If weather permits, bicycle is a great way to explore Nanjing. However, that is a big “if” that may affect your travel plans. Between June and August, the humid heat suppresses bicycle traffic during the mid-day. Some people may find it too cold to bike in the winter; however the streets are rarely covered in ice or snow. The rain is the heaviest during late spring and early summer.

 

Attendants collect 2 mao (0.2 Yuan) bicycle parking fees in busy areas.

 

Bicycle theft is a problem. If you are not going for any tough rides then pick up a simple cheap bicycle that you can afford to lose.  Despite the theft problem, bikes are not locked to nearby poles or bike stands. The standard lock only locks the bicycle wheels in position.

 

Finally, bicycle licenses are required. These are composed of a persons name and picture and can be quickly applied for and issued at the bike store.

 

A few nice spots for a bike ride:

- Xuanwu Lake – A great scenic ride. However, bicycles are not consistently allowed into the gates.

- Purple mountain – This would be a tough but rewarding ride.

- Anywhere!  Playing “bike until you get lost and then find your way back” is a good way to explore Chinese cities… or research a Synotrip City Guide for a city.

Taking Long Distance Buses from Nanjing

 

Taking the bus from Nanjing to nearby locations is often very convenient and involves little hassle. All buses are fairly modern and include air conditioning and a VCD player. The bus to Yangzhou takes about 1 hour and to Shanghai takes 3 to 4 hours, to Hangzhou, every 30 minutes, it takes 4 hours to Hangzhou North Station.

 

Getting Tickets

The cheapest place to purchase tickets is at the bus stations.  It is possible to buy a ticket for any bus departing from any of Nanjing’s bus stations at any station.

 

Many travel agencies also sell tickets, and some hotels will assist their customers to book tickets.  If you are studying in Nanjing, be sure to check if your university has staff available to help you book tickets, arrange trips, etc.

 

If you speak Chinese, a reliable source for information is the central inquiry phone number - 96196.

 

Long Distance Bus Stations in Nanjing

 

This is the main long-distance bus station in Nanjing.  It is located at the intersection of Zhongyang Lu (中央路), Zhongyang Bei Lu (中央北路), Jianning Lu (建宁路）and Longpan Road (龙蟠路).  It is also just one kilometer west of Nanjing Train Station.

 

Inquiry Line：(025) 8553 1299, 8553 1288(8am-6pm)

Bookings Hotline: (025) 8553 1153

 

 

Shuttles to the airport depart from this station every half hour between 6:00am and 7:30pm.  The ride to the airport takes about 50 minutes.  Plane tickets can also be purchased at Zhongshan Nan Road Station.

 

This bus station is located at the intersection of Shenzhou Lu (升洲路) and Zhongshan Nan Lu (中山南路).  It is also right next to the Sanshan Jie (三山街) subway station.

 

Note that this station is also referred to as the Nanjing North-Central Long-Distance Bus Station (南京中北长途客运中心) and the Sanshan Jie (三山街) Station.

 

(025) 52856681

Aiport Shuttle Bus Inquiries: (025) 5248 0058 / 5248 0757

 

 

The station is located half a block east of the intersection of Hanzhong Lu (汉中路) and Huju Lu (虎踞路).

 

(025) 8661 2288, 8665 2227

 

 

Located on Jihe Cun Lu (集合村路88号)

 

(025) 5241 8504, 5241 5393

 

 

Located on Xuanwu Da Dao and Huayuan Lu (玄武大道和花园路)

 

(025) 8541 0887

 

Note that this station is also referred to as Xinzhuang (新庄) Station.
 

 

 

#10 Jiangbian Lu (江边路10号). This is on the west end of Jianning Xi Lu (建宁西路).

 

(025) 588 27455

 

 

Located across the bridge on Daqiao Bei Lu (大桥北路)

(025) 588 50742 / 5840 1190

 

More Info

Long distance bus station information from the Nanjing Municipal Government  (In Chinese only).
 
A bus route search tool from the Jiangsu Provincial Government (In Chinese only).

Nanjing Lukou International Airport (南京禄口国际机场) provides flights to both many destinations in China as well as some international locations.

 

 

Nanjing Lukou International Airport is located 35 minutes southeast of Nanjing.

 

There is a shuttle bus service that runs through the center of the city to and from the airport.  Buses depart every half an hour from the Zhongshan Nan Road Keyun Long-Distance Bus Station (中山南路客运站).  It is recommended that passengers take a bus from Keyun Station at least 2 hours before boarding time.  Call (025) 52480058 or 52480757 for more information, although you will not likely be able to reach somebody that speaks English.

 

The buses going in to the city stop just outside level 1 of the airport.  You can’t miss them.  Before 7:00pm shuttles coming in to the city stop at Yuhua Square (雨花广场), Zhonghuamen Long-Distance Bus Station (中华门长途汽车站), Shuiximen (水西门), Hanzhongmen (汉中门), Caochangmen (草场门) and finally Shanghai Road (上海路).  After 7:00pm shuttles coming in to the city stop at Yuhua Square (雨花广场), Jinyu Hotel (金宇饭店), Shuiximen (水西门), Hanzhongmen (汉中门), Caochangmen (草场门) and finally Shanghai Road (上海路).  The Zhonghuamen stop is within view of a subway station.  To get to the subway station walk up the stairs on the north side of the overpasses.

 

Taxis stop on the first floor of the airport.  A taxi fare from the airport to the city center should cost about 135 yuan. 

 

 

 

 

Changzhou (常州) – A bus leaves once daily at 1:00pm.  The final stop is Changzhou Hotel on Yanling Xi Road # 65 (常州大酒点在延陵西路65号).  The bus leaves Changzhou Hotel every morning at 7:30am.

 

Yangzhou (扬州) – Buses leave daily at 12:00pm, 2:30pm and 5:30pm, travel through Yizheng (仪征) and stop at Youhao Huiguan Xice (友好会馆西侧) and Yangzhou Beimen Wai Street # 1 (北门外街1号).  Buses leave Beimen Wai Street # 1 at 8:30am, 11:30am and 2:30pm every day.

 

Zhenjiang (镇江) – Buses leave the airport at 12:00pm and 2:30pm and arrive at Zhenjiang Tiegongshui Union Ticket Office on Zhongshan Dong Road # 288 (铁公水联合售票处在中山东路288号).  Buses depart the same ticket office at 9:00am and 2:30pm.

 

Huai’An (淮安) – Buses leave the airport at 2:50pm and stop at Huaihai Square (淮海广场处).  Buses leave Huaihai Square at 8:00am.

 

 

The main ticket office phone number is 025-5248 0482, 5248 0499, 9689 6668, 968 890 (for inquire). 

 

Tickets can also be purchased from travel agencies and from some hotels.

Being an important regional economic hub and the capital of Jiangsu Province, Nanjing is easy to access by rail.  For example, a trip to Beijing can be made overnight on a standard train, or faster on the bullet train.  A trip to or from Shanghai takes 2-4 hours depending on the type of train taken.

 

 

Phone: +86 (0)25 8582 2222, 9510 5105
 
The majority of passenger train traffic coming in and out of Nanjing runs through Nanjing Railway Station.  From Nanjing Station it is possible to travel in any direction within China to cities including Beijing, Shangahi, Xi’An and Guangzhou to name a few.  The station itself is new, spacious and conveniently located just north of Xuanwu Lake and on a subway line. Click here to see the map.   
 

 

Tickets can be purchased in the main hall in the middle of the first floor of the station. If you’re lucky, you may find a staff member at one ticket booth that can speak English.  The ticket booth for the CRH trains is to the East of the main hall which is on the bottom right of the above picture.  Tickets can also be purchased at travel agents or Gulou (鼓楼) Post Office  for an extra 5 yuan fee.

Nanjing Station is located 1 kilometer east of Zhongyang Men (中央门) Long-Distance Bus Station and 3.5 kilometers west of Xinzhuang (新庄) Long-Distance Bus Station.

 

If you are entering the station from the subway, take exit number 4 which is on the south side of the subway station. When you arrive at Nanjing station, you can go directly to the subway without having to go above ground first.  It is fairly easy to take baggage onto the subway, because the train doors are flat and wide.  Most subway exits do not have escalators, however, each subway station does have one elevator.

 

There are two locations to get a taxi: on the 2nd floor outside the station and underground next to the subway station.  The taxis underground are for leaving the station only.  Please note that if taxi drivers give you a price up-front or try to barter with you then you are probably getting ripped-off.  Always use the taxi meter and you will get the standard rate.

 

There is one local bus station on the west side of Nanjing Station and one on the east side.  The west side station has buses that go into the city. The other side has buses heading east into Xianling.

 

The station was just finished in 2005 and it shows.  The ticket room is spacious and well ventilated and the layout of the station is very convenient.  The inside of the 2nd floor is clean, with a high roof and nifty architecture.

 

The signs that help you find your way around the station are labeled in English, but signs that display ticket prices or availability are not in English. Therefore it may be difficult for a person that does not speak Chinese to purchase a ticket.

 

If you need to put your bags down in a safe place for a few hours, they can be placed in the baggage lockers inside the station.  There are also two small stores outside the station on the west side that will watch small items of luggage.

 

Downstairs there are food vendors, a small convenience store, and a KFC.

 

 

Nanjing West Station is smaller and older in comparison with Nanjing Railway Station.  There is no subway access, but it can be reached by bus or taxi easily.  Moving around the station, whether you are inside or outside, is quite chaotic like most Chinese train stations.  Sometimes it can be difficult to find a taxi from this station as well.

 

Nanjing South and East Railway Stations receive very little traffic.

 

Also See

More information about the railway in China (train types, seat classes, pics, tips, etc.)

The official website of Nanjing Railway Station (Only in Chiese)

Nanjing has a busy bus system and a new and efficient subway line.

 

Buses without air conditioning cost 1 yuan per trip and buses with air conditioning cost 2 yuan.  The extra yuan is surely worth it in the steamy summers.  You can pay with an IC card or with 1 yuan coins.  No change is given.

 

The bus stops can appear quite hectic. There are often a hundred people at one station, but buses arrive so frequently that there may be 3 or 4 buses stopped at one station at the same time. 

 

If you don’t read Chinese it would be quite diificult to navigate the bus routes without planning ahead.  The signs which display bus routes are only written in Chinese characters.

 

The roads in the Xinjiekou and Gulou often suffer from intense traffic jams in the middle of the day.

 

 

The No. 1 North-South subway line was put into operation in 2005.  It has a length of 22 kilometers and has 16 stops.

 

The Nanjing Railway Station Station (yes I said station twice) connects so smoothly with The Nanjing Railway Station that you will not even realize they are two separate stations.  This is very convenient for transporting large luggage in and out of the Nanjing Train Station.

 

Tickets cost between 2 and 4 yuan.  It is a bit cheaper to use an IC card (see bellow).  The ticket machines can take bills or coins and do give change. 

 

 

The ticket machines also have English and are quite easy to use.  They dispense blue tokens.  These tokens are to be swiped on the way in and deposited on the way out.  That is, when you approach the train you just swipe the token over the pad, and as you head upstairs to exit the station you deposit the token in the machine. Since the Subway was opened they have had plenty of staff on hand to assist passengers with purchasing and using tokens.

 

Trains arrive every 4 to 8 minutes and run between 6:30am and 10:00pm. 

For more information (in Chinese) check www.nj-dt.com.

 

IC Card

 

The Nanjing municipal government first committed to building a subway line in 1984.  However, the plan was not carried out until 2001. After four years of hard work and expenditures totaling more than 8.5 billion yuan (about 1billion USD), the No. 1 subway line began operating in August of 2005. 

 

Le Metro was designed by the French company ALTSOM.  Each train has a capacity of 1860 people.

 

The No. 2 East-West line, with a length of 25 kilometers, is already under construction.  It is planned to be completed in 2008.

Taxis cost 8 yuan for the first 3 kilometers and 2.4 yuan for every additional kilometer.  Starting in mid-June 2006 there is also an additional hidden 1 yuan fee because of high gas prices which takes the minimum prices up to 9 yuan. 

 

To give you an idea of what it costs to get around it would be about 9-12 yuan to get from Xinjiekou to Hunan Road and 9 yuan to get from Xinjiekou to Nanjing University. Getting to Purple Mountain should cost 20 yuan from Xinjiekou or 30 yuan from Hunan Road.

 

 

Taxi drivers do not speak English, and most of them do not speak standard Mandarin either.  They speak Nanjingese (Nanjinghua).  Generally speaking, drivers are quite familiar with the city.  Every taxi driver should know the most popular areas, and they will likely know the central areas in enough detail that they can navigate their way in and out of the alleys between major roads.

 

There have been some reports that taxi drivers sometimes pass off fake bills as change.  If you want to be safe, be sure to carry bills that are 20 yuan or under.