The Ming-era temple complex where the emperors came to worship the Earth God, complementing the worship of Heaven at the more famous Temple of Heaven in the south. The altar itself — a square marble platform enclosed within a square outer wall, geometry chosen deliberately to symbolise the earth — is less spectacular than the Temple of Heaven's circular Hall of Prayer, but the surrounding park is one of the most pleasant in Beijing: wooded, uncrowded, and used by locals for morning exercise and afternoon chess throughout the year.
In January, Ditan hosts one of Beijing's best Spring Festival temple fairs — performances, lanterns, and street food over the lunar new year period. The park is directly north of the Lama Temple; combine the two for a morning in the northern old city.