues' official sites; Forest Park hours and free entry from the Beijing Municipal Government. We found no official tour prices: the stadium site lists tour types without prices and the big booking sites block automated checks. Guides disagree — ¥40, ¥50 or ¥80 for the standard tour, ¥100–110 with the roof or VIP halls — so we give a range marked checking. The tower renovation is reported by the Beijing government and Beijing News; only one aggregator says the deck is already closed, with no official closing or reopening date. Sources disagree on the tower's height (246.8 m to the eaves in Chinese and Russian Wikipedia, 258 m in English), so we use the first. Metro journey times are YesGo estimates from the number of stops.

## Sources

- National Stadium official site (n-s.cn) — tour hours, tour types, west entrance, rooftop skywalk, notices of shortened hours on concert days
- National Aquatics Center official site (water-cube.com) — low-season hours, light show, events
- Beijing Municipal Government, english.beijing.gov.cn — Olympic Forest Park (size, hours, free entry, address); Olympic Central Area action plan (tower renovation)
- Beijing News (bjnews.com.cn) — Olympic Central Area plans: tower renovation, Forest Park
- Visit Beijing (official Beijing tourism portal) — stadium tour types (older article)
- chinatripedia and dahepiao guides — Bird's Nest and Water Cube ticket prices (unofficial)
- English, Russian and Chinese Wikipedia: Beijing National Stadium, Beijing National Aquatics Center, Olympic Green, Beijing Olympic Tower, Beijing Central Axis; Wikidata Q912817
- English Wikipedia: Beijing Subway Line 8 (stations and distances)
- Beijing Municipal Government — Subway fares; Temple of Heaven and Summer Palace (comparison table)

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