The national airline is Air China (CA) (website: www.airchina.com.cn/en). Airlines serving China include: British Airways, KLM, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines and many others.

Travellers should ensure that they re-confirm their return flight reservations, as overbooking by airlines has led to people being stranded in China.

From Beijing to London is approximately 10 hours, to New York is 22 hours, to Los Angeles is 12 hours, and to Sydney is 12 hours.

Beijing/Peking (BJS/PEK) airport (Capital International Central) is 28km (18 miles) northeast of the city. To/from the airport: Buses and taxis area available (travel time – 40 minutes).
Guangzhou Baiyun International airport opened in 2004 and is 12km (7 miles) north of Guangzhou (travel time – 25 minutes).
Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA) airport is 13km (8 miles) southwest of the city (travel time – 25 to 40 minutes).
Shanghai Pudong (PVG) airport, in the eastern financial district, is 30km (19 miles) from the city centre. To/from the airport: Buses and taxis are available (travel time – 50 minutes). Pudong is a major international airport with a magnetic levitation train and an underground link (due for expansion to connect Pudong with Hongqiao).
Facilities: All the above airports include duty free shops, banks/bureaux de change, post offices, business facilities, Internet, bars and restaurants.
There are also airports at other major cities.

CNY90. Paid in Chinese currency only. Children under 12 and transit passengers (proceeding within 24 hours) are exempt.

Main ports: Fuzhou (Foochow), Guangzhou (Canton), Hong Kong/Kowloon, Qingdao (Tsingtao) and Shanghai. Pearl Cruises operates over 20 cruises a year to China. Other cruise lines include Holland America, Princess, Seabourn and Silversea. There are regular ferry services linking most Chinese ports with Kobe in Japan and the west coast of Korea (Dem Rep). There are regular ferries between Shanghai and Osaka in Japan. Regular ferry services operate between Weihai, Qingdao, Tianjin and Shanghai in China to Incheon in Korea (Dem Rep). There are daily hovercraft services between Hong Kong and Guangzhou, which also serves Shekou, Shenzhen and Zhuhai.

International services run from Beijing to Moscow (Russian Federation), on both the Trans-Mongolian Railway (via Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia) and the Trans-Manchurian Railway (via Zabaikalsk in northern China). The Trans-Siberian Express operates two weekly services, a train to Russia servicing Moscow and Beijing via Harbin and a China train via Ulaanbaatar and Nanning in Guangxi province, linked to Hanoi, Vietnam. A second cross-border service runs from Kunming via Lao Cai, to Hanoi. There are also services from Beijing to Pyongyang (Korea, Dem Rep). Owing to demand, it may be necessary to book up to two months in advance. A regular train service runs from Hong Kong to Guangzhou (Canton), and is of a higher standard than internal trains in China. There are several trains daily. Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) has express trains servicing Kowloon to Guangzhou and an indirect Kowloon to Lowu service. The services between Shanghai-Kowloon/Hong Kong (travel time – 29 hours) and Beijing-Kowloon/Hong Kong (travel time – 30 hours) both run on alternate days. There are twice-weekly trains from Almaty in Kazakhstan to Urumqi. There are three types of fare: hard sleeper, soft sleeper and deluxe soft sleeper.

Travellers on the Trans-Mongolian or Trans-Manchurian Railways are strongly advised to search their compartments and lock the doors before departure, owing to an increase in smuggling via this route.

The principal road routes into China follow the historical trade routes through Myanmar, India, the former Soviet republics and Mongolia. It is also possible to travel from Pakistan to Xinjiang on the Karakoran highway. Motorways exist between Guangzhou and Shenzhen and Guangzhou and Zhuhai. These roads link the cities of Dongguan, Zhongshan, Foshan, Jiangmen, Huizhou and Shunda to Hong Kong and Macau. Motorway links to major cities in neighbouring countries are few.

Most long-distance internal travel is by air. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) operates along routes linking Beijing to over 80 other cities by 14 regional airlines, covering all major cities and some sites. CAAC controls several other private carriers including China Eastern, China Northern, China Southern, Great Wall and Yunnan Airlines. Tickets will normally be purchased by guides and the price will be included in any tour costs. Independent travellers can also book through the local Chinese International Travel Service (CITS), which charges a small commission, or alternatively buy tickets in booking offices or at some hotel travel desks. It is advisable to purchase internal air tickets well in advance if travelling during May, September or October. The tourist price for a ticket is 70 per cent on a train ticket and 100 per cent on an air ticket. There are many connections to Hong Kong from Beijing/Guangzhou (Peking/Canton) as well as other cities. Tickets are always overbooked so seats must be confirmed before travel. Inevitable delays in services must be taken into account. Airport announcements are not multilingual. Safety records are variable.
Note: Where possible, travellers are advised to fly in UK or North American aircraft which are used by larger airlines.

CNY50. Payable in Chinese currency only.

All major rivers are served by river ferries, especially the Yangzi. Coastal ferries operate between Dalian, Tianjin (Tientsin), Qingdao (Tsingtao) and Shanghai. There are regular ferry services between mainland China and Hong Kong, conditions on which vary.

Railways provide the principal means of transport for goods and people throughout China. The routes are generally cheap, safe and well maintained. Routes operate between major cities; services include Beijing to Guangzhou, Shanghai, Harbin, Chengdu and Urumqi. There are three types of train, of which Express is the best. There are four types of fare: hard seat, soft seat (only on short-distance trains such as the Hong Kong to Guangzhou (Canton) line), hard sleeper and soft sleeper. Children under 1m (3ft) tall travel free and those under 1.3m (4ft) pay a quarter of the fare. Generally rail travel is comfortable but time-consuming due to vast distances between destinations.
The first passenger train on the1142km (710 miles) Qinghai to Tibet railway from Golmud in Qinghai to Lhasa in Tibet completed its two-day journey in July 2006. It is the most elevated rail route in the world, reaching an altitude of up to 5,072m (16,640 feet).

It is possible to reach 80 per cent of settlements by road. Roads are not always of the highest quality. Distances should not be underestimated and vehicles should be in prime mechanical condition as China is still very much an agricultural nation without the mechanical expertise or services found in the West. From Beijing to Shanghai is 1461km (908 miles), and from Beijing to Nanjing (Nanking) is 1139km (718 miles). A superhighway links Beijing and Tianjin, and a 138 km (86 miles) four-lane toll highway links Hangzhou and the port of Ningbo in the Zhejiang province. Traffic drives on the right. Bus: Reasonable services are operated between the main cities. Buses are normally crowded, but reach parts of the country that trains do not. There are some more expensive luxury buses. Car hire: Available, but most rental companies’ policy of retaining the driver’s passport makes self-drive car hire impossible in practice for visitors. Cars with a driver can be hired on a daily or weekly basis. Driving standards are erratic.

There is a metro system in Shanghai and limited metro services in Beijing and Tianjin, and tramways and trolleybuses in a number of other cities. New lines are under construction in Beijing. Guides who accompany every visitor or group will ensure that internal travel within the cities is as trouble-free as possible. Most cities have public transit systems, usually bus. Taxi: Taxis are available in large cities from most hotels and shopping districts, and are permitted to stop at the passenger's signal. It is best to check if the taxi is metered. If not, then it is important to agree a fare beforehand, especially at railway stations where it is best to bargain before getting into the taxi. Visitors should write down their destination before starting any journey as most drivers do not speak English. Taxis can be hired by the day. Most people travel by bicycle or public transport. In most cities, bicycles or other types of rickshaws are available for short rides.

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