Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
when you do a search on those sites, you may come up with nothing. Your best bet is to
walk around the area and walk in to real estate agents. Homelink (
www.homelink.com.cn
)
and Wo Ai Wo Jia (
www.5i5j.com
)
are two of the biggest, and there may be someone
in the office who speaks English. Alternatively, try Chinese house hunting site Ganji (
ht-
tp://bj.ganji.com/fang1
)
. Be warned, though; this isn't really a Western zone, but it is the
choice of Beijing's wealthy, so apartment prices are roughly on par with Dongcheng and
Sanlitun, particularly for anywhere north of Chang'an Jie.
You know you're in Xizhimen when you can see the iconic arching towers of CapitaLand
Mall (
凯德
MALL), a bounteous shopping plaza that sits atop Xizhimen subway station
(Lines 2, 4, and 13) and next to Beijing North Railway Station. Most activity in the area
happens right here at this transport node. There are Western fast-food chains, a good super-
market, and several cinemas—Beijing Youth Palace Cinema (
www.bjqng.com.cn
)
and Ch-
ina Film Cinema (
www.cfc.com.cn
), which, despite the name, shows more than just local
films. In itself, Xizhimen is not especially picturesque or interesting—it's all about trans-
port. From here you can jump on the subway to get to the university areas of Zhongguancun
and Wudaokou, to head east to Gulou or Dongzhimen, or south to Beijing South Railway
Station. If you're prepared to cycle, the bike lane along the North Second Ring Road and
the adjacent river, from Xizhimen to Dongzhimen, is a particularly smooth and pleasant
ride early in the morning.
Housing
Be clear about what you're after and the amount you're willing to spend. There are premium
complexes and there are downright dumps. To keep in close to the area, include searches of
surrounding neighborhoods, such as Jishuitan and Xinjiekou. Haidian district cuts in very
close to Xizhimen, too, so when hunting, don't disregard a search just because it seems to
be in a separate district. There are several reasonable apartment complexes northwest across
the river in Haidian, walking distance from Xizhimen station, including Chang He Wan (
长
河湾
) and Diamond Waterfront (
钻河公馆
).
Unlike other smaller subway stations, which have apartments virtually over the top of
them, Xizhimen station is surrounded by heavy roads, so walks to the station can be a little
tedious. A common practice is to find something more peaceful a little farther back and ride
a bicycle to the station. Expect to pay around RMB5,000-6,500 for a Chinese-style two-
bedroom apartment and RMB8,000-10,000 for a larger, semi-modern apartment.
