Wangfujing

Wangfujing Shopping Area is a prestigious partly pedestrianised shopping street popular with both tourists and locals. It is located It is located in the Dongcheng district of Beijing, east of the Forbidden City and is one of the capitals most famous shopping streets. The Street starts from Wangfujung Nankou where the Oriental Plaza and the Beijing Hotel are located on Chang’an Street and finishes at Sun Dong An Plaza by the Beijing Foreign Languages Bookstore.

The shopping area is one of China’s oldest and most famous commercial areas inviting locals, out-of-towners and of course many tourists shopping. Since its complete renovation in 1999, the Wangfujing shopping area displays an interesting combination of traditional Chinese architecture, Chinese culture, modern style infrastructure and Western steel buildings reflecting China’s rapidly growing economy and commercial needs.

Covering an area of 810 square meters the street is a key component of a Beijing shopping experience. The street is home to approximately 280 famous old Beijing brands such as Shengxifu Hat Store, Tongshenghe Shoe Store and the Wuyutai Tea House. The street also contains modern shopping malls, such as the Oriental Plaza, including a wealth of stores from all over the world. Apart from its numerous department stores, souvenir shops there are whole side streets full of colourful Chinese goodies and food stalls selling exotic animals such as seahorse, silkworm and scorpion on skewers.

Wangfujing is home to the Wangfujing Bookstore, one of Beijing’s largest bookstores. This store is a must for any avid reader. Wangfujing shopping area is a very lively and highly visited area during the day, but it is astonishing how busy it gets in the evening when the neon lights of the advertising signs are switched on. A visit to Wangfujing is an essential part of any Beijing shopping trip.