Facts of Great Wall

Chinese Name: 长城/万里长城
Chinese Pinyin: Cháng Chéng/Wàn Lǐ Cháng Chéng
English Translation: Great Wall/Great Wall of 10,000 Li
How long is the Great Wall: 8,851.8 km (5,500 miles)
Who and when built the Great Wall: the ancient Chinese laboring people (common people, farmers, soldiers and slaves), about 2,000 years ago.
Where is the Great Wall located: Located in the north of China, the Great Wall starts from Hushan in Liaoning in the east and ends at Jiayuguan Pass in Gansu in the west.
Best Time to visit the wall: depends on the section you choose. Spring and autumn are the best season to visit the Great Wall.
Can the Great Wall Be Seen from the Space?: the Great Wall can not be seen from the space which is attested by many astronauts such as Yang Liwei. When he was interviewed whether the Great Wall can be seen from the Moon after he traveled back from the Moon, he answered he saw nothing.
What protection is there for the Great Wall?: From the late 1970s to the early 1980s, a number of local laws and regulations were issued to protect the Great Wall.

The so called "ten thousand li Great Wall" starts from Hushan in Liaoning in the east and ends at Jiayuguan Pass in Gansu in the west, across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus, spanning about 8851.8 kilometers, as if a spiral dragon lies on the vast land of China. Dating back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC), the Great Wall has a long history of more than 2,000 years, left a great number of cultural relics and ruins despite the disappear of some sections of walls. In 1987, the Great Wall was listed into World Cultural Heritage.

Although the Great Wall is no longer regarded as military defense architecture, it remains profound historical significance. Currently, some sections of Great Walls have bee opened to public as attractions which focus the attention from the world, such as the Great Wall at Badaling and the Great Wall at Mutianyu boast appealing sceneries.

Top of The Great Wall

The most visited section: Great Wall at Badaling in Beijing
The most western section: Jiayu Pass in Gansu Province
The most eastern section: Hushan Great Wall in Liaoning Province
The most western section in Han Great Wall: Yumen Pass in Gansu Province
The best preserved section: Simatai Great Wall in Beijing
The highest watchtower: Wangjing Tower, with the altitude of 986 meters
The earliest section: built in Qi State during the Waring States Period, Miyun County in nowadays (E116°34.5′, N36°21.6′)
The most dangerous section of Ming Dynasty: Jiankou Great Wall in Beijing
The section with the most fortresses: Wulong Gou (boundary of Hebei and Shanxi)
The section involved the most counties and the section where occurred the most frequent wars: Zhangjiakou
The highest section: Zhangjiakou (with altitude of over 2,000 meters)
The First Pass under Heaven: Shanhaiguan Great Wall in Qinhuangdao
The longest fully-restored section open to tourists: the Great Wall at Mutianyu

Take a Tour to See Great Wall Now:
1 Day Great Wall & Summer Palace
10 Days Hong Kong, Guilin, Xi'an, Beijing Selection Tour
8 Days Beijing Xi'an Shanghai Classic Tour
More China Package Tours and China City Tours