Travelers now have the rare opportunity to visit China’s Forbidden City, as it opens for the first time in 94 years for night-time visits. Also known as the Palace Museum, the Forbidden City is opening its doors to the public on two nights, February 19 and 20. The Forbidden City usually closes to tourists at 4:30 pm during winter months, and 5 pm during summer. Only VIP guests are granted the honor of visiting this beautiful place after dark. But all that is going to change now.
The Forbidden City’s night-time visits are part of Lantern Festival, which is an extension of the Lunar New Year holiday. Guests will enjoy a plethora of great attractions, such as lantern shows, orchestra performances, and ancient Chinese paintings. The Lantern Festival was traditionally celebrated by the Imperial families here in the Forbidden City in the days of old. Soon, the tradition of celebrating Lantern Festival here ended due to fear of fire outbreak that could potentially destroy the wooden structures that are preserved here since ages.
Visitors can enjoy only certain sections of the Forbidden City during the night tour, and these areas are as follows – Meridian Gate exhibition hall, the Gate of Supreme Harmony, the East Wall, and the Gate of Divine Might. Building the Forbidden City of China was completed back in 1420, and was home to emperors, while also serving as the political nerve of the country for a long time. The Forbidden City is listed by UNESCO as the location of the largest preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. It was also declared as a World Heritage Site.
