Located at the heart of Beijing, the Forbidden City served as the home of emperors for almost 500 years when in full swing during the  Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty as the Chinese imperial palace. To explore the sight is a mighty task and therefore, make sure that you reserve one of the most popular serviced apartments in Beijing to lodge in during the expedition such as the Ascott Raffles City Beijing known to be Serviced Apartments Beijing is quite proud of. Declared as a world heritage sight in 1987, the Forbidden City is a museum today housing the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. Surrounded by a 7.9 metre high city wall and a 6 metres deep by 52 metres wide moat, it is easy to see why this place was called the Forbidden City. Nobody could enter or leave the palace without the emperor’s permission and the security measures surrounding the city ensured that. Comprised of two courts and four gates, the Forbidden City is an attraction not to be missed when visiting this part of the world.