# Beijing Zoo

> Beijing Zoo is China's oldest zoo, in west-central Beijing, and the giant pandas are the reason to go. Entry is ¥10 from November to March, ¥14 with the Panda House; ¥15 and ¥19 from April to October. Book with your passport. Open daily from 7:30, pandas from 8:00, last entry 17:00 (18:00 in summer). Allow three hours.

Web page: https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-zoo

- City: [Beijing](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing), China
- YesGo score: 26/100 (Yes, if nearby)
- Time on site: 3 h
- Entry: ¥10–15, ¥14–19 with pandas
- With kids: Fine with kids
- Zoo entry: ¥10 from 1 November to 31 March, ¥15 from 1 April to 31 October
- Combo ticket: Zoo + Panda House: ¥14 in winter, ¥19 April–October
- Panda House only: ¥5 (concession ¥2.50) on top of a zoo ticket
- Concession: Half price: ¥5 in winter, ¥7.50 in summer; foreign teens 6–18 with a passport
- Free: Children 6 and under or up to 1.2 m; visitors 60+ with a passport
- Booking: Official “Beijing Zoo” (北京动物园) WeChat account, with your passport number; show QR code and passport at the gate
- Hours: From 7:30, last entry 17:00 (18:00 April–October); open every day
- Panda House: From 8:00, last entry 17:00 (18:00 in summer)
- Aquarium: Separate ticket: ¥170 November–March, ¥175 April–October; winter 10:00, last entry 16:30
- Metro: Line 4, Beijing Zoo (Dongwuyuan) — main gate; National Library (Lines 4, 9, 16) — north-west gate
- Address: 137 Xizhimenwai Street, Xicheng District (西直门外大街137号)
- Payment: WeChat Pay or Alipay linked to a foreign Visa/Mastercard
- Coordinates: 39.93861, 116.33333
- Facts checked: 04.11.2026

## Key facts

- **1906** — founded under the Qing dynasty — China's first zoo open to the public (source: Visit Beijing (official portal); Beijing Municipal Government; Chinese Wikipedia)
- **1990** — the first Panda House opened for the 11th Asian Games (source: Beijing Municipal Government; Visit Beijing; Chinese Wikipedia)
- **13,000 m²** — the new Giant Panda House, laid out around garden courtyards (source: Beijing Municipal Government (official opening announcement))
- **1908** — Changguanlou palace built as a stop for Empress Dowager Cixi on her boat trips to the Summer Palace (source: Chinese and English Wikipedia; Visit Beijing)
- **1908** — the zoo first sold tickets to the public (source: Chinese and English Wikipedia)
- **1955** — given its present name, Beijing Zoo (source: Visit Beijing; Beijing Municipal Government; Russian Wikipedia)
- **1956** — Lion and Tiger Hill built — still one of the zoo's landmarks (source: Beijing Municipal Government; Visit Beijing; Chinese Wikipedia)
- **1946** — Monkey Hill built — the oldest enclosure still standing (source: Chinese Wikipedia; Visit Beijing)
- **1999** — the Beijing Aquarium opened inside the zoo grounds (source: English and Russian Wikipedia)
- **6.6 km** — in a straight line from Tiananmen Square (source: Wikidata coordinates)

## Beijing Zoo tickets: price and how to book

A zoo ticket costs **¥10** from 1 November to 31 March and **¥15** from 1 April to 31 October. The **combo ticket** with the Panda House is ¥14 or ¥19 — get that one. Teens aged 6–18 pay half price; children 6 and under or up to 1.2 m go free, and Visit Beijing says over-60s do too.

Tickets are **real-name**. The Beijing government says foreign visitors book on the official **Beijing Zoo (北京动物园) WeChat account** using their passport number, then show the passport and scan the QR code at the gate at the booked time. There are ticket windows at the gates as well, but queues build at weekends and on Chinese holidays.

Payment inside WeChat is by **WeChat Pay**, so link a foreign Visa or Mastercard before you fly. If that fails, agents such as Trip.com and Klook sell Panda House tickets too — with your passport, and for more than the gate price.

> **The Panda House needs its own ticket** A plain zoo ticket doesn't get you into the Panda House — tickets are checked again at its entrance. You need the combo ticket (¥14 in winter, ¥19 in summer) or a separate ¥5 panda ticket on top. Buy the combo from the start: the pandas are why you came, and a second queue wastes half an hour.

## Seeing the giant pandas at Beijing Zoo

The pandas live in two houses just inside the main gate: the 1990 Asian Games Panda House and the new **Giant Panda House** next to it, on the east side. The 2008 Olympic Panda House is now a behind-the-scenes facility and is closed to visitors, according to the Beijing government.

The new house covers 13,000 m², with four enclosures modelled on the pandas' mountain habitats — climbing frames, a pool — linked by courtyards and covered walkways in classical Chinese garden style. Visitors follow a one-way loop, which keeps holiday crowds moving. It held 10 giant pandas when it opened, and the animals rotate between enclosures, so who you see depends on the day.

There's no official feeding timetable that we could find. Pandas are most active in the morning and often asleep by lunch, so be at the Panda House when it opens at 8:00 and see the rest of the zoo afterwards. According to Wikipedia, the zoo also keeps red pandas, South China tigers and Chinese alligators.

## Beijing Zoo opening hours

The zoo is open **every day from 7:30**, with no closing day. Last entry is 17:00 from November to March and 18:00 from April to October; the Panda House opens at 8:00 and takes visitors until the same time. Visit Beijing adds that the grounds close an hour after last entry.

Winter is a good time to come: entry is cheaper, crowds are thin and the pandas tend to be livelier in the cold than in Beijing's summer heat — though many warm-climate animals stay indoors. In any season, a weekday between 8:00 and 10:30 is best; on weekends and Chinese holidays the panda queue gets long.

## How to get to Beijing Zoo by metro

1. From Tiananmen Square, take **Line 1** from Tiananmen West one stop west to **Xidan**.
2. Change to **Line 4** northbound: Lingjing Hutong, Xisi, Ping'anli, Xinjiekou, Xizhimen, then **Beijing Zoo** (Dongwuyuan, 动物园).
3. Leave by **Exit A**, which Visit Beijing says brings you straight to the main gate. Allow about 30 minutes from the square.
4. For the **north-west gate**, stay on Line 4 one more stop to National Library, which is also on Lines 9 and 16.
5. From Capital Airport (PEK): the Airport Express to Dongzhimen, Line 2 to Xizhimen, then one stop on Line 4. From Daxing (PKX): the Daxing Airport Express, then the city metro.
6. By taxi or DiDi, show the driver **北京动物园** and the address 西直门外大街137号.

## Is Beijing Zoo worth it?

For the pandas, yes — it's the easiest place to see giant pandas in Beijing, cheap and right on the metro. As a zoo overall, it's old-fashioned: many enclosures are decades old and small by modern standards. If pandas aren't on your list, we'd skip it.

Plan on two to three hours: an hour at the panda houses, then Lion and Tiger Hill, Monkey Hill and the indoor houses. The trick is to pair it with the [Summer Palace](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-summer-palace), straight up Line 4 — the zoo in the morning, the palace in the afternoon.

## What to see at Beijing Zoo

- **The panda houses** — the new Giant Panda House with its garden courtyards, and the Asian Games house. Go first, at 8:00.
- **Red pandas, South China tigers and Chinese alligators** — the rare Chinese species Wikipedia singles out in the collection.
- **Lion and Tiger Hill** (1956) — a rocky mountain-shaped enclosure and one of the zoo's landmarks.
- **Monkey Hill** (1946) — the oldest enclosure still standing.
- **The Elephant House and the Reptile House** — indoor halls worth a stop in winter or rain.
- **Changguanlou** (畅观楼) — a European-style palace of 1908 by the Changhe river, built for Empress Dowager Cixi as a rest stop on her boat trips to the Summer Palace.
- **Beijing Aquarium** — in the north-east corner, with its own pricey ticket.

## Beijing Aquarium inside the zoo

The Beijing Aquarium opened in 1999 in the north-east of the zoo. An adult ticket is **¥170** from November to March and **¥175** from April to October; concessions are ¥85. Children 6 and under or up to 1.2 m go free, up to two per paying adult. Winter hours are 10:00–17:00 (last entry 16:30), summer 9:00–17:30.

The government's ticket rules say each aquarium ticket covers one visit to the aquarium and the zoo, so you probably don't need a separate zoo ticket — but the Panda House isn't included. Check when you buy. At more than ten times the price of zoo entry, it's worth it with children or on a freezing day; otherwise spend the time elsewhere.

## Which Beijing Zoo ticket to buy

|  | Nov–Mar | Apr–Oct | Covers |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Zoo entry | ¥10 | ¥15 | Zoo grounds only |
| Combo | ¥14 | ¥19 | Zoo plus one Panda House entry |
| Panda House only | ¥5 | ¥5 | Add-on if you already have entry |
| Concession entry | ¥5 | ¥7.50 | Teens 6–18, with a passport |
| Aquarium | ¥170 | ¥175 | One visit to the aquarium and the zoo |

Prices from the Beijing Municipal Government. The ¥5 panda ticket was announced with the new Panda House in summer; we found no official winter figure, so in winter the combo is the safe choice.

## Before you go: checklist

- [ ] Booked in the Beijing Zoo WeChat account with my passport number
- [ ] Combo ticket — including the Panda House
- [ ] Original passport with me, not a copy
- [ ] WeChat Pay or Alipay works with my foreign card
- [ ] Screenshot of the QR code in case the signal drops
- [ ] At the gate by 8:00, pandas first
- [ ] Three hours and comfortable shoes

## Beijing's historic sights compared

Every historic sight in Beijing rated by YesGo.

- [Tiananmen Square](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/tiananmen-square) — YesGo score 68/100 (Yes, go) · 45 min · Free, passport booking
- [Forbidden City](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/forbidden-city) — YesGo score 61/100 (Yes, go) · 3 h 30 min · ¥40 Nov–Mar, ¥60 Apr–Oct
- [Chairman Mao Memorial Hall](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/mao-mausoleum) — YesGo score 55/100 (Yes, go) · 30 min · Free, booking required
- [Temple of Heaven](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/temple-of-heaven) — YesGo score 52/100 (Yes, go) · 2 h · ¥10–15, ¥28–34 with halls
- [Great Hall of the People](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/great-hall-of-the-people) — YesGo score 51/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · ¥30, students ¥15; WeChat booking
- [Tiananmen Gate](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/tiananmen-gate) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · ¥15, concession ¥5, booking only
- [National Museum of China](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/national-museum-of-china) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · Free, passport booking
- [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
- [Jingshan Park](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/jingshan-park) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · ¥2, ¥10 during exhibitions
- [Lama Temple (Yonghe Temple)](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/lama-temple) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · ≈ ¥25, booked in WeChat
- [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
- [Old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan)](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/old-summer-palace) — YesGo score 34/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · ¥10, ¥25 with the ruins
- [Beihai Park](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beihai-park) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ¥5–10, ¥15–20 with the island
- [Confucius Temple and Imperial Academy](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-confucius-temple) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · ¥30, one ticket with the Guozijian
- [Summer Palace](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-summer-palace) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h 30 min · ¥20–30, ¥50–60 through ticket
- [Prince Gong's Mansion](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/prince-gong-mansion) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ¥40, book ahead with passport
- [798 Art Zone](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/798-art-zone) — YesGo score 32/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · Free; some exhibitions charge
- [Great Wall at Badaling](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/badaling-great-wall) — YesGo score 27/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ¥40 entry; ¥35 November–March
- [Beijing Zoo](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-zoo) — YesGo score 26/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ¥10–15, ¥14–19 with pandas
- [Ming Tombs](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/ming-tombs) — YesGo score 23/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · ¥20–40 per site, ¥30–60 in summer
- [Great Wall at Juyongguan](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/juyongguan-great-wall) — YesGo score 20/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · ¥35 entry; ¥40 April–October
- [Great Wall at Mutianyu](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/great-wall-mutianyu) — YesGo score 19/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 4 h · ¥40–45 entry; cable car ¥100–140
- [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

## Pandas and the Summer Palace in a day

Pandas at opening time, then north on Line 4 to the Summer Palace and the ruins of the Old Summer Palace — all on one metro line. Add them to your route — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

1. [Beijing Zoo](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-zoo) — YesGo score 26/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ¥10–15, ¥14–19 with pandas
2. [Summer Palace](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/beijing-summer-palace) — YesGo score 33/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h 30 min · ¥20–30, ¥50–60 through ticket
3. [Old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan)](https://yesgo.io/china/beijing/old-summer-palace) — YesGo score 34/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · ¥10, ¥25 with the ruins

> **In summer, go on by boat** In the warm months, sightseeing boats run from a pier by the Changhe river in the north of the zoo to the Summer Palace — Cixi's old water route. We found no official timetable or fares; unofficial sources say boats run from about mid-March to late October. In winter, take Line 4 to Beigongmen instead.

## Good to know

Don't confuse Beijing Zoo with Beijing Wildlife Park (北京野生动物园), a separate safari park far to the south in Daxing District. The zoo's own website didn't load for us, so check prices and free dates in the WeChat account instead.

## Tips

- See the **pandas first**, at 8:00 — they eat and move in the morning and sleep later.
- Buy the **combo ticket** up front; adding the Panda House later means another queue.
- Screenshot your QR code — mobile signal at the gates can be patchy.
- Google Maps is blocked in China without roaming or a VPN — save an offline map and 北京动物园 before you go.
- Weekdays are far quieter; on Chinese holidays expect a long panda queue.
- Carry on up Line 4 to Beigongmen for the Summer Palace — no change needed.
- The grounds are big and you'll walk several kilometres — bring water and comfortable shoes.

## Questions

### How much is a Beijing Zoo ticket?

¥10 from November to March and ¥15 from April to October. The combo ticket with the Panda House is ¥14 or ¥19. Children 6 and under or up to 1.2 m go free.

### Do you need a separate ticket for the pandas at Beijing Zoo?

Yes. A plain zoo ticket doesn't cover the Panda House. Buy the combo ticket, or add a ¥5 panda ticket on top of your entry.

### How do foreigners book Beijing Zoo tickets?

On the official Beijing Zoo (北京动物园) WeChat account with your passport number, paying by WeChat Pay. Show the QR code and your passport at the gate. Trip.com and Klook sell tickets too.

### What are Beijing Zoo opening hours?

Daily from 7:30. Last entry is 17:00 from November to March and 18:00 from April to October. The Panda House opens at 8:00.

### Is Beijing Zoo open on Mondays?

Yes, the zoo and the Panda House are open every day of the week.

### How do I get to Beijing Zoo by metro?

Line 4 to Beijing Zoo (Dongwuyuan) station, Exit A, for the main gate. From Tiananmen, take Line 1 to Xidan and change to Line 4 north — about 30 minutes.

### How many pandas are at Beijing Zoo?

The number changes as pandas move between enclosures and breeding centres. The new Giant Panda House held 10 when it opened, with more in the Asian Games house.

### How long do you need at Beijing Zoo?

Two to three hours: about an hour for the pandas, the rest for the tigers, Monkey Hill and the indoor houses. Add two hours for the aquarium.

### Is Beijing Zoo worth visiting?

For the pandas, yes — cheap, central and on the metro. As a zoo it feels dated, so if pandas aren't a priority, spend the time at the Summer Palace instead.

### Can you take a boat from Beijing Zoo to the Summer Palace?

In the warm season, yes — boats leave from the zoo's north side along the Changhe river. Unofficial sources give a mid-March to late-October season; there's no winter service.

## How we checked

Prices, hours and booking rules come from the Beijing Municipal Government and the official Visit Beijing portal. The ¥5 Panda House ticket is from the official announcement of the new house in summer; no winter figure is published. Free entry for over-60s comes from a Visit Beijing article but is not on the government price page, so it's marked checking. Sources disagree on several points: the metro exit (A in Visit Beijing's 2026 article, B in a 2021 one — we use A), the zoo's area (80 ha per Visit Beijing, 89 ha per Wikipedia — we leave it out), and the aquarium's winter opening (10:00 per the government, 9:30 per Visit Beijing). Animal and species counts vary widely between sources, so we don't give them. The boat to the Summer Palace is from unofficial sources only. The zoo's own website did not load from our network.

## Sources

- Beijing Municipal Government, english.beijing.gov.cn — Ticketing, Parks: Beijing Zoo (seasonal prices, hours, Panda House, address)
- Beijing Municipal Government — Park Tours: Beijing Zoo (passport booking in WeChat, gates and metro, Panda House history)
- Beijing Municipal Government — opening of the new Giant Panda House, July 2026 (panda tickets, size, Olympic Panda House)
- Beijing Municipal Government — Ticketing, Attractions: Beijing Aquarium (prices, hours, concessions, ticket rules)
- Visit Beijing (official Beijing tourism portal): Beijing Zoo article (2026) — concessions, Exit A; Beijing Zoo and Beijing Aquarium listings
- English, Russian and Chinese Wikipedia: Beijing Zoo, Пекинский зоопарк, 北京动物园; Wikidata Q220083
- English Wikipedia: Beijing Subway Line 4
- YesGo China notes: paying with foreign cards, WeChat Pay and Alipay

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