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Trains, Planes & Airports

What an airport transfer should cost in eight Chinese cities

Chinese airport taxis are cheap and metered. Private transfers cost more and remove decisions. Here is the actual arithmetic for the airports you will use.

What an airport transfer should cost in eight Chinese cities
AirportTaxi to centreTimePrivate carLast metro
Shanghai Pudong (PVG)¥160–22050–70 min¥280–35022:30
Shanghai Hongqiao (SHA)¥80–12030–40 min¥200–26023:00
Beijing Capital (PEK)¥100–13040–60 min¥250–32023:00
Beijing Daxing (PKX)¥180–22060–80 min¥320–40022:30
Guangzhou Baiyun (CAN)¥120–15040–55 min¥260–33023:00
Chengdu Tianfu (TFU)¥150–19050–70 min¥300–38022:30
Xi’an Xianyang (XIY)¥100–13045–60 min¥250–32022:00
Kunming Changshui (KMG)¥90–12035–50 min¥220–28022:30

When the private car wins

  • Arrival after 21:00, when the metro has stopped and the taxi queue doubles.
  • More than two people with luggage — a taxi may not fit three large cases.
  • Non-English-speaking driver risk — a pre-booked car has your hotel address already.
  • First day in China, when every small decision has a cost.
  • Families with children, where a child seat is included free.

When the taxi wins

Daytime arrival, light luggage, a hotel near a metro station, and any confidence at all in your ability to show an address on a phone. Chinese airport taxi ranks are orderly and metered, and the fares are genuinely low.

What we charge and why

Our transfers start at ¥280 and include the driver waiting inside arrivals with a name board, flight tracking, and a child seat on request. It is roughly 40% more than a taxi and removes the twenty minutes of standing in a queue after an eleven-hour flight.

Frequently asked

How much is a taxi from Beijing Airport to the city?+
Around ¥100–130 to the city centre, 40–60 minutes depending on traffic.
Do Chinese taxi drivers accept cards?+
Generally not. Have Alipay working or carry cash.
Is it safe to take an airport taxi in China?+
Yes, if you use the official rank inside the terminal. Ignore anyone approaching you offering a taxi.
Private, not packaged

Have a local handle the details.

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