Shunyi District: Guide to Living Here (2024)

Shunyi District (顺义区 in Chinese, Shùnyì Qū in Pinyin) is Beijing'sexpatriate suburb located north-east of the Beijing city proper. Shunyiis similar in organization and layout to a North American suburb, withlarge homes, lots of green space, markedly reduced traffic compared tooften-gridlocked downtown Beijing, and loads of Western amenities.

Expatriates who choose Shunyi choose it because they want:

• The closest thing to a "home away from home" experience

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• A safer, quieter, and/or calmer living situation outside theurban environment

• To be a part of its large expatriate and family communities

• Easy access to the large number of internationalschools withcampuses here

It's most common for expatriate families first moving to Beijing to selectShunyi as their location of choice simply because of its familiarityand similarity to previous living environments, and for its safety andaccessibility for children.

Shunyi offers a number of other advantages to expatriates andexpatriate families too; we'll look at each below.

Living Arrangements

Most expatriates living in Shunyi rent or own villas in the manygated communities the district has to offer. "Villas" can be as smallas a town house, or as large as a proper Western villa. The villacommunities typically features the following facilities for residents'use:

• Swimming pools
  
• Tennis courts
• Gyms (with machines and free weights)
• Clubhouses / meeting rooms
• Guardhouses with regular patrols
  

Villas can range in price anywhere from ¥20,000 per month at theabsolute least expensive to (more often) ¥30,000 to ¥60,000+ per monthfor residences at the higher end and in the nicer communities.

Most expatriates living in Shunyi are those with families (singlesnormally prefer to live inside the city limits).

Local Amenities

Shunyi offers the same kinds of amenities you'll find in mostWestern suburbs, including:

• Western supermarkets, including Carrefour and BHG.

• Western restaurants, ranging from Mexican to Italian to Frenchfood, bagel shops and pizza parlors, and including bakeries and fastfood establishments like McDonald's and KFC.

• Salons, sports gear, electronics, clothing, and other shops andstores aimed at Westerners and carrying Western brands and items.
  

• Pinnacle Plaza, a squareat the heart of Shunyi hosting numerous shops, cafés, bars, Westernrestaurants, Western supermarkets, and a even a tailor.

• Beijing United Family Hospital,one of Beijing's Westerner-focused hospitals, offers both a medical andsurgical clinic and dental offices in Shunyi (located in PinnaclePlaza).

• Entertainment options including superior sporting facilities,fishing spots, golf courses and clubs, skating, dance, yoga, kung-fu,horseback riding, and even a ski resort (located a bit outside of town).

Western dining in Shunyi is as good as or superior to anywhere elsein Beijing. Nightlife is not as vibrant as that on offer in downtown,though the activities available to families and children are muchbroader and greater in number than those you'll find elsewhere in thecity.

Education

Shunyi is home to one of the largest concentrations of internationalschools in Beijing:

• The British School of Beijing
• Canadian International School
• Dulwich College Beijing
• Harrow International School Beijing
• International School of Beijing
• Swedish School Beijing
• Western Academy of Beijing
  

... and many more international schools and kindergartens servingShunyi's large population of expatriate families and school-agechildren and teens.

Main article: International Schools in Beijing: TheSchool Guide

Location

Shunyi is located northeast of Beijing proper, between the city andBeijing Capital Airport (PEK). It's location removed from the citymeans fewer cars on the streets, lower traffic and congestion levels,and less road noise; it also means a longer commute to work if work islocated in the city, or to visit friends, go shopping or dining, or seeattractions or nightlife inside the city.

A subway station in Shunyi has been open on Line 15 since 31December 2011, connecting Shunyi to the rest of Beijing by metro sincethen.

Verdict

Assuming the higher rents won't break the bank, Shunyi is the areaof choice for most expatriate families moving to Beijing. It's alsohome for a number of wealthier Chinese families looking for quieter andmore serene living conditions than can be found in Beijing, and moreproximity to Beijing's international residents.

While likely not a place you'll want to settle as a Beijing single -it's too far removed from where all the singles are congregating, andit's likely to be far from work, and everything else - if you haveschool-age children and want to remain in a more Western environment,Shunyi may very well be the best choice for you.

Ready to find an apartment or villa in Shunyi? You canhead here to start now:

Or, see more apartments here: Apartments in Shunyi