Sit on the Right side of the plane for the best views on flights from Paris to Beijing. Left wins at takeoff for the Paris city views, but right side wins at landing for Beijing approach views, and crucially the right side also captures the Ural Mountains crossing over Russia and the Mongolian steppe transition during the cruise — making it the better overall seat for the full journey.

During takeoff from Charles De Gaulle (CDG), sit on the Left side for the best views. CDG departures heading east typically use runways 27L/27R or 09L/09R. On an eastbound departure climbing out, the left side gives you a view south toward Paris city center — you can clearly see the Seine river snaking through the urban grid and on clear days the Eiffel Tower and La Défense cluster are identifiable. The right side faces north toward flat Picardy farmland with nothing distinctive. Notable sights include: Seine river bends through Paris, La Défense high-rise cluster west of the city, Bois de Boulogne forest patch, urban grid of central Paris arrondissements.

When landing at Capital (PEK), sit on the Right side for the best views. PEK approaches typically come from the southwest on runway 36L/36R or 01, meaning the aircraft tracks northward into the airport. The right side on approach faces east toward the city of Beijing — you get a clear view of the urban sprawl, and on good visibility days the grid of ring roads and the green patch of the Olympic Park area are visible. The left side faces west toward flat agricultural plains with little of interest. Notable sights include: Beijing urban grid and ring road system, Olympic Park green zone in northern Beijing, Wenyu River corridor, Shunyi district farmland patchwork transitioning to urban.

The flight from Charles De Gaulle (CDG) to Capital (PEK) takes Approximately 9 to 10.5 hours depending on winds and routing.

The route tracks northeast over Germany and Poland, then across Belarus and into Russia, crossing the Ural Mountains (the geographic boundary between Europe and Asia) over central Russia near Yekaterinburg — a broad low ridge visible as a dark forested spine. The flight then crosses the West Siberian Plain, an enormous flat expanse of taiga and river systems including the Ob and Irtysh rivers. Further east the route descends toward Mongolia and Inner Mongolia, where the landscape transitions from boreal forest to open steppe and then to the semi-arid plains approaching Beijing. The Gobi Desert edge may be visible on the final descent corridor.