Beijing Celebrity Former Residences · Attraction Listings

Compiled from the official recommended routes of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, organized into two itineraries: the West District Heritage Trail and the East District Cultural Trail. Text is written in a clear, direct style to facilitate translation into English and other languages.

Route One: West District Heritage Trail

1. Beijing Lu Xun Museum (Lu Xun's Former Residence)

Address: 19 Gongmenkou Second Alley, Fuchengmen Inner Street, Xicheng District

Lu Xun purchased this small courtyard house in 1924 and wrote major works here including "Wild Grass" and "Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk." Two jujube trees that he wrote about in his essays still stand in the courtyard. The highlight is his restored study-bedroom — a plain wooden desk, a rattan chair, and yellowed manuscripts evoke the writer bent over his work. The adjoining museum displays personal documents, original manuscripts, and his collection of woodblock prints, tracing the full arc of this founding figure of modern Chinese literature.

2. Li Dazhao's Former Residence

Address: 24 Wenhua Hutong, Xicheng District

This is where Li Dazhao lived longest during his years in Beijing (1920–1924). The small three-sided courtyard has been preserved to reflect life as it was when he was a professor at Peking University. The main hall hosted early meetings of the Society for the Study of Marxism; his bedroom-study still holds a simple bookshelf and an English typewriter. The exhibition focuses on his theoretical writings and revolutionary activities as one of the principal founders of the Communist Party of China — essential context for understanding a turning point in modern Chinese history.

⚠️ Photos pending: Authentic photographs of Li Dazhao's Former Residence are protected by hotlink restrictions on Chinese websites and cannot be downloaded directly. Suggested manual sourcing options:

CNR News photo gallery: news.cnr.cn/dj/20210727/t20210727_525544919.shtml (includes wide-angle courtyard shots, the west-wing meeting room, an old harmonium, and more)

Baidu Baike image gallery: search "Li Dazhao Former Residence Beijing" → Images → filter for high resolution

Xinhua News Agency: search "Xinhua Li Dazhao former residence Beijing"

3. Xu Beihong Memorial Museum

Address: 53 Xinjiekou North Street, Xicheng District

The site was originally Xu Beihong's residence; it was relocated here during subway construction, but his studio has been faithfully restored — the large painting table, palette, and unfinished works remain as he left them. Core holdings include his landmark paintings "Foolish Old Man Removes the Mountains" and his celebrated series of galloping horses, as well as a prized collection of classical Chinese painting and calligraphy spanning the Tang through Qing dynasties. The museum traces the full journey of this master who bridged Chinese and Western art, from his student years in Paris to his leadership of the Central Academy of Fine Arts.

4. Mei Lanfang Memorial Museum

Address: 9 Huguo Temple Street, Xicheng District

Mei Lanfang spent the last decade of his life in this two-courtyard residence (1951–1961). The main hall displays costumes, headdresses, and props associated with his iconic female roles. In the sitting room, photographs of him alongside international figures including Charlie Chaplin document his role in bringing Jingju to the world stage. Crabapple and persimmon trees still fill the courtyard; the bedroom has been preserved as it was — a court robe encrusted with pearls and embroidery hangs on a rack, the most visually arresting exhibit in the museum.

5. Guo Moruo Memorial Museum

Address: 18 Qianhai West Street, Xicheng District

Known informally as the "Peony Courtyard" for the peonies planted throughout the grounds, this large compound was originally a stable belonging to Prince Gong's Estate. Guo Moruo spent his final fifteen years here (1963–1978). The exhibition covers his multiple identities: poet (manuscripts of "Goddess"), historian (oracle bone inscription research materials), and playwright (source materials for his historical dramas). The garden's rockeries, waterways, and covered walkways frame a view of Shichahai Lake, making this as much a garden visit as a museum tour.

6. Soong Ching-ling's Former Residence

Address: 46 Beiyan, Houhai, Xicheng District

This estate was originally the western garden of the mansion belonging to Nalan Mingzhu, a grand secretary under the Kangxi Emperor, where the Qing-dynasty lyric poet Nalan Xingde grew up. Soong Ching-ling lived here from 1963 until her death in 1981. The main building is a charming East-meets-West two-story villa; the ground-floor reception room once hosted multiple foreign heads of state, and the upstairs bedroom remains unchanged. The lakeside garden is shaded by ancient scholar trees and dotted with rockeries. The small museum inside tells the story of her life — from revolutionary companion to honorary president of the People's Republic of China.

Route Two: East District Cultural Trail

7. Lao She Memorial Museum

Address: 19 Fengfu Hutong, Dengshikou West Street, Dongcheng District

Named "Red Persimmon Courtyard" for the two persimmon trees growing in the yard, this is where Lao She lived for sixteen years (1950–1966) and wrote his most celebrated works, including "Dragon Beard Ditch" and "Teahouse." The compact, carefully tended courtyard preserves a main-room study where his writing desk, teaware, and collection of Jingju face masks can still be seen. Fishponds, flowering plants, and rattan chairs recreate the atmosphere of a Beijing literary household — the perfect starting point for understanding the hutong world he depicted in his writing.

8. Mao Dun's Former Residence

Address: 13 Houyuanen Temple Hutong, Dongcheng District

Mao Dun spent his last seven years here (1974–1981), completing his memoir "The Road I Have Traveled." The front courtyard of this two-courtyard compound houses a biographical exhibition; the rear courtyard is preserved as it was in his lifetime — bedroom, sitting room, and study all unchanged. The most moving scene is his study: neatly arranged Chinese and foreign literary titles line the shelves beside the desk at which he wrote. Crabapple trees bloom in the courtyard each spring, adding a quiet grace to the late residence of the author of "Midnight."

9. Qi Baishi Former Residence Memorial Museum

Address: 13 Yu'er Hutong, Dongcheng District

Qi Baishi spent his final two years here (1955–1957). The courtyard is modest; the studio preserves the long worktable, brush-washers, and seal boxes the old master used. The exhibition traces his extraordinary journey from village carpenter to globally celebrated artist, and several late-career paintings embody his signature aesthetic — beauty found in the space between likeness and unlikeness. A pomegranate tree in the courtyard still bears fruit each year, echoing the vegetables, fruits, and insects he so often painted.

⚠️ Photos pending: Authentic photographs of the Qi Baishi Former Residence are protected by hotlink restrictions. Suggested manual sourcing options:

Koryo Tours (specialist travel blog): search site:koryogroup.com Qi Baishi Beijing

Baidu Baike image gallery: search "Qi Baishi Former Residence Beijing"

visitbeijing.com.cn: attraction listing number 519

10. Cao Xueqin Former Residence Memorial Museum

Address: 123 Guangqumen Inner Street, Dongcheng District (northeast corner of Ciqikou)

This is the only residence in Beijing with documented historical evidence connecting it to Cao Xueqin. Official records from the seventh year of the Yongzheng Emperor's reign describe it as "Seventeen-and-a-Half Rooms at Suan Market Street." Reconstructed on the original site and opened in 2022, the three-courtyard complex recreates the residential layout of middle and lower-ranking Bannermen households in Qing-dynasty Beijing. The permanent exhibition includes facsimiles of early hand-copied manuscripts of "Dream of the Red Chamber," related artifacts, and materials on the Cao family history — an essential starting point for exploring this landmark of world literature.

⚠️ Photos pending: The Cao Xueqin Former Residence opened after reconstruction in 2022; some online images are protected by hotlink restrictions. Suggested manual sourcing options:

english.beijing.gov.cn official page includes exterior images

Beijing Daily / Xin Jing Bao: search "Cao Xueqin Former Residence Ciqikou open"

Baidu Baike image gallery: search "Cao Xueqin Former Residence Beijing"

11. Ji Xiaolan's Former Residence (Yuewei Cottage)

Address: 241 Zhushikou West Street, Xicheng District

The Qing-dynasty grand secretary Ji Xiaolan lived here for roughly sixty years and presided over the compilation of the Siku Quanshu — the largest imperial anthology in Chinese history. A wisteria vine he planted himself, now over 200 years old, drapes the entrance trellis in cascades of purple each spring. The "Yuewei Cottage" study holds a remarkable collection of rare ancient books and scholarly objects. The exhibition recounts his reputation as the foremost literary talent at the court of Emperor Qianlong — both his scholarly achievements and the popular legends that grew up around him.

⚠️ Photos pending: Photographs of Ji Xiaolan's Former Residence can be sourced manually from:

Beijing Ancient Tree Platform: bjgswh.com/node/61 — includes photos of the 310-year-old wisteria vine

english.beijing.gov.cn official page includes exterior images

visitbeijing.com.cn: attraction listing number 642