Beijing's Siheyuans (四合院) are outstanding historical landmarks in Beijing. They are at the highest level and most typical and date back to 2000 years ago.

Beijing's Siheyuanms, or Courtyard Houses of Beijing, usually have four sides making a rectangle. Generally, almost every dwelling part is surrounded by high walls, with an open courtyard in the centre. Today, there are about 400, 000 Siheyuans in Beijing and they are mainly distributed over the East, West, Xuanwu and Chongwen districts of the city. Visitors always feel that those in the East and West districts are in the best shape and most beautiful. The departments concerned with the preservation of cultural relics in Beijing have earmarked a number of good-quality courtyard houses for protection.

Two typical renowned Siheyuans:

The Former Residence of Mao Dun.

Address: The South Street, Dongcheng District.

Opening Hours: Tuesday to Sunday.

Buses: No. 104, 108, 753, 113, and 803 to Traffic Intersection South Gate and get off and walk to the west side.

Beijing houhai Siheyuan

Address: No.15 Public Hutong, Xicheng District.

Opening Hours: Monday to Friday

Buses:You can take No16 or Yuntong 103 to Beijingjiaotong University Station(北京交通大学) and get off and walk to Siheyuan.

Travel Tips:

• Summer is the best season to travel in Siheyuan, for it is cool there.

• Touring at Siheyuan can relax you from the exhaustion of traveling in Beijing.

• Different siheyuans have different histories, Just visit and taste the ones as you are interested in.

• There are so many amazing paintings on the wall of Siheyuan, and don't forget to bring your camera.