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People in Beijing take shopping very seriously, almost as serious as athletes take their sports. For several hundred years, Beijingers have been coming back to the same street of shops near the famous Beijing Emperor Hotel for items ranging from paintings to daily-use items.

An attestation to this claim is an old Beijing saying: buy shoes at Nei Lian Sheng, hats at Ma Ju Yuan, fabrics at Rui Fu Xiang, and tea at Zhang Yi Yuan, which are all well-known brands on the ancient street of Da Zha Lan.

Right near the Forbidden City, it’s very easy to find Da Zha Lan and the shops that have been in business for hundreds of years.

Just go south from the Beijing Redwall Hotel, past Tian’anmen Square, and you can’t miss this huge street.

Being the oldest commercial street in Beijing, the history of Da Zha Lan traces back 600 years ago to the early Ming dynasty. The name sounds a somewhat offbeat, meaning ‘big fences’.Around 600 years ago, Administors of Beijing ordered fences to be built to prevent thieves disturbing the city. Fences erected around Da Zha Lan were taller and stronger than elsewhere, and thus gave the area this name.

Today, as it was in the past, the street is packed with teahouses, theatres, tailor shops, silk stores, restaurants, and handicraft shops. They stands in a parade of ancient buildings that immediatly bring you back in time!

The Shops

Nei Lian Sheng

The 160-year old shop Nei Lian Sheng near the Beijing International Hotel deals in handmade cloth shoes. Their shoes are renowned for the outstanding craftsmanship and superior comfort.

In the past, the major patrons of shoes made in Nei Lian Sheng were offials working in imperial palace nearby. Not only are the shoes are of outstanding quality, but also the name suggests something all officials dreamed of: rising along the ladder of power.

Today, workers apply techinques perfected throughout the past century to make customized shoes. The late Chinese leader Deng Xiao Ping used to be a big lover of Nei Lian Sheng shoes and had many pairs made in the shop.

Ma Ju Yuan

The hat shop Ma Ju Yuan was built in 1817. Originally a small hat stall, the shop came to make the ‘red turf hat’ worn by Qing government officials.

That was probably the reason why old Beijingers considered owing a hat bought in Ma Ju Yuan an honor.

In the years that followed, the shop made hats for princes, religious figures as well as numberous foreign leaders. Even today, seasoned Beijingers prefer Ma Ju Yuan for their hats.

Rui Fu Xiang

Established in 1891, the shop sells all kinds of top-quality fabric: cotton, silk, woolen cloth, and so on.

Few people know that the cloth used to make China’s first flag to be raised in its nation-founding ceremony in 1949, was actually supplied by Rui Fu Xiang.

Tailors of the shop make some of the most gorgeous cheongsams you are likely to find in Beijing. Numerous international travelers are amazed by their products and can’t help but owning one of their own to show off back home.

Zhang Yi Yuan

In 1900, Zhang Yi Yuan came into business. Since then, customers have been keeping coming back for some of the best tea they can find in Beijing. Every year, they travel around China to buy tea leaves directly from tea growers. This allows them to have tea leaves grown in a natual enviroment and picked at its best time to pick.

They bring into play some exclusive techniques to process tea leaves, and made them the favorite of numerous tea lovers. Their special jasmine tea is now sold at a low price.

Da Guan Cinema

Da Guan Cinema, Beijing’s first cinema, was established in 1905. It is even found in the Guinness Book of World Records for its length of staying in business.

Today, the cinema maintains its original decor, and as old Beijingers used to do half century ago, you can order a cup of tea while watch your favorite movie. Every day, more visitors come to admire it and step in for a unique experience of watching movies in Beijing’s oldest cinema.