Taxi
Taking a taxi is the most convenient way for newcomers to travel around a metropolis like Beijing. There are over 67,000 taxis running in every corner of the city, including Santana, Jetta, Sonata and Fukang. The taxis are visible at the airport, railway station and bus stations. What's more, most of the taxi drivers in Beijing can speak some simple English, which offers western visitors the great convenience of being able to communicate with them.

The charge for the taxis in Beijing differs according to different times of day. In daytime, the flag-down rate of the taxis is CNY10 for the first three kilometers and CNY2 per kilometer for the remainder of the journey. If the journey is longer than 15 kilometers (8 miles), the charge rises to CNY3 per kilometer. At nighttime (from 11:00 pm to 5:00 am of the next day), the flag-down rate is CNY11 for the first three kilometers, and the charge for mileage over 3 kilometers is CNY2.4 per kilometer, and CNY3.4 per kilometer for a journey over 15 km (8 miles). Although taxis are somewhat expensive for many travelers, they are convenient, especially in the middle of the night or in early morning.

Due to the traffic situation in Beijing, taxis charge not only according to their meters, but also for waiting time in traffic, driving at night and mileage for driving without a passenger. For every accumulated five minutes of waiting time you will be charged an additional one-kilometer fee. It is recommended that tourists ask for a receipt when alighting from a taxi because the car number, company name, registered driver and complaint telephone number are listed in it.

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