Nanluoguxiang is one of the city's most popular hutong and is filled with cafes, bars, restaurants and boutiques. Yang Gang / for China Daily

Panjiayuan market is the place to buy a unique China gift, but be ready to haggle. Wang Weijiang / for China Daily

2. Fragrant Hills Park

Located at the foot of the Western Mountains in the northwestern part of the city, the 825-year-old leafy park is filled with traditional architecture and cultural relics.

Its name derives from the park's highest peak, Xianglu Feng (Incense Burner Peak), a 557-meter hill with two large stones resembling incense burners.

The best time to visit is morning when locals let their hair down and indulge in their favorite physical activities, mostly walking, taichi, jogging, singing and even ballroom dancing. The park opens at 6 am.

3. Panjiayuan Market

More than 4,000 shopkeepers at this thriving market place may have the perfect China gift for you. This second-hand goods market covers 48,500 sq m and is buzzing with bargains. It deals mainly in antiques, arts and crafts and has the reputation of being the most inexpensive antiques market in Beijing.

The middle part of the market is full of semi-covered stalls, whose owners are from every place in China. Because of the little overlap between stalls, it is easy to compare and bargain.

In the western part there is an open-air spot where large Buddhist sculptures are sold out of trucks and nearby there is an antique furniture area, which also sells "cultural revolution" (1966-76) articles.

There is also a high-end antique section area and in the south, there is a narrow lane, where book and scroll sellers operate.

On weekends it is crowded with more than 70,000 people, including 10,000 foreign visitors.

Dozens of international VIPs, such as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Thai Princess Sirindhorn have visited the market.