Discover Zhangjiakou

Zhangjiakou offers several historical and cultural highlights: Dajingmen reflects the history of the Great Wall, Zhangjiakou Fort tells the story of the tea-and-horse trade, and the city museum presents different chapters in the city’s history. If you are looking for a hotel in Zhangjiakou, you can plan your stay around whichever of these topics interests you most.

Dajingmen: A Great Wall pass and trading history

Dajingmen lies on the northern edge of Zhangjiakou’s urban area and was built in 1644. Along with Shanhaiguan, Juyongguan and Jiayuguan, it is one of the four great passes of the Great Wall. Of the four, its name is the only one to include the word “gate.” The Great Wall section and the broad gate built later bring together different historical periods: the section was an important part of Xuanfu’s military defense system during the Ming dynasty. It was first built as a stone wall in the tenth year of the Yongle era, then faced with bricks in the 21st year of the Chenghua era.

Dajingmen was important not only for military reasons. The section also served as a trading post between agricultural areas and grazing lands; the Zhangku trade route developed from here. During the Qing dynasty, the broad Dajingmen gate was built for trade between the Chinese heartland and the steppe. It subsequently became a place of economic and cultural exchange between steppe and agrarian civilizations. Dajingmen therefore offers a way to trace both the region’s defense and trade history.

Its relationship to the landscape is also clear: the Dajingmen section connects the eastern and western Taiping Mountains. This connection adds a tangible link to the surrounding area to the pass’s historical significance, without separating its construction history from its trade history.

Fort and former government residences

Zhangjiakou Fort, also known as Baozili, preserves a relatively intact group of buildings from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The fort is also a historical testament to the tea-and-horse trade. The Zhangjiakou Fort Post Office is located inside the fort. It combines basic postal services with a special commemorative postmark, postcards featuring the historic fortress town, and themed letters and cards about the tea trade route. It also offers postal cultural products related to intangible cultural heritage and a “time capsule” interactive station where visitors can send personal messages to the future. The post office opened on May 29, 2026. Before visiting, check whether it is currently open and its visitor services are available.

Another historical highlight is the former residence of the Governor-General of Chahar, also known as Dewang Mansion. The building is designated a nationally protected cultural heritage site of particular importance and comprises four surviving courtyards with a largely intact layout. It is the only Qing-era administrative building in Zhangjiakou to have survived in relatively complete condition. By the end of the dynasty, 61 governor-generals had served there. During the Republican era, there were a further eight governor-generals and 13 provincial government chiefs; after liberation, the site served as the seat of the Chahar Provincial People’s Government. These successive uses give the building a distinctive place alongside the history of the fort and trade.

Museums and cultural activities

The Zhangjiakou City Museum features four thematic exhibitions: Zhangjiakou’s ancient history, modern revolutionary history, the shared history of Beijing and Zhangjiakou, and the international trade history of the Zhangku tea trade route. The exhibitions present several perspectives side by side, from the city’s history to its trade connections. A museum profile dated September 27, 2023, lists a collection of 3,632 cultural relics: nine first-grade nationally protected items, 99 second-grade items, and 457 third-grade items.

On Mingdekou Street, cultural activities include a folk museum dedicated to oat products, as well as dress-up and photography experiences. The street also combines folk culture experiences with cultural and creative offerings, entertainment, and leisure shopping. In this way, it gives a contemporary form to the historic heyday of the commercial district along the Zhangku trade route. The specific mix of commercial offerings may change.

When planning your trip, Zhangjiakou offers a range of topics to explore separately or together: the construction and defense history of the Great Wall, trade between agricultural areas and the steppe, and the histories of its museums and fort.

Discover more destinations: Handan, Baoding, Shijiazhuang, Chengde, Xingtai, Hengshui, Tangshan, Qinhuangdao.

View the broader travel guide: Hebei.