Beijing War Memory One Day Trip

Pick up from your hotel by our English speaking tour guide around 9:00:am. Take a private vehicle for the Tunnel Warfare Site at Jiaozhuanghu Village in Shunyi District, some 40 km northeast of the downtown Beijing. The Tunnel Warfare Memorial Hall is divided into two sections: the exhibition hall and the original tunnel site.

In the exhibition hall, there are lots of pictures and artifacts on show depicting that period. Behind the hall is the real tunnel for your exploration and experience. The renovated tunnel open to the public is about 800 meters long. Inside the tunnel, you can find individual blindages, headquarters, meeting rooms, numerous hidden gun holes, warehouses etc. The holes and entrances usually are out of your expectation, hidden under a straw mat inside a house, down a well, the kangs, kitchen ranges, hogpens, donkey slots, wardrobes etc. This allowed flexible movement or exit. During the Anti-Japanese war starting from the year 1937, the Chinese Communist forces or local peasant guerrilla forces used successfully the tunnel war tactics against the Japanese (and later Kuomingtang during Chinese Liberation War from 1945 to 1949 ).

After lunch, then head to the Marco Polo Bridge ( Lugou Qiao - Marco Polo Bridge ). It is located in the ancient town - Wanping. It is one of earliest stone arch bridges, about 16 km in the outside of Beijing. On July 7th, 1937, the bridge entered China's history when the Japanese Kwantung Army began its war to conquer China. On that day Japanese troops illegally took up a railway junction near Wanping and the fighting started. It is later known as the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident". This is regarded by many historians to be the date when the war between China and Japan started.

During the 8 years, Japan occupied most of China and killed millions of Chinese. The war ended with the end of WWII. If time permitted, you will be arranged to visit the Chinese Anti-Japanese War Memorial Hall next to the bridge. The Anti-Japanese Aggression War Memorial Hall has an area of 23,780 square meters with its total construction acreage of 10,190 square meters. The two east and west halls exhibit numerous historic cultural relics, treasure documents and photos of the whole national resistance against the Japanese aggression army under the guideline of China Communist Party's "National United Front to Anti-Japanese Aggression" principle.

By the way, the the Marco Polo Bridge itself is worth seeing. The bridge is 260 meters long and has 250 marble bars supporting 485 carved stone lions. it was first built in 1192, one of the few cultural relics left from Liao Dynasty. In 1751, Emperor Qianlong of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) personally wrote the poetic titles for the 8 views in Beijing, including the "Lugou Xiaoyue" tablet carved with his words which still stands by the bridge. The bridge has been there for 800 years.

Your whole day tour finishes and you will be transferred to your hotel in Beijing.