I did the Beijing Hotspot sites in a 3.5 days site hopping bonanza. Most sites are well connected and quite touristy. The only site that takes you off the beaten path is the Peking Man Site, a bit at least. While still within the greater Beijing metropolitan area it feels like a world apart from modern Beijing.

As is the case with most prehistoric sites, there isn’t all that much to see. The early humans of the area lived in caves close to a river. You can peek into the caves and hike around the hill. But that’s more or less it. On top there is a museum nearby showing some of the findings.

To me the thrill of the visit came from venturing out into the country side and understanding how far back human activity in the Beijing area goes.

Logistics

At the time of my visit the metro to Suzhuang was still under construction. You would still need to take a bus from the metro station anyhow, so I would simply take the bus from Beijing. As stated by previous reviews you can go with the 917 or 836. I think the 836 is the express bus with very few stops, so I would take that one.

While technically correct that you can get on the bus near the Temple of the Heavenly Gate, I think it’s way simpler to hop on at one of the metro stations along the western bound highway out of town (Liuiliqiao East, Guang'anmen Inner). The data on google maps seems correct.

The bus will not take you into town, but drop you off at the town entry. Seeing the site is on the other side of the town you have a bit of walking to do. Alternatively there a local buses running along the main street that you can board.

Notes

• You can see the famous Marco Polo bridge from the highway.