An old photo of Wangfujing Street
Plan your Beijing tour? As a first-time visitor to Beijing, you will definitely spare some time strolling the traffic-free commercial Wangfujing Street to feel the vibe of the modern Beijing.
The No.01 street in Beijing is a 810-meter walking street home to several big shopping malls, such Oriental Plaza, Beijing Department Store, Sun Dong An Plaza, the New China Woman and Children Department etc..
It also has two large bookstores – the Wangfujing Xinhua Bookstore and the Beijing Foreign Languages Bookstore.
Today I come across an photo of Wangfujing which seems it was taken in 1970s on the website obj.cc (Old Beijing). The photo also marks the original 13 places during that old period. It makes me nostalgic for the familiar street and feel the desire to explore the photo a little further.
1. The Literary Federation Building (文联大楼)
This was the original building for China Federation of Literary and Art Circles(CFLAC) during the period from Nov, 1956 to Sept, 1969. Now the present building address for CFLAC is at Building 32, Compound 1, Beishatan, Beijing.
The original circled No.01 Place on the photo is close to the present address of Crowne Plaza Beijing Wangfujing.
2. East Cathedral (东堂)
No change for the church marked as No.02 Place on the photo. This is Dongtang Cathedral ( or East Cathedral), which is also known as St. Joseph’s Church or Wangfujing Church. It is located on the most commercial street in Beijing – Wangfujing Street ( No.74 Wangfujing Street).
For more information on the church, please check out the link: Catholic Mass Times Beijing.
3. The Golden City Building (金城大厦)
The building on the photo marked as No.03 Place no longer exists in the spot, basically it has been incorporated into the present Sun Dong An Plaza.
4. Department Stores (百货大楼)
This time-honored department store still stands there, elegantly upgraded, having given lingering nostalgic memory for several generations.
5.Blue Sky Fashion Shop (蓝天时装店)
There were two great fashion shops in Wangfujing in Beijing at that time, one called Hongdu Fashion Store and the other blue Sky Fashion Store. These two shops came from Shanghai to Beijing.
The Blue Sky Fashion Store now has been an outlet in the bigher shopping mall known an Sun Dong An Plaza.
6. Wangfujing Hengdeli Watches & Clocks Shop (亨得利)
Hengdeli Watches & Clocks Chain Shops still have an outlet in Wangfujing: No.176, Wangfujing, Dongcheng District, Beijing. Tel: 010-65238482
7. Tongshenghe Shoe Store 同升和
Founded in 1902, The Tongshenghe Shoe Store is famous for its shoes and hats.
The century-old name “Tongshenghe” has returned to Wangfujing Street in Beijing.
Dong Dachuan, general manager of Tongshenghe shoe store, which was founded in 1902, said that The time-honored brand is an excellent representative of Traditional Chinese culture and contains the unique spiritual and aesthetic values of the Chinese nation.
8.Dong An Market (东安市场)
Located at the original place marked as No.8 Place, the old Dong An Market has been morphed into a huge shopping mall known as Sun Dong An Plaza .
It is one of the busiest shopping centers in Beijing. The spaces are leased by tenants that include an internationally known department store, many international brand outlets the first eight-screen cineplex in Beijing.
9.Beijing Photo Studio 中国照相馆(王府井店)
China Photo Studio (Wangfujing), located at 180 Wangfujing Street. It is a time-honored photo studio in China.
It was officially opened on September 25, 1956. It still is open to the public to this day.
10. Goldfish Alley West 金鱼胡同西口
The Goldfish Lane is well known in Beijing. The west end of the lane is the north start of the 1600 meters traffic-free Wangfujing Street.
The Goldfish Alley is centrally located in Beijing with several luxury hotels such as Palace Hotel, Hilton Hotel and Novotel Beijing Peace.
11. Dengshidajie West (灯市大街西口)
At the west end of Dengshixidajie Street (dajie here means “Street”), there are two high-end hotels — Tianlun Dynasty Hotel and Crowne Plaze Hotel Wangfujing.
12. Medical Equipment Wholesale Store（医疗器械批发商店）
Its name has been changed, now known as Beijing Wangfujing Medical Equipment Store
Address: 210 Qianmen Street, Dongcheng District, View the map
Telephone: (010)65240122
13. Shuaifuyuan Alley Garden (帅府园)
The west of Shuaifuyuan Alley ends at Wangfujing Street. it is said that it was originally the house for Tang Dynasty General Luo Yifu seat.
In the Republic of Chinait was used for the garrison headquarters. In 1965, when the name was rectified, it was renamed Shuaifuyuan Hutong (Alley). During the cultural Revolution, it was once renamed anti-Imperialist Hospital Front Street. Now back to Shuaifuyuan Alley.
Tip: Hassle-free Beijing Guided Tours
If you don’t want to go the do-it-yourself route and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours, here are some options for guided tours to Beijing:
Car Rental in Beijing
Beijing Day Tour
Beijing Tour Packages
Beijing Winter Tour
Great Wall Tour
Beijing Tours
China City Tours
China Tour
Further Readings
Top 10 Attractions in Beijing
How to Visit Forbidden City
How to Visit Temple of Heaven
How to Visit Summer Palace
How to Visit Ming Tombs
How to Visit the Great Wall of China
How to Visit Tiananmen Square
How to Visit Hutongs
How to Visit Olympic Sites
Top 10 Markets in Beijing
Top 10 Shopping Malls in Beijing
Beijing Shopping
Wangfujing Night Snack Street
Qianmen Commercial Street
Beijing Huguosi Street
Any questions, just drop a line.
