Buses are the most common form of short-distance travel in China. They are also great for inter-city/province travel, as there is a very advanced motorway system in China. Compared to train and plane tickets, bus tickets are cheap. In big cities like Beijing and Shanghai, there are combination travel cards, such as 一卡通 (yī-kǎ-tōng), which can be used to take buses, taxis, and on the metro.
FACE TO FACE
请问, 哪辆公共汽车去市/镇中心?qĭng-wèn, nă liàng gōng-gòng-qì-chē qù shì/zhèn zhōng-xīn?Excuse me, which bus goes to the city/town centre?
15路汽车shí-wŭ-lù-qì-chēNumber 15
公共汽车在哪里?gōng-gòng-qì-chē zài nă-li?Where is the bus stop?
那里, 在右边nà-li, zài yòu-biānThere, on the right
我在哪里可以买车票?wŏ zài nă-li kĕ-yĭ măi chē-piào?Where can I buy the tickets?
There are 38 cities in China with underground systems. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have the longest underground lines in China. Security is very strict, passengers need to have their bags/suitcases scanned at the entrance. The earliest train is around 5 am, and the latest 11 pm. The fare is calculated by the distance, but considered cheap in general given the size of the cities. In big cities like Beijing and Shanghai, travel cards, such as 一卡通 (yī-kǎ-tōng), can be used.
Trains are the most common form of long-distance travel in China. There are two ways of buying tickets: on the national website or at ticket offices in streets and stations.
There are three types of tickets: hard seat, hard bunk and soft bunk. A hard seat ticket is often cheap, about half the price of hard bunk, while a soft bunk ticket is about the same as a plane ticket.
The system is nationalised, it is called China Railway. In the last ten years, China has built over 20,000km of 250km/h High Speed Railways. There are 8 S-N and 8 E-W routes, the trains are normally called CRH-xxx. The tickets for these trains are more expensive.
站台 zhàn-tái
platform
售票处 shòu-piào-chù
ticket office
时刻表 shí-kè-biăo
timetable
误点 wù-diăn
delay (appears on train noticeboards)
行李暂存 xíng-li zàn-cún
left luggage
电子票 diàn-zǐ piào
e-ticket
电子预订 diàn-zǐ yù-dìng
e-reservation
FACE TO FACE
下一趟去 … 的火车是什么时间?xià-yī-tàng qù … de huŏ-chē shì shén-me shí-jiān?When
