By Bus
Public Buses
The public bus transport in Dalian is highly developed. Over 150 bus routes enable budget travelers to get around the city easily. The buses' operating times vary, starting between 4:30am and 6:30am and finishing between 8pm and midnight. Make sure of the operating hours when you take a bus.

Most buses have no conductors and so you will need to prepare one or two Yuan in change before getting on a bus. There are many one-way streets in the city, so do not always take it for granted that the return will drop you on the same street. People in the city are very kind to foreigners, so ask locals for help.

There are three well-preserved old tram routes from colonial times in the city. Luckily they still serve as an important means of transport. The antique red trolleys of 201, 202 and 203 cruise the downtown and southwestern areas in the city.

Buses with the initial number 6 are suburban commuters.

The flexible mini-buses usually cruise the lanes and corners of the city. You can flag one down at anywhere. The ticket price is two yuan.

Special Tourist Buses

Bus 801, 801 (B) and K901 are three main tourist buses which cover almost all the tourist attractions in the city except Golden Pebble Beach (Jin Shi Tan) scenic area at the northern end of the city.

* Stop names in bold in the bus route below indicate important attractions.

Tourist Bus 801
Starting from the Shengli (Victory) Square in front of the Railway Station, this bus runs a circuit through the southeastern part of the city. Most of the tourist attractions are in this area. The trip is divided into four sections - Shengli (Victory) Square section, Laohutan Park section, Fujiazhuang section and Xinghai Square section. Five yuan is charged for each section and the total is twenty yuan. There are bus conductors and you need not to prepare the changes.
Route: Shengli Square (Railway Station) --> Renmen Square --> Olympic Square -->Xinghai Exhibition Center --> Xinghai Park --> Xinghai Square --> Jinshatai --> Safari Park --> Fujiazhuang --> Yuexiu Villa --> Yanwoling --> Singing Birds' Woods --> Laohutan Park --> Yingbin Lu --- > Fudun Hotel --> Chaoyang Jie --> Sanba Square --> Dock of Dalian Passenger Port --> Furama Hotel --> Zhongshan Square --> Shengli Square

Tourist Bus 801 B
Unlike the circle route above, this route starts from the Dock of Dalian Passenger Port and runs across the busy downtown area from northeast to the southwestern end of the city. All 801 (B) buses have no conductors and you need to prepare change of two yuan before getting on the bus.

Route: Dalian Fisheries University --> Heishijiao Jie --> Xinghai Park --> Dalian Medical University --> Xinghai Exhibition Center --> Heping Square --> Olympic Square --> Renmin Square-->Qingniwaqiao (Railway Station) --> Zhongshan Square -->Furama Hotel--> Dock

Return Trip:
Dock --> Xuyuan Hotel --> Furama Hotel --> Zhongshan Square --> Qingniwaqiao (Railway Station) -->Xiwang Square --> Renmin Square --> Olympic Square --> Xinghai Exhibition Center --> Dalian Medical University --> Heishitan --> Heishijiao Jie -->Dalian Fisheries University

Ticket: two yuan
First Stop: Dalian Fisheries University, operating hours: from: 6:30 to 19:30
Last Stop: Dock of Dalian Passenger Port operating hours: from: 7:00 to 21:00

Tourist Bus 901
This route covers most of the southwestern part of the city and then goes northwards to the bustling downtown area.

Route: Xinxin Villa --> Xinxin Hotel --> Software Park --> Youjiacun --> Dongbei University of Finance and Economics --> Heishijiao --> Xinghai Bathing Place --> Dalian Medical University -->Xinghai Exhibition Center--> Taiyuan Jie --> Qingniwaqiao (Railway Station) --> Youhao Square --> Zhongshan Square -->Dalian University of Foreign Languages

Ticket: two yuan
First Stop Xinxin Villa, operating hours: 6:00 - 20:00
Last Stop Dalian University of Foreign Languages, operating hours: 6:35 - 20:00

Trams
There are four cities in China with well-preserved trams from the old days, namely, Hong Kong, Changchun, Anshan and Dalian, among which those in Dalian are said to be the best preserved. Trams in Dalian are not only an important means of transport but a historical testimony of this century-old city. The well-preserved tram lines were built by Japanese colonists in the early 1900s and nowadays these 'relics' still serve as a crucial means of transport in the downtown area.

There are three tram routes running through the city from east to west at a speed of 20km/hour (about 12 miles/hour).

Bus 201
Railway Station --> Dongguan Jie --> Shichang Jie --> Datong Jie --> Beijing Jie --> Wuyi Square --> Zhengong Jie --> Xinggong Jie --> Shahekou Railway Station

If possible, tourists are suggested to take this route in the day for it passes through the bustling residential areas and you can have a chance to see the daily life of the local people.

Bus 202
Xinggong Jie --> Jinhui Shopping Mall --> Jiefang Square --> Gongcheng Jie --> Heping Square --> Xinghai Exhibition Center --> Heishijiao --> Gaoxinyuan -->Qixianling --> Hekou --> North Hekou

This route takes passengers from the downtown area to the Xinghai Scenic Area including the Xinghai Square, Exhibition Center, Xinghai Park and the famous bathing area.

Bus 203
Route: Railway Station --> Shengli Qiao -->Minsheng Jie --> Minzhu Square --> Sanba Square --> Erqi Square --> Si'ergou
This is highly recommended for tourists who are enjoy lush lawns, European style buildings, musical fountains and various charming squares.

Light Rail
The northern development area of the city, where the Economic and Technology Development Zone is situated, is not densely covered by public buses. The city government has built a 50kms (31 miles) long light rail line starting from the downtown commercial center near Dalian Railway Station. The line goes through five administrative districts of the city and serves as an express transport between the northern developing region and the downtown area. The line extends further northward to Golden Pebble Beach (Jinshitan Scenic Area), a national scenic park, 50km (31 miles) away from the city center.

Route

A single trip takes about 50 minutes and trains usually leave in each direction at an interval of twenty minutes. Each train has 176 seats and runs at an average speed of 60km/hr (37 miles/hr) and reaches a speed of 100 km/hr (62 miles/hr).

Dalian Railway Station -->Xianglujiao --> Jinjiajie --> Quanshui --> Houyan --> Dalian Bay --> Jinmalu --> Development Zone --> Tax Protection District --> DD Port --> Jinshitan Scenic Area

Operating hours

Light trains leave from three spots on the route, namely Dalian Railway Station, Tax Protection District and Jinshitan at an interval of 20 minutes in the peak period from 6:30 to 18:30 and at an interval of 30 minutes in the low periods of 6:00 - 6:30 and 18:30 - 20:00. The initial trains leave from Dalian Railway Station and Tax Protection District around 6:00 in the morning and the last trains are leave around 20:00. Trains leave from Jinshitan around 6:30 in the morning and the last trains are available around 18:30.

A single-trip costs eight yuan.

By Taxi
The city area of Dalian is not very large and a taxi would be a good choice for travelers who want to quickly see the city. The rates start from eight yuan for the first three kilometers (1.86 miles) with 1.8 yuan per additional kilometer (0.62 miles). Rates for the night service from 22:00 - 05:00 (next day) are 30% higher, starting at 10.4 yuan for the first three kilometers (1.86 miles) and 2.34 yuan for each additional kilometer.

The taxi drivers in Dalian have a good reputation for their hospitableness and trustworthiness - they are very kind to foreign visitors.

Tips: There is a marker fixed to the car window facing in to the taxi, on which is a picture of an animal and a number. This is so that you may recall which taxi you took in case you need to report a missing item.

The Pearl Card (Ming Zhu Ka) is a public transportation IC card. Some taxis accept this kind of IC card as a way of payment.