Great Wall at Shanhaiguan Pass (Zhendong Gate)
Great Wall at Shanhaiguan Pass (Zhendong Gate)
Great Wall at Shanhaiguan Pass (Zhendong Gate)
4.5
About
This is an important and famous section of The Great Wall originally built in 583 AM that played a significant role in the military defense of the Ming Dynasty. Shanhaiguan Pass is located in the small harbor town of Qinhuangdao by the Sea.
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
Full view
Top ways to experience Great Wall at Shanhaiguan Pass (Zhendong Gate) and nearby attractions
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Attractions
13 within 10 kms
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
224 reviews
Excellent
107
Very good
83
Average
29
Poor
3
Terrible
2
IlyaRivkin
35 contributions
Apr 2014 • Solo
I would suggest to wait for a good day and then go but you might ave problem to get early ticket for Dong che (bukket train). The ride will take you 2 hours and a half and it will arrive to the new train station. From there either a bus or a electric rickshaw (you can ask him to wait for you for additional fee), 1￥ either one to the main attraction LAOLONGTOU. There was a taxi driver that offered to go to a 10km ride out of the city for a nice great wall view but I didn't have time. There is another place called jianshan (or something) but it is closed now..
I've decided to go first to laolongtou because it's the main thing to see. a nice place where the great wall meets the see. You can spend there about 2 hours wondering around. get off the entrance and walk to the shrine along the beach to get a better view of the place.
It was pretty windy so I suggest to bring some clothes.
After finishing there I headed back to the city. The old city is surrounded by a wall with 4 gates. I've entered through the south gate and walked all the way up the main street till I got to the Drum or bell tower (you can't miss it in the middle of the street) and turned right (east) to get to the "FIRST PASS UNDER HEAVEN". It's the first pass through the great wall. The place now is under construction but you can climb it and walk both ways.
TICKETS- there are several inclussive tickets. so get what youu need. If you don't plan to climb the drum tower and finished laolongtou get the simple ticket (around 20￥) From there you can head out via the main street (southwards) after passing few buildings on the right you'll get to the Museum of the great wall (which is very impressive) - it is free but closed on Mondays. if you go out through the gate that is located at the end of the street you will get to train station.
I greatly recommend turning west (before you go out of the old city) to stroll the Hutongs of the old city if you have the time. It is a very nice experience to see how the people live there and it's different from Beijing Do not be afraid, you won't get lost.
TICKET FAIR -
Regular seat in a D... train will cost you 7 Yuan one way. First class will cost 92.5 Yuan one way
took the second train around 10:00 and the tran back at 17:30 and was enough, Although if you take the 7am train you can take it easy and enjoy lunch or something.
I would suggest bringing food with you.
If you are planning to stay the night check which hotel can accommodate yo (not all can).
I've decided to go first to laolongtou because it's the main thing to see. a nice place where the great wall meets the see. You can spend there about 2 hours wondering around. get off the entrance and walk to the shrine along the beach to get a better view of the place.
It was pretty windy so I suggest to bring some clothes.
After finishing there I headed back to the city. The old city is surrounded by a wall with 4 gates. I've entered through the south gate and walked all the way up the main street till I got to the Drum or bell tower (you can't miss it in the middle of the street) and turned right (east) to get to the "FIRST PASS UNDER HEAVEN". It's the first pass through the great wall. The place now is under construction but you can climb it and walk both ways.
TICKETS- there are several inclussive tickets. so get what youu need. If you don't plan to climb the drum tower and finished laolongtou get the simple ticket (around 20￥) From there you can head out via the main street (southwards) after passing few buildings on the right you'll get to the Museum of the great wall (which is very impressive) - it is free but closed on Mondays. if you go out through the gate that is located at the end of the street you will get to train station.
I greatly recommend turning west (before you go out of the old city) to stroll the Hutongs of the old city if you have the time. It is a very nice experience to see how the people live there and it's different from Beijing Do not be afraid, you won't get lost.
TICKET FAIR -
Regular seat in a D... train will cost you 7 Yuan one way. First class will cost 92.5 Yuan one way
took the second train around 10:00 and the tran back at 17:30 and was enough, Although if you take the 7am train you can take it easy and enjoy lunch or something.
I would suggest bringing food with you.
If you are planning to stay the night check which hotel can accommodate yo (not all can).
Written 30 April 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
kruzinom
Greenville, NH22 contributions
Jul 2018 • Friends
This was a unique place to see the Great Wall! Not crowded like Beijing areas - the pass here in Shanhaiguan is the Eastern most part of the Great Wall where it touches the ocean. Very cool place.
Written 6 November 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jaxomsyd79
16 contributions
Oct 2017 • Couples
Having been to the Great Wall in the Beijing area on a previous trip, we went for an alternative experience at Shanhaiguan to see the Wall from the sea and into the mountains. We visited with a private day tour with a long train trip from and back to Beijing. The tour was quite helpful for us as tourists only speaking English as getting around from the train station in other areas in Shanhaiguan, while not impossible for tourists, would be challenging. In the off season there were no crowds which was nice.
The museum is worthwhile and informative. It has English translation for English-speaking visitors. The wall and gate at the Pass is great. Quite expansive in its' rebuilt/maintained form and worth a good amount of time walking about and on top of.
The town surrounding the wall is also quite interesting. Just nearby we did a tour of a large family house/compound once owned by a local wealthy family. Our guide in his childhood had lived there after it was converted to communal housing by the local Party redistribution of land in the area in the 50s and gave us some interesting insight.
For photo taking purposes, just be mindful that if you visit during a bad pollution period for Beijing, the area between Shanghaiguan and Beijing is where a lot of steel production and other industry happens and so don't expect the pollution to dissipate at all.
We earlier climbed the wall in the mountains nearby and visited the Dragon's Head as the Wall starts at/reaches the sea. Both great for visits and recommended.
The museum is worthwhile and informative. It has English translation for English-speaking visitors. The wall and gate at the Pass is great. Quite expansive in its' rebuilt/maintained form and worth a good amount of time walking about and on top of.
The town surrounding the wall is also quite interesting. Just nearby we did a tour of a large family house/compound once owned by a local wealthy family. Our guide in his childhood had lived there after it was converted to communal housing by the local Party redistribution of land in the area in the 50s and gave us some interesting insight.
For photo taking purposes, just be mindful that if you visit during a bad pollution period for Beijing, the area between Shanghaiguan and Beijing is where a lot of steel production and other industry happens and so don't expect the pollution to dissipate at all.
We earlier climbed the wall in the mountains nearby and visited the Dragon's Head as the Wall starts at/reaches the sea. Both great for visits and recommended.
Written 4 March 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kaja Ż
Beijing, China18 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
When we visited the Great Wall in Qinhuangdao we were not allowed to buy tickets only because we are foreigners. We had COVID NAT with us and passports but were told that only people with Chinese ID cards are allowed to enter. I wish they wrote that on their official account so we wouldn't have waisted our weekend. Qinhuangdao was overall a very disappointing experience. It is not a tourist friendly place
Written 2 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TheFamFive
Waverly, IA75 contributions
Sept 2013 • Family
Went with small children. Big mistake. It was so crowded and even though we kept walking, the people would latch onto us and try to pry the kids out of our arms. It got to the point that our kids were crying and scared. We tried to keep walking past the hawkers but there were so many of them and they wouldn't leave our kids alone. We finally ended up leaving without really seeing much :(
Written 2 January 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Joanna K
Sydney, Australia16 contributions
Sept 2017 • Friends
When you arrive at Shanhaiguan Station, go into the Hubei Province Tourism Centre and you can book one of several day tours for about 200 RMB including a guide, taxis, lunch, and entry into places. No English spoken but the prices were in English and staff were very kind. We would never have gotten to see so much in one day independently. Visited Old Dragon Head Lao Long Tou where the Wall meets the sea, and then the First Pass Under Heaven Shan Hai Guan. The museum was closed as we visited on a Monday so we went to a beautiful local park instead. Guide named Yang Duo aka Winter was lovely and spoke some English. A delightful day! A great initiative of the Hubei Province! Many thanks - Anne, Lorraine, and Joanna
Written 26 September 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Buxster
Guangzhou, China182 contributions
Mar 2017
As a big fan of the Great Wall I had to visit a real section close to the dragons head - the head is just rebuild. Unfortunately Jiaoshan section is closed in winter time - Great! But I found a driver who showed me a picture of the wall behind the first hills, were it will cross a river - just 40RMB to go.
Hey cool, so I did.
Basically everything was great but the place is 15km from shanhaiguan and nobody can drive you back. So my driver made an offer: 150RMB for waiting 2h and drive me back.
I was not in bargain mood and said ok.
The place is nice, ca. 400m of restored Wall and 250m of original and wild one. Furthermore there is a cave in the mountain which is made by the Ming soldiers and is 2 long.
Entrance fee for both is 60RMB.
So to complete the journey (dragons head, Shanhaiguan Pass and the original Wall beside it) I can recommend it.
However, do negotiation with the driver before you arrive there. ;)
Hey cool, so I did.
Basically everything was great but the place is 15km from shanhaiguan and nobody can drive you back. So my driver made an offer: 150RMB for waiting 2h and drive me back.
I was not in bargain mood and said ok.
The place is nice, ca. 400m of restored Wall and 250m of original and wild one. Furthermore there is a cave in the mountain which is made by the Ming soldiers and is 2 long.
Entrance fee for both is 60RMB.
So to complete the journey (dragons head, Shanhaiguan Pass and the original Wall beside it) I can recommend it.
However, do negotiation with the driver before you arrive there. ;)
Written 18 March 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KaranPais
Mangalore, India554 contributions
Jun 2014 • Friends
One of the major tourist attractions of the world and probably the most famous tourist attraction in China. There are several points in china where you can visit the great wall. Lots of history attached to the place. Also has architectural significance since it was built so long ago
Written 11 May 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Driggsd
Washington DC, DC7 contributions
Jan 2014 • Business
I can not say enough great things about this place! It is an absolute dream to have visited it! Wonderful staff, wonderful place, great multilingual service! Was easily the best historic site I visited in China!
Written 4 December 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mat2818
Jinja, Uganda269 contributions
Sept 2014 • Friends
Seeing the Great Wall of China rise out of the ocean and begin its long journey west is an unforgettable experience. No killer stairs like the other parts. You can rent a bike and ride it. Gorgeous view. Diving available as well. Lots of shops and hawkers. Go to both places but be sure to go to the beach part of the wall they call the dragon head. Admission aobut $8 (60Y). Bring a swim suit and go swimming at the wall!
Written 17 October 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Are there any luggage leaves around Great Wall at shanhaiguan pass or at Qinhuangdao train station?
Written 10 March 2017
Are there any luggage leaves around Great Wall at shanhaiguan pass or at Qinhuangdao train station?
Written 10 March 2017
Can you walk from Shanhaiguan pass to the Old Dragon's head (Laolongtou)? And how long would that take? Or would you need to do them separately?
Written 19 March 2016
I read from most of reviews they do it all in one day but I arrived in the afternoon so just took bus to Lao Long Tua and spent 2 hrs there.
Today we wanna do Jiaoshan and Jiumenkou but haven't worked on taxi yet don't wanna get rob here !!! Will tell more about the trip later but to answer ur q I don't think u can walk it's 20 km about
Written 17 October 2017
Showing results 1-3 of 3
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing