Living in China - Apartments of the Beijing Hutong School

The Hutong School accommodates its students in authentic Beijing neighborhood apartments in the city-centre. Our apartments have 3 to 4 bedrooms and are all equipped with standard furniture and kitchen equipment, TV, DVD-player, telephone, internet connection, and 24-hour hot water. Students will be accommodated in single rooms while sharing bathroom, kitchen, living room etc. 

Our apartments are conveniently located in the Dongzhimen/Beixinqiao area and in Xizhimen, all within biking distance (10-15 minutes) from the Hutong School. The areas around the apartments are very lively and characterized by lots of small shops, authentic Chinese restaurants (especially in the 'Lantern Street' or Guijie) and cozy chill-out bars, especially around the lake of Houhai.

Please click here for more information about the location of the Hutong School apartments.   

The Hutong Experience: Diving into Old Beijing

The team of the Hutong School gathers people with a real interest in China. Although the Middle Kingdom is turning into a critical hub of the modern world at an incredible speed, it also carries the traces of its ancient history. Beijing's landscape is one typical illustration of the continuous interaction between the swell of the past and the waves of modernity. Skyscrapers made of glass border the traditional life of those narrow lanes called "Hutong" (胡同). These "Hutong" are the source of traditional Chinese living and characterized by the "Siheyuan", traditional Chinese courtyards.

More about the Hutongs…

Hutongs are narrow alleys which were very typical in Beijing starting from the Yuán (元) Dynasty. The word “hútòng” also has a Mongolian origin, and does not have any meaning in Chinese, at least not one that makes any sense. You can still see many Hutongs in the old city, but unfortunately they are rapidly vanishing.

Tŭ’ér Hútòng, where many Hutong School apartments are located, is one of those Hutongs which were totally torn down in the nineties, and new, six-storey buildings were built in place of the old ones. This way you have the possibility to live in modern apartments that are up to the expectations of a Western student, but still be located just a few steps away from the “real” hutongs, where life is almost like several decades ago. If you want to get a taste of old Beijing, all you have to do is cross the road in any direction as you walk out of the compound where the Hutong School is located. The hutongs around us are packed with restaurants, the owners of which come from various parts of China, hence every one of them has a different taste to offer. Tired of Chinese food? McDonald’s is two minutes away, and not much further, in a genuine hutong is the Passby Bar, which offers a selection of Pizzas and pastries.