Originally Posted by
Happy
Why is Ming Tomb is a waste of time? It is because now not well-maintained and neglected? Or it is the time wasted in transportation because it is not closed to Muitangyu?
...
If we need to hang around airport for so long, we might just well go to our hotel to settle in and then visit Mutiangyu on another day. I know about the 916 Express bus and then change to local transportation method, as well as the much slower direct bus that runs only 2 times going in the morning and then 2 times returning in the afternoon.
If the tour isn't a good idea, then we would go for the 916 route.
1. The Ming Tombs simply aren't very interesting for most people with limited time, and are out of the way... though not horribly so. I think the bottom line is that there are better ways to spend the remaining portion of your Great Wall day.
2. I saw JPDM's suggestion of hanging around the airport until 6a or so before heading up to Mutianyu, and this is certainly NOT how I would play it. Instead, I'd probably grab a taxi from the airport to the Mutianyu area and get breakfast plus maybe a shower there. Going to a hotel in the city first would also be an option. Regarding the 916 bus, were you trying to pull our leg?