72-hour Beijing layover itinerary
Updated: 2026-10
Use 72 hours for one logistics block and two sites. Eligible passports may apply at the airport for up to 240 hours of visa-free transit. The officer decides, and this page does not promise entry.
Seventy-two hours is a plan, not the immigration clock
A useful 72-hour Beijing layover is one logistics block and two sites, with the flight buffer treated as immovable. The name First72 refers to that first-arrival window. It is not the current immigration allowance. Under the National Immigration Administration’s interpretation dated 20 August 2026, ordinary-passport holders from 57 countries may apply at the port for visa-free transit of up to 240 hours. The officer at the port decides. This page does not promise entry. Travelers who are not on that list, and anyone coming to work, study, or report news, need a visa before they fly.
The published conditions are specific. The passport should have at least three months of validity. You need a confirmed onward ticket to a third country or region within 240 hours, and the place you were in immediately before the mainland must differ from the first place you go next. A Geneva–Beijing–Paris routing can fit. A Geneva–Paris–Beijing–Paris routing does not, because the stop before the mainland and the stop after it are the same. The stay is counted from 00:00 on the day after entry. Beijing’s ports include Capital (PEK) and Daxing (PKX). The permitted area includes Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei. Shanghai is outside it.
Who can use a short layover, and who should not board on a hope
The NIA list of 57 countries includes the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and much of Europe, and it changes by official update rather than by blog. Match your passport to the current NIA page before you buy a non-refundable hotel. Apply at the port inspection counter with the onward booking visible. A same-day airside connection is a different, shorter transit and does not let you leave the terminal without a temporary entry permit. Do not book a city hotel on an airside ticket.
People who already hold a Chinese visa or a residence permit do not need the 240-hour application. The itinerary below is the same for them. People who need a visa and do not have one should not treat this page as permission. First72 China does not issue visas, does not meet flights that have not cleared inspection, and does not guarantee that a port officer will grant the transit. If the officer refuses, the layover ends in the terminal.
Block one is the airport, the SIM, and the hotel
Give the arrival half-day to logistics only. Immigration and bags often take 45–90 minutes when the hall is busy, longer if you are applying for visa-free transit and the onward ticket has to be checked. Get data before you leave the hall: a pre-bought eSIM is often a roughly $5–10 budget, and a visitor SIM at China Mobile, China Unicom, or China Telecom commonly starts around ¥100–200. Those are traveler budgets, not tariffs. Then move. At Capital the Airport Express is ¥25 if the last train has not gone (T3 citybound ends at 22:52). At Daxing the ordinary express ride is ¥35 to Caoqiao.
Check in at a licensed hotel and let the desk scan the passport. Bind Alipay or WeChat Pay only after you have a room, and make one charge under ¥30 the same evening. Carry ¥300–500 in cash until that charge works. Do not put the Forbidden City on an overnight arrival. A museum ticket you are too tired to use is a donated fare. Food on this block is whatever is nearest the hotel. A simple meal is often ¥40–80 a person. That is a budget, not a menu.
Block two is one central site, for two or three hours
Spend the full middle day on a single axis: Tiananmen and the Forbidden City. Book a timed entry in the passport name before the day. The palace’s own site shows that day’s price and the slots that remain. Plan two to three hours inside if you are not trying to walk every courtyard. Jingshan, the hill at the north gate, is a 45-minute add-on for the roof view. Skip it if the morning flight already took the legs. Lunch near the site. Dinner in one hutong you can walk to or reach with one short taxi.
A second museum on this day is how the day overruns and the next morning’s airport buffer shrinks. The Temple of Heaven belongs in the next block. Tickets are third-party costs billed at the actual price. First72 China does not hold ticket inventory and does not promise the lowest price. If you want a local with you for this one day, that is a City Day, a separate service fee, and the tickets and fares are still extra.
Block three is a smaller site and a hard departure cutoff
Use the last morning for the Temple of Heaven if the flight is in the afternoon or evening. The main axis takes about 90 minutes, and the park sits on the subway, so you are not waiting on a car. The Summer Palace is larger and farther. Choose it only when the departure is late enough that a delay of 40 minutes does not touch the airport buffer. Then stop. A layover that adds a third famous site usually donates that site to traffic.
For an international departure from Capital, be on the way with three hours before departure. The last Airport Express from Dongzhimen toward the airport is 22:30, so a night flight needs a taxi arranged while your data still works. For Daxing, leave the center 3.5–4 hours before departure. The ordinary fare to the airport is ¥35, and the business carriage is ¥50 under the August 2026 operator rules. Some airline tickets include a free or reduced express ride through 31 December 2026. Check the airline’s app. That ride is not part of a service fee.
One sample clock, for a Capital arrival at 10:00
This clock assumes you are admitted, you land at Capital at 10:00, and you depart Capital about 72 hours later. Hour 0–2: inspection, bags, data. Hour 2–3: Airport Express, ¥25, toward a pre-booked central hotel. Hour 3–5: passport scan, deposit, one small payment-app charge, food. Hour 5–12: stop. The middle day, about hours 22–34: Forbidden City timed entry, two to three hours, then one dinner. The last morning, about hours 46–50: Temple of Heaven, 90 minutes. Leave for the airport three hours before departure. Shift the whole clock if you land at night, and do not keep the Forbidden City on the arrival evening to “stay on schedule.”
A Daxing landing uses the same three blocks and a longer first ride. A Tianjin side trip fits inside the published 240-hour area and does not fit inside a tight 72-hour layover. Skip it. If your onward flight is inside 48 hours rather than 72, delete block three and keep block one. The hotel and the payment code are worth more than a second park. A written version of this plan, built around your actual flight times, is a separate product from someone meeting you on the ground.
FAQ
Is a 72-hour Beijing layover visa-free?
Not as a blanket rule. Eligible ordinary passports from the NIA’s list of 57 countries may apply at the port for up to 240 hours of visa-free transit, under the interpretation dated 20 August 2026. You need a confirmed onward ticket to a different third country or region. The officer decides. A visa is required if you are not eligible. This page does not promise entry.
Can I leave the airport on a 72-hour layover?
Only if you are admitted, either on a visa or on a temporary entry permit such as the 240-hour transit. A same-day airside connection does not let you leave the terminal. Do not book a city hotel until you know which of those you hold.
How early should I leave for the airport?
Three hours before an international Capital departure, and 3.5–4 hours before a Daxing departure. The Capital Airport Express last train from Dongzhimen is 22:30. The Daxing ordinary fare from Caoqiao is ¥35. After the last train, use a taxi and the meter.
What should I skip if the layover shrinks?
Skip the second site first, then skip the Forbidden City, and keep the hotel registration and a working payment code. A 48-hour stay can still do one site if block one finished on the arrival day. It cannot do three sites.
Which First72 China service matches which block?
Trip Plan Only is $20 for a written itinerary and a pre-departure checklist, and it is not someone on the ground. Landing 72h is $90 for the arrival block: SIM or eSIM coaching, payment apps, check-in help, and pickup coordination. City Day is $148 for one full day with a local. Tickets, rooms, and fares are billed at actual cost.
Can I visit Tianjin during the layover?
Tianjin and Hebei are inside the area the Beijing transit FAQ describes for the 240-hour permit. They do not fit a careful 72-hour plan that also includes a central site and an international departure. Stay in Beijing unless the flights give you the longer window and you have already been admitted.
Related guides
Want this handled with you?
Want the arrival block done with you, or the clock written around your flights? Landing 72h is the $90 service fee for the first 72 hours on the ground. Trip Plan Only is $20 if you want the itinerary and checklist without someone meeting you. City Day is $148 for one of the site days. Rooms, tickets, fares, and the carrier plan are billed at actual cost.