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Beijing
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Beijing,
China - General Information
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Air Travel | Electricity
| Water | Transportation
| Weather | Medical
Service |
| Business Hours | Clothing
| Tipping | Safety
| Visa | Customs
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For National holidays, festivals, and trade shows check Calendar.
Air
Travel
With 63 international air routes,
Beijing is linked to 54 cities in 39 countries and regions. There
are also more than 550 domestic air routes linking the capital to
all major cities and travel destinations in China.
There
are 26 foreign airlines have their booking offices in Beijing.
The
Capital Airport, for both international and domestic flights, is
located 27 kilometers from the city center. There is a airport highway
in use from February 1996. Taxi fare is approximately 80 yuan from
downtown area to the airport. Shuttle buses run around the clock
between the China Aviation Building and the airport every 30 minutes.
The bus fare is 13 yuan. For more information, call 4563604 at the
Capital Airport Information Desk.
Reminder:
Visitors should reconfirm departure flights as soon as they arrive,
or risk having their bookings canceled. This can be done by asking
the hotel reception.
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Electricity
Most
hotels have built-in converters in bathrooms for shavers and hair
dryers. Otherwise, come equipped, because there is no standard type
of plugs in use. Generally, the voltage is 220 watts.
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Water
Only
a few hotels can offer quality tap water. It is advised to have
flasks of hot and cooled boiled water in the room. Bottled mineral
water is widely available.
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Transportation
There
are plenty of taxis found around hotels, tourist area, department
store and main streets. They can also be hired by telephone. The
small taxis are either hatchback or with a trunk. The costs for
the first four kilometers 10.40 yuan and adds up 1.6 to 2.5 yuan
per kilometer thereafter.
Plain
(Yellow Minivan, called "mian-dee") taxis costs 10-yuan
flat rate for 10 kilometers and 1 to 1.5 yuan per kilometer thereafter.
Receipts are provided on request. Few taxis driver speak English,
so it is advisable to have destinations written out in Chinese.
City bus provides a much cheaper way to get around Beijing. The
buses are trolley buses, tend to be crowded most of the time. Fares
are just 50 fen. Please avoid taking public transport in rush hours
from 6:30 to 8 am or 5 to 7 p.m. Mini Bus is a choice between dear
taxis and crowded buses. Running regular services the small vans
can guarantee you a seat even in rush hours and stop wherever you
require along the route. Fares vary from one to six yuan.
Subway
trains are fast and convenient. There are two lines. One circle
city line and the other extend to its far western suburbs. Straight
Line runs from Xidan to Pingguoyuan. Tourists can get off at Muxudi
near the White Cloud Taoist Temple, the Military Museum, or the
Shijingshan Amusement Park. One way fare costs 50 fen. Stations
are marked in pinyin. The subway operates in short intervals from
5 am to 11:30 p.m., but tourists should avoid rush hours (7 to 9
am and 4:30 to 6 p.m.).
Bicycles
provide a form of transportation for a majority of Beijingers, so
cycling are set aside on all major roads. The city proper is flat
for easy riding and there are repair stands with air pumps and spare
parts on the way. Bicycles can be rented from large repair shops
as well as from hotels. It can be an experience to pedal; around
the Inner City. It takes only one and a half-hours to cycle from
the Tiananmen Square to the Summer Palace. Rental charges vary from
2 yuan per hour for top brand bikes to 25 yuan for 24 hours for
average ones.
Rickshaws
offer an experience for tourists. Found around big hotels and street
corners in cozy seasons. Rickshaws provide a more relaxing way to
explore the city. The fare can be bargained with the rickshaw pullers.
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Weather
Located
in the north temperate zone with a continental monsoon climate,
Beijing enjoys an annual mean temperature of 11.8 C and an annual
mean precipitation of 630 mm which concentrates mainly in the summer.
January is the coldest month with the monthly average temperature
of -4.7 C while July the hottest month with a mean temperature of
26.1 degrees. Beijing spring is relatively short, and people used
to say that when the last day of the winter is gone, the summer
is about to set in. Summer is usually hot with abundant rainfall.
Autumn days are cool with clear sky and gentle breeze, making it
the best season to travel. As winter is severe,
outing
naturally require heavy clothing. Climatically, Beijing four seasons
cater to different interests of tourists.
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Medical
Service
There
is a big difference in China between medical services in the towns
and in the countryside. It is possible that, if you are traveling
in the countryside, there will be no appropriate medical services.
Some of the hospitals in the big cities have a special section for
foreigners where English is spoken. In Beijing, there is even a
separate hospital for foreigners. Many of the big modern hotels
have their own ambulance section or doctor. If you want to get treatment
from a traditional Chinese doctor, you will have to make a special
request. Normally, foreigners are treated with Western medicines.
You can get the addresses of the hospitals from CITS or your hotel.
Payment has to be made straight-away for treatment, medicaments,
transport and interpreter. In Beijing, it is possible, in serious
cases, to consult the doctor at some of the embassies.
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Business
Hours
Shops
are open on all days of the week, including public holidays. Opening
hours are usually from 8.30 a.m. (or 9 a.m.) to 8 p.m. Government
offices and banks are usually open from Monday to Friday, 8.30 a.m.
to 5.30 p.m., with a lunch break from 12 p.m. to 1.30 p.m. This
does not necessarily apply to the banks in the big hotels.
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Clothing
in Beijing
The
climate dictates seasonal clothing. In winter it is a good idea
to wear layers of garments - thermal or silk underwear with a sweater
and cotton-padded jacket. It is easy to take once indoors. Casual
clothing is advised for comfort in warm weather. Revealing mini
skirts and halter necklines may draw unflattering stares. Slacks
are recommended for strenuous traveling and sightseeing.
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Tipping
Officially, it is still illegal to accept tips in China. It has,
however, become the custom for travel groups to give a tip to the
Chinese travel guides and bus drivers. If you are traveling with
a group, ask your guide, who is responsible for the "official"
contacts of the group, whether and how much you should tip. On the
other hand, tipping is still not usual in most restaurants and hotels
although it is accepted in the modern top hotels and restaurants.
Small gifts such as paperbacks, cassette tapes and Western cigarettes
continue to be appreciated. Note that it is part of the ritual that
any gift or tip will at first be firmly rejected.
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Safety
There is still less crime in China than in many other countries.
You can walk around safely in Chinese towns and cities without being
pestered - this goes for women as well. However, criminal activities
against tourists have increased in recent years. There have been
thefts in tourist hotels, and money, valuables or photographic equipment
have been stolen from foreigners. Don't leave your money, jewelry
or valuables lying around in your hotel room, and try to keep your
money safely on you.
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Visa
Foreign visitors can obtain individual or group visas form Chinese
embassies and consulates, or China Travel Service offices in Hong
Kong, usually within a day or two. Most Group tourists are included
in-group visas, not inserted into passports. Individual travelers,
single entry visas are valid for entry within three months. Business
or commercial visas are issued upon presentation of a letter, fax,
telex, etc., from a Chinese official organization or company, and
sometimes there are multiple-entry visas good for six months at
a time.
Each
visa is valid for a stay of 30 or 60 days, and can be extended in
China for a small fee and usually without delay at the Foreign Affairs
Section of the public Security Bureau.
Visitors
should be sure to carry their passports while in China as they are
needed to check into hotel, make plane or train reservations, exchange
money or establish the holder's identity.
Loss
of a passport should be reported immediately to the holder's embassy
or consulate, and the Public Security Bureau of the Beijing Municipality,
Foreigners Section, 85 Beichizijie, Tel. 555486
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Customs
All
visitors must fill out customs declaration forms to present on arrival.
The copy should be kept, handed in on departure. Reasonable amounts
of currency (including Chinese Foreign Exchange Certificates or
FEC) can be brought in, along with alcohol and cigarettes for personal
use, cameras, radios, computers and tape-recorders.
Certain
valuable items, such as video cameras, office machines, computers
and gold declared on the form must be brought out of China or else
import duty will be charged on them.
Prohibited
imports include arms, ammunition and explosives; printed matter,
film or tapes detrimental to China; dangerous or narcotic drugs;
infected animals, plants or foodstuffs. It is also forbidden to
take out any of these items or endangered species of animals or
plants and antiques without export permit.
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