In 2007, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Landscape and Forestry unveiled a plan to limit the number of people that would have access to the Great Wall each day. As reported by the Shanghai Daily News, the Badaling Section and the Ming Mausoleums Scenic Area of the Great Wall are limited to 53,000 visitors per day. That computes to 1.934 million people per year, but does not include tourist days lost due to holidays.
Of course, the Badaling and Ming Mausoleum areas account for only two of the Great Wall's 16 sections open to modern visitors, according to travelchinaguide.com's Great Wall resource page. For that reason, it's difficult to estimate the number of visitors that visit the entire wall each year. Travelchinaguide.com estimates that tens of millions of visitors have seen the Wall and that more than 370 foreign dignitaries and celebrities have visited the Wall.
Chinatourstailor.com says that most places in China are best suited for tourists in May, September and October, which is when the weather is most favorable. The rest of the year is considered to be the low season for tourism.
Chinatourstailor.com says that the worst time to visit China is during Spring Festival (either in January or February), International Workers Day (May 1-7) or National Day Holiday (Oct. 1-7). These holidays last seven days and that's when natives are out in droves in the country's scenic spots. It makes booking hotels and flights difficult for international tourists.
The Badaling portion of the Wall is open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. each day in the summer and 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. each day in the winter. Admission is CNY 45 (approximately $7 U.S.) from April 1 to Oct. 31, and CNY 40 (approximately $6 U.S.) from Nov. 1 to March 31. A trip to Badaling on the cable car will cost CNY 40 one-way and CNY 60 ($ approximately $9) round-trip. Each section of the Wall has its own admission rate.
