China Travel FAQ
Nanjing Travel FAQ & Tips
Weather
Transportation
- How to transfer between Nanjing Airport and the city enter?
- Is there any airport express bus from Nanjing Airport to the nearby cities?
- Can you give me any suggestion about the CRH from Nanjing to Shanghai?
Shopping
Cuisine
Accommodation
Entertainment
Festivals
Weather:
How is the climate of Nanjing?
Nanjing is subjected to the sub-tropical climate. June and July are the rainy season; The hottest time falls in July and August with the high temperature up to 40ºC. The wide tree coverage still cannot cool down this "stove " city in the melting summer. In winter, commonly in December, Nanjing snows and becomes pretty dry and cold.
Transportation:
How to transfer between Nanjing Airport and the city enter?
1. by bus
There are three lines for you to take the airport shuttle bus with ticket of CNY20/person (6:00am – 8:30pm)
- Zhonghua Gate Bus Station – Shuttle bus departs every 30 minutes and the transfer takes 40 minutes.
- Ruijin Road – Shuttle bus departs every 30 minutes and the transfer takes 50 minutes.
- Nanjing Railway Station – Shuttle bus departs every 30 minutes and the transfer takes 60 minutes.
2. by metro
- Metro Line 1 –- it will operate from the arrival time of the first flight to that of the last flight. The stops are Yuhua Square, Qinhuai District Government, Xihua Gate, Nanjing Railway Station.
- Metro Line 2 –- it runs between 9:30am and 10:00pm. The stops are Zhonghua Gate Coach Station, Shuixi Gate, Hanzhong Gate, National Defense Garden.
Is there any airport express bus from Nanjing Airport to the nearby cities?
Yes. There are several airport express buses from Nanjing Airport to nearby cities like Wuxi, Yixing, Zhenjiang, Changzhou, Danyang, Jintan, Liyang, Yangzhou, Huan'an, Wuhu, Ma'anshan, Chuzhou. You can dial 968890 for more detailed information.
Can you give me any suggestion about the CRH from Nanjing to Shanghai?
There are quite a lot of CRH from Nanjing to Shanghai. You can catch the 2-hour train (D5401/5402--D5449/5450) which ends in Shanghai or (D5471/5472) the 4-hour train whose terminal is Hangzhou. There are two express trains available from Nanjing to Shanghai (T7781 and T7785). It runs about 3.5 hours at CNY72 for the soft seat.
Shopping:
Are there any local specialties/souvenirs in Nanjing? And where can I find them?
Nanjing Brocade, rain flower pebbles, velvet, and wood carving, etc. are Nanjing specialties.
Nanjing Brocade Research Institute is nice to purchase the quality Nanjing Brocade. If you are a fan of the rain flower pebbles, the Heaven Dynasty Palace antique city, Nanjing Museum, Confucius Temple cultural store are your places.
There are many large department stores to meet your different requirements in the popular commercial streets like Hunan Road, Xinjiekou Street, Hanzhong Road and Zhongshan Road. Night markets around Confucius Temple, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing Wanda shopping Square, etc have clustered plenty of stalls and stands that lure the fashion fanciers.
Cuisine:
What is the Nanjing cuisine?
There are many delicious foods in Nanjing and the over 1400-year-history duck dish is regarded as the most popular one. The hearty duck banquet including Jinling Roast Duck, salted preserved duck, boiled salted duck, seasoned duck, crispy duck. Besides the colorful duck feast, the Boiled Fish with Pickled Cabbage and Chili cal dishes like silk noodle soup with duck blood, pork meat patties, Yin's chicken soup bum, etc. are pretty distinctive tastes and worthy a try.
Gourmet Street on the Dashiba Street near the Confucius Temple and the Lion Bridge of the Hunan Road offer you a good chance to try the Nanjing delicious dishes. Nanjing University district and Xinjiekou are also scattered with popular specialty eateries and restaurants.
Accommodation:
Can you give me some suggestions for the accommodation in Nanjing?
There are many hotels from luxury 5 star hotel to economical hostel in the city.
Confucius Temple and Qinhuai River area:
It is the most popular district for it reveals you the local Nanjing folk custom and culture. This area is convenient in transportation. Many buses and metro lines reach scenic spots like Presidential Palace and Zhongshan scenic area..
Xinjiekou area in the downtown:
It boasts a quite easy access to most scenic spot and business and entertainment district. Nanjing New Department Store, Golden Eagle International Shopping Centre and the like are located here. Accommodation fee here is more expensive than that in other areas.
Drum Tower and Xuanwu Lake area:
It is quite near from the Xinjiekou and railway station. Hunan Road Food Street and the Xuanwu Lake scenery are readily accessible here. It is also Nanjing educational center with embracing the noted Nanjing University and Southeast University. Many economical hotels can be found in this area.
Tangshan and Tangquan Town area:
It is a paradise area, about 40min driving away from the city center, to pamper your body in the numerous hot springs. Nanjing Tangshan Hot Spring Resort, Nanjing Tangshan Easpring Resort, Shengquan Hot Spring Resort and Da ji resort &Spa in this area are recommended for a leisure hot spring holiday. Economical hotels are limited choices here.
Entertainment:
What can I do in my leisure time in Nanjing?
1912 street near the Presidential Palace is a bar street dotted with the told buildings, fashion bars and quite a lot of nice restaurants.
The zone of Qinhuai River and Confucius Temple or Xinjiekou are Nanjing local famous places for shopping or eating or merely wandering. Souvenirs, cloths, cuisines are easily accessible here.
Festivals:
Are there any special local festivals in Nanjing?
Many flower festivals are held in spring from February to April like International Plum Blossom Festival, Cherry Blossom Festival, Tulip Festival, Peony Festival, etc. When it comes to September and October of autumn you are welcomed by the Crab Festival, Osmanthus Festival and Red Maple Tree Festival.
Among many different flower festivals, the International Plum Blossom Festival of Nanjing from the late February to mid-March is the most famous one. Thousands of people swarm to the plum mountain in the east outskirt of Nanjing city to appreciate plum blossom. Plum blossom calligraphy and painting exhibitions, big performances of singing and dancing, etc. are also held during the festival time.
Another noted festival is the Jinling Lantern Festival staged during the first 15 days of Chinese Lunar Spring Festival. Large scale colored-lantern exhibitions are held, especially on the Lantern Festival when Nanjing locals gather at the Confucius Temple to appreciate the beautiful colored-lantern and taste rice glue ball to celebrate their big festival.