Like a giant dragon, the Great Wall meanders over deserts, grasslands, and mountains until finally arriving at its destination - Bohai Gulf. Zigzagging 8,851.8 km (5,500 miles) from Jiayuguan Pass in the west to Hushan Mountain in Liaoning in the east, the wall crosses over ten provinces and cities, including Qinghai, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, and Liaoning. The Great Wall had witnessed many changes through several thousand years of history, from the Warring States to the Ming Dynasty.
Famous Sections of Great Wall
Beijing Great Wall:
In Beijing, there are many relics of the Great Wall, most of which were built around 1540. The notable sections include:
 | | Badaling Great Wall, Beijing | |  | | Shandan Great Wall, Gansu | |
Gansu Great Wall:
In Gansu, numerous cultural relics of the Silk Road can be found, such as the Mogao Caves and Maijishan Grottoes. Also it played a very important role in the ancient military defense. A lot of Great Wall relics have been found in this region. The most famous one is Jiayuguan Pass in Jiayuguan City, which is the western beginning of the Ming Great Wall. Additionally, the Overhanging Great Wall is worth a visit.
Hebei Great Wall:
There are a large number of Great Wall relics in Hebei Province. Most of them were built in the Ming Dynasty. In the east of Hebei stand the Great Wall of Laolongtou, Shanhaiguan Pass, Xifengkou&Sandaoguan, Zijingguan, Jiaoshan, Qingshankou, Malanguan, etc. In northwestern Hebei, you can see Zhangjiakou, Changyukou and Qingbiankou Great Wall. And in the southwest of Hebei, Wulonggou, Futuyu, and Chajianling can be seen.
 | | Shanhaiguan Pass, Hebei | |  | | Great Wall in Inner Mongolia | |
Inner Mongolia Great Wall:
Inner Mongolia boasts the largest number of Great Wall relics. Its total length covers one third of the whole length of China Great Wall. However, a great many remains were destroyed and even some of them have died out. For instance, in the area of Juyanhai Lake, ten fire towers have disappeared.
Liaoning Great Wall:
It's thought that the eastern beginning of the Great Wall is the Shanhaiguan Pass in Hebei. However, in recent years, people find that its beginning is in Liaoning Province. Most of the Great Wall in Liaoning was built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In that period, the Great Wall was divided into nine districts, called Nine Important Towns on the Border. Liaoning Great Wall was administered by Liaodong Town. Now, it's uncommon to see its relics. The remains mainly distribute in the northwest of this region.
Hushan Jiumenkou  | | Jiumenkou Great Wall, Liaoning | |  | | Hongguozi Great Wall in Ningxia | |
Ningxia Great Wall:
In Ningxia, the Sanguankou (Three Passes) Great Wall is highly recommended. In the Ming Dynasty, the Tartar and Wala tribes of Mongolia often came into the northwest China from Sanguankou. For the sake of safety, Sanguankou Great Wall was built.
Shaanxi Great Wall:
In Shaanxi, the Great Wall mainly distributes in Shenmu, Fugu, Jingbian and Hengshan in Yulin, Wuqi and Fuxian in Yanan and Dali, Heyang, Pucheng, Chengcheng, Baishui and Haicheng in Weinan. In length of more than 2,000 kilometers, Shaanxi Great Wall was built ranging from the Warring States Period to the Ming Dynasty.
 | | Zhenbeitai, Shaanxi | |  | | Yanmenguan Pass, Shanxi | |
Shanxi Great Wall:
In history, Shanxi was a point of battle. Thus, a lot of Great Wall remains can be found there. The Great Wall there comprises inner and outer Great Wall. The inner Great Wall is the second line of defence. In Shanxi, many famous passes can be found, such as
Tianjin Great Wall:
The Great Wall in Tianjin was mostly built in the Ming Dynasty. And most of them were stone-structured. Only the Huangyaguan Great Wall was made up of bricks. Tianjin Great Wall has a complete defensive system, including walls, terraces, passes, fire towers, fire pools, ovens and fortresses.
Huangyaguan Taipingzhai
Top China Tours including the Visit to Great Wall:
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