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Proportionally resized and converted to WebP without cropping, retouching or changing the photographed subject.
Explore the region
About Olympic Green
The Bird’s Nest stadium and the National Aquatics Center form the most recognizable architectural pair, with the National Indoor Stadium adding another major sports building nearby. The open spaces between venues help reveal their different scales and exterior forms. Treat a first visit as an outdoor architecture route, then add an interior visit only where the venue’s current schedule and admission arrangements fit your plans.
Olympic Green was built for the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. The Olympic Green Convention Center (国家会议中心), also called the National Convention Center, covers 270,000 square meters and served as the International Broadcast Center and Main Press Center, hosting fencing and the shooting and fencing disciplines of the modern pentathlon. The Olympic Green Tennis Center (北京奥林匹克公园网球场), with 16 courts and a capacity of 17,400, opened on 1 October 2007 and hosted the tennis and wheelchair tennis events.
The National Stadium (国家体育场), or Bird's Nest (鸟巢), hosted the opening and closing ceremonies, athletics and the football finals in 2008, with capacity later reduced from 91,000 to 80,000. The National Aquatics Center (国家游泳中心), or Water Cube (水立方), hosted swimming, diving and synchronized swimming and holds 6,000 spectators. The National Indoor Stadium (国家体育馆), called 'the Fan', held handball, gymnastics and trampolining and seats 19,000.
The venues were reused when Beijing hosted the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics: the National Stadium again held the opening and closing ceremonies, the Water Cube served as the curling venue, and the National Indoor Stadium was the main ice hockey venue. In 2011, the surrounding streets hosted an exhibition street race of the FIA GT1 World Championship.
What to look for
- Bird’s Nest and Water Cube: compare the stadium’s exposed steel lattice with the aquatics center’s cellular exterior.
- Venue promenade: use the open space between the sports buildings to read the Olympic precinct as a planned ensemble.
Location & getting there
Getting to Olympic Green
Choose a specific Olympic Green venue as your arrival point. The precinct includes several separate stadiums rather than one building.
- The identified National Stadium listing gives Olympic Green station on Lines 8 and 15 as an approach to the central venue area.
Combine your visit
Suggested order within this visit:
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National Stadium国家体育场鸟巢
Start with the exposed steel structure of the Bird’s Nest.
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National Aquatics Center国家游泳中心水立方
Compare the neighboring Water Cube’s different structural expression.
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Venue promenade
Finish with wider views across the Olympic ensemble.
This sequence is an editorial suggestion based on the features described in the sources. Access to individual buildings or areas should be checked locally; no travel time or shared admission is implied.
Find Olympic Green
奥林匹克公园 · 朝阳区
The pin marks the area, not the entrance.
More places nearby
Approximate straight-line distances between map pins, not travel distances.
China Science and Technology Museum 中国科学技术馆
Less than 1 km awayChina Science and Technology Museum uses interactive exhibits to connect scientific principles with inventions and everyday life. Its permanent themes include The Glory of China, Exploration and Discovery, Science and Technology…
View guide →National Aquatics Center 国家游泳中心水立方
1 km awayThe National Aquatics Center, widely called the Water Cube, is the bubble-clad venue beside the Bird's Nest in Beijing's Olympic Green. Its square outline and translucent cushions create a deliberate visual contrast with the…
View guide →Beijing National Stadium 国家体育场鸟巢
1 km awayBeijing National Stadium, known as the Bird’s Nest, is defined by the interwoven steel frame around its seating bowl. Designed for the 2008 Olympic Games and used again for the 2022 ceremonies, it is one of the central buildings…
View guide →Sources & visit information
The sources below support the place-specific description and arrival information. Suggested combinations are editorial planning ideas; confirm current opening, entry arrangements and transport services for your date.
Visitor information adapted and edited from Wikipedia contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 1366927654.
Visitor information adapted and edited from Wikivoyage contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0.
Background paragraphs condensed from Wikipedia contributors, "Olympic Green", English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source revision 1366927654.