Simatai by bus 2016

Hi Brett, I visited the wall last month. The wall and the ancient town nearby are both worth your time. The directions mentioned above are correct. Youc an refer to it. I took 980 Express Line from Dongzhimen and got off at Miyun Xidaqiao. Then I changed to bus Mi51 to the town and walked to the wall thereafter.

Hi, thanks for the reply, just one more question, did you book tickets for the wall before you went or did you just turn up and buy them when you arrived? I have read conflicting reports about the tickets!
Also did you return to Beijing the same day, same buses just in reverse?
Thanks again

Thanks for the reply, good to know that the bus is doable.
Just a few extra details would be a great help.
How long did it take on the buses altogether from leaving center of the city to arriving in simatai village? And is it doable as a day trip, to get there have enough time on the wall to walk around and make it back to downtown, same day?

Brett, you'd better book the tickets beforehand, or your visit to the Wall may not be guaranteed. The booking can be finished on the website mentioned on this page, with your passport.
Generally, 1-day trip may be a little bit tight. You should need to spend nearly 6h getting to the Wall from Dongzhimen and 3h on the Wall; on the other hand, buses at Miyun District stop operating at around 15:00. It may be quite hard to catch the last bus to Miyun Xidaqiao.
But since this section provides a night tour, staying one night there is also a brilliant idea. You don't need to make a reservation for the night tour. Tickets can be purchased at the ticket office when you get there.