Beijing Planetarium

Beijing Planetarium

The Beijing Planetarium is an astronomy museum in Beijing, China. The Planetarium comprises two main buildings, Building A & B. Building A, which was built in 1957, contains the Celestial Theater, an Eastern Exhibition Hall and a Western Exhibition Hall. It was the first large-scale planetarium in China, and at one time the only planetarium in Asia.

English Name: Beijing Planetarium
Chinese Name: 北京天文馆
Attraction Type:  Beijing Attraction, Planetarium
Best Time to Visit: Whole year
Recommended Visiting Time: about 3 hours
Admission Fee: CNY 10-45
Address in English:  No. 138 Xizhimen Outer Street, Xicheng District, Beijing
Address in Chinese: 北京西城区西直门外大街138号

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Why is the Beijing Planetarium so Special?

The Beijing Planetarium is an astronomy museum in Beijing, China. The Planetarium comprises two main buildings, Building A & B. Building A, which was built in 1957, contains the Celestial Theater, an Eastern Exhibition Hall and a Western Exhibition Hall. It was the first large-scale planetarium in China, and at one time the only planetarium in Asia. Building B contains a digital space theater, 3D and 4D theaters, several exhibition halls and two observatories.

Where is the Beijing Planetarium?

Beijing Planetarium is situated at Xizhimen Outer Street, Xicheng District in Beijing.

How to Get There

  • Take Subway Line 4 and get off at Dongwuyuan (Beijing Zoo) Station. Get out of Exit D and you can see the tourist center of Beijing Planetarium.
  • Take bus 27, 87, 105, 107, 111, 332, 347, 360, 362, 534, 563, 632, Special Line 4 or 19, Yuntong 104, Yuntong 105 or Yuntong 106 and get off at Dongwuyuan Station.
  • Take bus 7, 15, 16, 19, 45, 65, 102, 103, 334, 360, or 695 and get off at Dongwuyuan Hub Station.

Exhibition Hall A

In the center of the Exhibition Hall A, there is a Foucault pendulum reflecting the earth’s rotation. The exhibition hall on the west side displays an astronomy knowledge exhibition. The lecture hall on the east side often holds academic exchanges and reports on popularizing astronomy knowledge. There are two observatories in the courtyard, one of which is equipped with a telescope with a diameter of 13cm, through which you can watch the moon, planets, nebulae, star clusters and observe sunspots in the daytime. The other is the chromosphere Observatory, which uses the chromosphere telescope to observe and photograph changes in the chromosphere layer of the sun. There is also an astronomical square on the west side, displaying outdoor observation instruments.

Exhibition Hall B

Exhibition Hall B (New Hall) was officially opened at the end of 2004. There are three popular science theaters: Cosmos theater, 4D theater and 3D theater, as well as various popular science education facilities such as astronomy exhibition hall, sun Observatory, mass Observatory and astronomy classroom. Among them, the 18-meter radius cosmos theater has a standard hemispheric all-sky screen, which can present a three-dimensional sky screen effect for 200 audiences at the same time. 

Useful Travel Tips

  • Opening  Hours:
    Wednesday to Friday: 9:30 – 15:30
    Saturday, Sunday, summer and winter holidays, Children’s Day, legal holidays: 9:30 – 16:30
  • Closed on Monday and Tuesday and from 28th of the 12th lunar month to 1st of 1st lunar month
  • Ticket sale stops half an hour before the planetarium is closed.
  • Ticket Fare: Children under 3.9 feet (1.2m) enjoy free entry to the exhibition halls. They can buy discounted tickets for theaters.
    Exhibition Hall A＆B CNY 10
    Space Theater CNY 45  (Discounted: CNY 35)
    Universe Theater CNY 45  (Discounted: CNY 35)
    4D Science Theater CNY 30  (Discounted: CNY 20)
    3D Dynamic Theater CNY 30  (Discounted: CNY 20)
  • Children under 3.3 feet (1.0m) are not allowed to enter the theaters.

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