A Comprehensive Guide to Visiting the Ming Tombs in Beijing

Beijing Ming Dynasty Tombs Travel Guide and Experience Sharing

I’m the kind of person who felt like I needed more after finishing "Ming Dynasty Chronicles." In the end, I just took the plunge and headed straight to Changping. The Ming Thirteen Tombs are tucked away in this beautiful spot on Tianshou Mountain, which faces the water and backs onto the mountain. I heard the site was chosen to mirror the Ming Xiaoling in Nanjing—super precise feng shui. The 13 imperial tombs are laid out along the mountain, and when you stand up there looking down, you really get this illusion of "as long as the mountains and rivers exist, so does the dynasty."

That day, I didn’t exactly get up early; after almost two hours of switching from the Changping line metro to a bus, I finally got there just in time, bursting through the entrance at 8:40 AM. I secretly gave myself a thumbs up! The site has only four open areas: Changling, Dingling, ZhaoLing, and the Sacred Way. Tickets are sold separately, so you don’t have to buy a combo ticket if you don't want to rush through everything.

I planned my route as Dingling ➜ Changling ➜ ZhaoLing ➜ Sacred Way, which turned out to be efficient and easy.

🕳️ Dingling: The Only Tomb with an Open Underground Palace

As soon as I stepped into Dingling, I was shocked by the depth—27 meters underground—that's like 10 stories deep! I had to grab onto the freezing stone walls just to steady my heartbeat. Inside the underground palace, there are coffins and sitting couches of Zhu Yijun (the Wanli Emperor) and two empresses all in dim light, giving it a vibe like I stepped right into "Tomb Raider." Don’t take photos! The staff are super vigilant, and flash photography is really not good for the artifacts.

After you’re done, don’t forget to climb up to Ming Tower. Once you reach the top and look back, you can see the whole tomb area laid out in front of you. The Sacred Way looks like a line splitting the mountain—pretty cool!

🪵 Changling: 60 Giant Golden Phoebe Columns

A ten-minute taxi ride (don’t go walking—it’s too hot!) brings you to Changling, home to Zhu Di and Empress Xu. Right when you enter, it’s the Esteem Hall, tagged by 60 golden phoebe columns that are about 13 meters tall. Standing at the bottom and looking up, my neck felt sore! The wood has this faint scent to it, all smooth to the touch—not cold and glassy like in a museum.

There’s a small platform outside, and when the wind blows, the shadows of the trees dance on the red walls—perfect for taking silhouette photos! Unfortunately, my phone camera overheated and almost gave up on me at that moment 🙄.

🚶 ZhaoLing: The Easy-to-Skip Small One

I heard that the twelfth emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Muzong Zhu Zaiqi, is here. I took a quick stroll around, and compared to Changling, it’s totally “mini.” Not only is the construction smaller, but there’s also not much to see. 20 bucks isn’t painful, but time is precious, so if you’re in a hurry, skipping it is totally fine. I lingered for about 20 minutes and then left, but I did spot a cute orange cat at a little stall by the entrance, so I felt like I kind of earned back the ticket price.

🐉 Sacred Way: The Stone Honor Guard

Finally, I arrived at the Sacred Way, which stretches for 7 kilometers. I didn’t walk the whole thing—just strolled from the stone archway all the way up to the Changling entrance. Along the sides, there are 24 stone beasts and 12 stone figures, like an elaborate royal cosplay. The stone elephants and horses are ludicrously large; kids were climbing on them for photos, and I stood nearby capturing the scene of others taking pictures with these stone guardians.

As the sun began to set, the shadows of the statues stretched long, and I could smell the fresh grass in the air—this was a real immersive Ming Dynasty experience!

💡 A Few Heartfelt Tips

• Transportation: Take the Changping line to Changping Xishankou and switch to bus Chang 67 or 879, both will get you to Dingling; afterward, just grab a taxi between tombs—it’s the easiest. Don’t count on public transit during peak season.
• Food and Drinks: The shops in the park are ridiculously overpriced, so bring your own water and snacks. You’ll save enough cash to go enjoy Changping strawberries🍓.
• Photos: No photos allowed inside the underground palace, but you can snap away in Ming Tower and the Phoebe Hall. Use a wide-angle lens for those Sacred Way stone statues for a more dramatic effect.
• Cat Spotting: Most likely to find them around ZhaoLing and the entrance to the Sacred Way. If you’re lucky, you might pet a fat orange cat or a cow-patterned cat.
• Time Management: I only visited three tombs and half of the Sacred Way; I got in at 9 AM and left by 3 PM. If you walk fast, a whole day is enough, but if you prefer to take it easy, just skip ZhaoLing.

And that’s how I hit up the Thirteen Tombs. On the way back, I pulled out "Ming Dynasty Chronicles" again on the metro, and the text felt so earthy!