Beijing Underground City

Beijing Underground City

The Beijing Underground City is a national AA-level tourist attraction.

North  Underground City

— The predecessor of the Beijing Underground City was an air defense project, initially constructed in 1969. The underground city project took ten years to complete and was finished in 1979. It was divided into three defensive zones and connected in all directions across the urban area, forming a sizable network of civil air defense tunnels.

Out of wartime preparedness considerations, construction of air-raid shelters began in the Qianmen area in 1969. At that time, men, women, and children living nearby all pitched in. Without the use of machinery, they managed to dig out this massive shelter by 1979. The underground city is eight meters below ground, reaching depths of over ten meters at its deepest points, with a width of two meters and a total length of over 30 kilometers, capable of accommodating more than 300,000 people. Due to its massive scale and comprehensive facilities, it came to be known as the “Underground City.”

Location

The Beijing Underground City is located in Mouyachang, Qianmen, Chongwen District. The entrance for visitors is on Ximouyachang Street, west of Qianmen (formerly No. 62).

Upon exiting the subway, you’ll see Qianmen Pedestrian Street. At the entrance of Qianmen Pedestrian Street stands a five-arch memorial archway (pailou), with Ximouyachang Street located to its east.

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Tourist Information

The underground city lies 8 meters below ground, reaches depths of over ten meters at its lowest points, has a width of two meters, and spans a total length of over 30 kilometers, with a capacity to hold more than 300,000 people. Due to its massive construction scale and well-equipped facilities, it is referred to as the “Underground City.” Nearly 70 locations within the underground city have been identified as having abundant groundwater. When needed, digging just a few meters down can yield a continuous supply of groundwater. The city also features 2,300 specially designed ventilation shafts that continuously supply fresh air underground. In addition, the underground city includes amenities such as a cinema and a barbershop, along with essential living facilities. Its extensive underground passages provide direct access to administrative centers, the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and railway stations. In 1980, part of the space within the civil air defense facility was repurposed to establish the Qianmen Arts and Crafts Service Department, offering items such as the four treasures of the study, enamel jade artifacts, jewelry, calligraphy and paintings by famous artists, medicinal herbs for travel, and various other handicrafts. Services such as traditional Chinese medicine consultations and seal engraving were also provided. Currently, the underground city houses a silk processing factory.   Zoning inside the tunnels

[4] The underground city is twice as large as the tunnels used in the Ranzhuang Battle of Tunnels in Hebei. It has a height of 2.5 meters; the narrowest sections can accommodate three people walking side by side, while the widest can fit five, and some areas are even wide enough for a jeep to pass through. Additionally, energy-saving lights are installed every five meters along the ceiling of the underground city. At every intersection of the tunnels, there is a storage room of about ten square meters, designated with names such as “Ammunition Depot,” “Military Supplies Depot,” or “War Preparedness Hospital.”

There have previously been many incorrect claims about the “Underground City” circulating online, all shrouded in an air of mystery.

Claim one: That the Underground City did not allow Chinese visitors at all and only admitted foreign tour groups, which led some to angrily accuse it of being a modern version of “No Chinese or dogs allowed.”

Claim two: That the site is an important base for revolutionary history education, thus allowing local group tourists to visit free of charge but not admitting individual visitors.

Claim three: That individual visitors could visit but needed an introduction letter issued by their local neighborhood committee.

In reality, visiting is very easy — no one asks for any identification or conducts any political screening. You just need to pay. Both domestic and international visitors are treated equally.

Address: No. 62, Ximouyachang, Dongcheng District

Ticket: 20 RMB

Transportation: Get off at Taiji Factory or Zhengyi Road via bus routes 8, 9, 41, 44, 60, or 723