北京“四合院”向游客免费开放

Siheyuan, or the traditional Chinese courtyard is an ancient style of architecture typical to Beijing, and an important aspect of the city’s cultural heritage. This month five courtyard hotels have opened to visitors for free.

The five courtyards can be found in Qianmen Street, a famous old commercial street located at the central axis of Beijing. These are no ordinary residential buildings, and each has a bewitching charm redolent of the rich flavor of old Beijing.

A visitor said, "I’m sightseeing in Beijing. The buildings here have been very well-preserved. It’s very good."

The siheyuan courtyard, representative of traditional Beijing architecture, is designed to be enclosed and inward-facing. All four sides face the inner courtyard and are protected from the harsh climate. It offers space, comfort and quiet privacy. All the rooms around the courtyard have large windows facing onto the yard.

A hotel manager said, "The visitors are all very interested. And we’ve arranged a tour guide to take them through the history of the building."

Five residential "siheyuan" opened to the public earlier this year. And five more, in this old part of the city, will open to visitors for free later this year.