Forbidden City Tickets: How to Book, and What Sells Out
Forbidden City tickets have to be reserved in advance — turning up at the gate and paying on the spot isn't an option. A standard adult ticket costs 60 RMB in peak season, and dates open exactly seven days ahead. If you're visiting on a short stay or a visa-free transit, sort this out first and build the rest of your day around it.
How to book Forbidden City tickets
Every visitor needs a reservation before entry, including the ones who get in free.
- Choose your date and check it isn't a Monday, when the palace is closed.
- Reserve on the official Palace Museum booking site using the passport you will travel with. Foreign passports are accepted, as are Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan travel permits.
- Select a timed entry slot.
- Enter through the Meridian Gate with the same passport. Nothing is printed; the passport is the ticket.
Booking direct is the cheapest route, and it is where most overseas visitors get stuck: the reservation flow runs in Chinese and expects a Chinese payment method. Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with your home bank card before you travel and that step stops being a problem. A ticket agency can reserve on your behalf instead, usually for a service fee on top of the face price. A tour operator is different: on our private Forbidden City tour the reservation and the admission are both inside the tour price.
When tickets are released, and what goes first
Tickets go on sale seven days ahead, at 20:00 Beijing time. The slots for next Tuesday appear at 8pm the previous Tuesday, which is the moment to be at your phone if the date is one you cannot move.
Each passport can hold one ticket per day and one order covers a maximum of five people. No new inventory is released on the day itself, though tickets other people cancel do go back into the pool, which is the only way a sold-out date opens up again. Morning slots go before afternoon ones on almost any date, and the first week of October, when the country is on holiday, can be gone the same evening it is released.
Cancelling has its own rules, and they bite. A refund is free up to midnight the day before, and until 20:00 on the day itself it still refunds but counts as a cancellation. Three cancellations inside 180 days lock the account out of booking for 60 days.
Forbidden City ticket prices by visitor type
The Palace Museum charges by season. Peak runs April 1 to October 31 and off-peak November 1 to March 31, with concessions that are worth checking before you assume your family qualifies.
| Visitor category | Peak season (Apr 1 - Oct 31) | Off-peak (Nov 1 - Mar 31) |
|---|---|---|
| Adult (standard) | 60 RMB | 40 RMB |
| Student, 18+ with undergraduate-level education or below | 5 RMB | 5 RMB |
| Senior, 60 and over | 30 RMB | 20 RMB |
| Under 18 (Chinese citizens, incl. HK/Macau/Taiwan, and foreign permanent residents) | Free, reservation required | Free, reservation required |
Two galleries inside the palace are ticketed separately and are not covered by the ticket above: the Treasure Gallery and the Clock Gallery, 10 RMB each. Add them when you book rather than at the door.
A few conditions matter for foreign families. Free under-18 entry applies to Chinese citizens and foreign permanent residents, not to overseas tourist children, who pay the standard rate. Any child under 14 must be with an adult, and one adult can bring at most three children under 14. Students need a valid student ID or school letter, and adult-education programs don't qualify. Whether an overseas student card passes is decided at the gate, so budget for the full price if you are travelling from abroad.
What's closed at the Forbidden City in 2026
Two areas are shut for conservation work as of September 2026, both listed on the museum's own announcements page:
- Gate of Supreme Harmony (Taihe Gate): closed for building repairs from August 3, 2026, with no reopening date announced.
- Yanxi Palace: closed for a protective survey from September 1 to October 31, 2026, reopening November 1.
Taihe Gate is the one to plan around. It sits on the central axis between the outer court and the Hall of Supreme Harmony, not off to one side, so while the route through the palace still works, the gate is behind hoarding and the classic approach to the main hall is not there at the moment. If one particular hall is the reason you are going, check that page again in the week you travel — these notices go up with little warning.
Entering and moving through the Forbidden City
The palace has run one way from south to north since July 2011. Everyone enters through the Meridian Gate on the south side and leaves through the Gate of Divine Might to the north or the East Glorious Gate to the east, with no route back to where you started.
That one rule decides the shape of your day. Whatever you do next has to be north or east of the palace, which is why the Forbidden City pairs naturally with Jingshan Park directly opposite the north gate and awkwardly with anything back south of Tiananmen. Our Beijing itineraries are built around that exit rather than the entrance.
Forbidden City opening hours
Doors open at 8:30am year-round. In peak season the last admission is 4pm and the palace closes at 5pm; off-peak the last admission is 3:30pm and closing is 4:30pm. The palace is closed all day every Monday except on public holidays, which accounts for more wasted Beijing mornings than any other rule here.
The best conditions are the ones nobody books for: a weekday in the off-peak window between November and March, when the ticket is 40 RMB, the courtyards are not full and the light on the red walls is at its best. The worst are the national holidays, above all the first week of October. If your dates are fixed in summer, take the 8:30 slot and walk the central axis before the day heats up.
How long to spend inside the Forbidden City
Four hours is the working figure. That is how long our own private visit takes to cover the central axis plus the eastern and western palace sections at a pace that still allows stops. Self-guided, give yourself at least a long morning.
This is why the slot you pick matters more than it looks. Take an afternoon one off-peak and the arithmetic stops working: a 1pm entry in November leaves three and a half hours before the gates shut, and you will be walking the last stretch to make the exit rather than looking at it. Aim for one of the first slots of the day.
FAQ
Where can I buy Forbidden City tickets?
Reserve them in advance through the official Palace Museum system with your passport, or book through a licensed tour operator or ticket agency. Same-day tickets at the gate aren't sold.
How much does a Forbidden City ticket cost?
A standard adult ticket is 60 RMB from April 1 to October 31 and 40 RMB from November 1 to March 31. Students pay 5 RMB, seniors 60 and over pay 30 RMB in peak season, and under-18 Chinese citizens and foreign permanent residents enter free with a reservation.
How far in advance can I book Forbidden City tickets?
Seven days, no earlier, and there is no waiting list or early access for overseas visitors. Set a reminder for 20:00 Beijing time one week before your date.
How much time is needed for the Forbidden City?
Four hours covers the central axis and the side palaces at a reasonable pace. Budget longer if you add the Treasure Gallery or the Clock Gallery, which are ticketed separately.
What if my date is already sold out?
Keep checking, because tickets other people cancel return to the pool and can appear at any point before your date. If nothing comes back, move the Forbidden City to another day and leave the rest of Beijing where it is.
Can foreigners book Forbidden City tickets with a passport?
Yes. The booking system accepts foreign passports as well as Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan travel permits, and the passport you book with is the one that scans you in.
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- Beijing Hutong Guide: 4 Walking Routes Through the Real Beijing: where to spend the afternoon after you exit north.
- How to Use Alipay in China as a Foreign Tourist: the payment set-up the booking system expects.
- China's 240-Hour Visa-Free Transit: The Complete 2026 Guide: whether you can come at all without a visa.
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Fitting it into the rest of Beijing
Everything else in Beijing can move; this cannot. The Great Wall, the hutongs and the Temple of Heaven have no release window and no daily cap, so fix the palace date first and arrange the rest behind it.
If you would rather not sit up for the release, we make the reservation for guests and admission is included in the tour price — on the private Forbidden City tour that covers the Treasure Gallery too, and the two-icons day pairs the palace with a second site.
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