Taking A Taxi in China

Taking a taxi is often better than taking a bus or subway. The cost in the large cities such as Beijing, Shanghai or Chongqing is not often more than just a few dollars within a 3 mile radius. First you call them a "taxi" and not a "cab". Our slag word for Taxi is more often not understood. Secondly, 99% of taxi drivers do not speak English. Take some cards from your hotel and keep them with you to show a driver when you want to go back to the hotel. In order to go some place, you advise the doorman at your hotel where you want to go OR write down where you want to go in English on a paper and have someone in the hotel write it in Chinese. If you want to hail a taxi on the street, cup your hand, raise it in the air and motion downward. Raising an index finger in China is like raising your cupped hand with all fingers except your middle finger folded down towards you...."you get the idea". Meters are built into the dashboard like a radio. No tipping is required, just round off to the next higher yuan when paying. You are expected to pay the tolls in addition to the fare such as toll roads coming in from airports. For more information on local transportation contact me at interlak@eskimo.com Tours to China is our business doing Tours to China and Tibet since 1992 as a China Tour Operator. Check out our packages and Custom Private Tours to China on our web site at www.interlakechinatours.com