The Royal Treatment: Family Fizz Share Their Experiences as Beijing’s Imperial Ambassadors

Beijing was home to the imperial family for hundreds of years but how many of us really get to see the city through the eyes of an emperor? A recent large-scale O2O campaign run by Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development (Visit Beijing) and Air China aimed to give a lucky social media influencer just that, taking them on a three-day journey through Beijing’s heritage sites and imperial palaces as the "Imperial Ambassador."

The campaign was promoted across all of Visit Beijing's social media channels; you can follow Visit Beijing on Twitter (@beijingofficial), Facebook (@BeijingChinaOfficial), and Instagram (@visit_beijing).

After a hotly contested online campaign that attracted more than 2,000 entries from 80 countries, English vloggers Family Fizz won a three-day imperial experience in Beijing. The Fizz family is Darren (dad), Georgie (mum), Mia (age 12), and Sienna (5). We spoke to them about traveling in Beijing as a family of vegans and tobogganing down the Great Wall. 

I understand that you had wanted to visit China for a long time before you won the Imperial Ambassadorship. What attracted you to China?
Georgie: My great grandfather was Chinese and although he never lived in China, it was a part of my life growing up. 

How did you find traveling in Beijing as a family?
Georgie: People here really love children so you’re made to feel really welcome. All the activities have been really exciting too. We got to make some kites, dress up, and even walk on the Great Wall of China. The Great Wall seems quite challenging but there’s a small section you can walk up on the Wall that’s quite flat, then you can take a slide on the way down [the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall].

Mia: We literally felt like kings and queens! 

You have all been vegan for five years. What has the food been like?
Georgie: The organizers went out of their way to set up lots of Imperial Chinese vegan dining experiences for us, which was amazing. Obviously, tofu is a very popular ingredient here, which we absolutely love, and we found out that it was also often prepared by the palace chefs as part of imperial banquets since it was considered a health food.

We also really liked some of the imperial snacks we tried, such as these small glutinous rice dumplings filled with red bean paste [aiwowo, a favorite of Empress Dowager Cixi]. This was also our first time trying jasmine tea! 

Darren: We were so lucky to have had many of our dining experiences arranged for us, but overall, as long as you’re confident and you make clear “I can eat this” and “I can’t eat that” you can have an amazing feast. We really liked a restaurant called Vegetiger – it was amazing and so cheap!

What was the absolute highlight of the trip for you?
Georgie: We drove out to Gubei Water Town, about two hours from Beijing, and stayed there overnight in this amazing hotel. Gubei Water Town is a reconstruction of a beautiful Chinese town, with loads of restaurants, hotels, and things to do. At night you can see the Great Wall lit up in the mountains just outside of town as well. We will definitely go back there on our next visit to China. 

Darren: On the last morning we went to a park and did this traditional exercise with ribbons. Someone told us that their grandparents are 89 years old and still do it every morning! As much as we loved the “imperial” side of things, it was great to experience the local culture too! 

You can find Family Fizz on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to follow along with their daily fun.

This post is paid for by the organizers. 

Photos courtesy of the organizers, Instagram