Hangzhou City-Bus and Taxi

Currently, there are more than 10,000 city buses in Hangzhou serving over 1,100 routes, linking transportation hubs, scenic spots, parks, shopping plazas, etc. They mostly run from early morning till late night, regularly at the cost of CNY1-3. Hangzhou city buses are generally divided into ordinary buses, air-conditioned buses (add ‘K’ before the route number) and minibuses. In addition, special tourist lines and night lines are available for passengers’ convenience. 

 Bus Categories:
1. Downtown Regular Lines: Mainly numbered 1 to 199 with some exceptions.
2. Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Lines: 201, 205, 206, 220, 233
3. Night Lines: 8000 - 8999
4. Suburban Lines: 300 - 399, 500 - 599 with some exceptions.
5. Community Bus Lines: 1000 - 1999 with some exceptions.
6. Tourist Lines: Y2, Y6, Y8, Y9, Y10

 Here below is a list of the regular bus lines to major scenic sites in the city:

West Lake	27, 87, 508
Lingyin Temple	7, 103, 121, 278, 324, 407, 1314
Hangzhou Zoo	4, 31, 180, 194, 197, 314, 315, 318
Six Harmonies Pagoda	4, 39, 314, 318, 500, 7280, 8202
Qinghefang Ancient Street	8, 127, 195, 7280, 8208
Botanical Garden	7, 15, 16, 28, 79, 82, 87, 103, 197, 278, 107
Hangzhou Railway Station	3, 7, 90, 182, 185, 188
East Railway Station	20, 28, 31, 33, 43, 105, 106, 179, 206, 215, 220, 228, 283, 287, 8179

 Operating Hours:

Hangzhou Bus

In general, buses in the downtown area run from 05:00 to 22:30. Some suburban lines stop as early as at 17:30 or 18:00. The night lines usually run from 21:30 to 05:30 next day.

 Ticket Fare & How to Pay:
Most of the Hangzhou city buses charge CNY1–3 per person. There is a discount when paying with a Transportation Smart Card, Wetchat Pay and Alipay. Most of the buses are self-service with no refund for over-payment, so passengers need to prepare the exact small change beforehand if paying by cash. A child who is below 1.3 meters (4 feet) and accompanied by an adult can take bus for free.

 Tourist Bus Lines
Hangzhou is a world famous tourist city, with many scenic spots scattering throughout the city. The tourist lines link most of the scenic spots, which is very convenient. These tourist city buses are starting with "Y", mainly numbered Y2-Y9. Among them, Y2 and Y9 are equipped with guides to introduce the scenic spots along the way. There are also two tourist bus lines around the West Lake: 51 and 52. If you have time, you can take them to enjoy a leisurely tour of the West Lake. If you want to visit the scenic spots around the West Lake, you can also choose the double-decker West Lake sightseeing bus.

Getting around the city by taxi can be a convenient way. At present, there are nearly 10,000 taxis in Hangzhou and passengers can easily hail one. There are two kinds of them: ordinary taxis in blue and electric taxis in yellow. 

Hangzhou Taxi Price
The flag-down fare is CNY 11 for the first 3 kilometers (2 miles). It costs CNY 2.5 per kilometer (0.6 mile) for the following 3-10 kilometers (2-6 miles) and CNY 3.75 per kilometer for the distance over 10 kilometers (6 miles). It costs CNY 2.5 for every 4 minutes’ while waiting. Take Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport as the starting point, here under is the taxi fare for reference:

Destination	Distance	Fare
West Lake	31km (19mi)	CNY 130 - 140
Lingyin Temple	36km (22mi)	CNY 150 - 160
Hangzhou Zoo	34km (21mi)	CNY 120 - 140
Six Harmonies Pagoda	34km (21mi)	CNY 120 - 140
Qinghefang Ancient Street	28km (17mi)	CNY 100 - 110
Botanical Garden	33km (20mi)	CNY 120 - 130
Hangzhou Railway Station	28km (17mi)	CNY 90 - 100
East Railway Station	32km (20mi)	CNY 90 - 110

 How to Pay the Taxi Fare
The payment may be by cash, Wechat Pay and Alipay. However, the international debit card and credit card such as Visa card and MasterCard cannot work currently.

Taxi in Hangzhou

 Tips on How to Take a Taxi in Hangzhou:
1. It would be hard to hail a taxi at around 16:00 - 17:00 when drivers usually change shifts.
2. Unless taxi is the only choice to your hotel from Xiaoshan Airport or the Railway Stations, or it is best to take airport shuttle bus or city bus, because you may need to wait in a long queue, especially during the peak travel season.
3. It is suggested to take “official” taxis (with a Taxi sign on the car) and ask the driver to charge by meter. When getting off, it is best to ask for the receipt.
4.Taxi reservation hotline: 86 - 0571 - 28811111.
5.Besides the official taxis, you can also use the Ride-Hailing Apps, such as Didi and CaoCao, which bring a lot of convenience. They can help you summon a car in moments, especially in peak hours. 
 

 Car Rental:
1. Usually, it is not hard to rent a taxi near the airport, railway stations, and long-distance bus stations. The reference price is CNY450-700 per day with a driver; without driver, the price is between CNY350 and CNY550, depending on the type of vehicle. You need to know that China doesn’t recognize the international drivers’ licenses, and you need to get a Chinese driver's license before self-driving in China.

2. Some drivers may extend an olive branch with incredibly low price if you need to rent a car. Suppose being charged only CNY100-200 per day, you'd better not hire them! Anyone offering you such so called “bargains” probably thinks about luring you into buying something during the trip, such as expensive tea and silk.