Planning a Trip
Getting There-- TheChangsha Airportis 34km (21 miles) east of town. Destinations include Beijing (six or more flights daily); Guangzhou (five flights daily); Hong Kong (irregular); Kunming (six flights daily); Chengdu (four flights daily); Shanghai (five or more flights daily); and Xi'an (two or three flights daily). Anairport shuttlefrom Minhang Dajiudian (Minhang Hotel) at Wuyi Da Dao 5 (cross street Chaoyang Lu) (tel.0731/417-0288) takes about 40 minutes and costs ¥15 ($1.85); it departs the hotel every half-hour. A taxi to the airport is around ¥100 ($13).Changsha Huochezhan (Changsha Railway Station)is at the east end of Wuyi Da Dao. The city is on the Beijing-Guangzhou railway line. Major connections include Beijing (T1, T2; 15 1/2 hr.; hard sleeper ¥345/$43); Guangzhou (5361, 5362; 10 1/2 hr.; hard sleeper ¥108/$13); and Kunming (T61, T62; 24 hr.; hard sleeper ¥207/$26). Changsha has three mainbus stations: Qiche Nan Zhan (South Station), Qiche Dong Zhan (East Station),andQiche Xi Zhan (West Station).Buses to Nan Yue Heng Shan, Shao Shan, Xiamen, and Guilin leave from the South Station. Buses to Hankou (Wuhan), Guangzhou, and Nanjing leave from the East Station. Buses to Zhang Jia Jie and Yichang leave from the West Station.
Getting Around-- Air-conditionedpublic busescost ¥2 (25¢); non-air-conditioned buses cost ¥1 (15¢). Standardtaxirates are ¥8 ($1) for 3km (2 miles), then ¥1.80 (20¢) per kilometer up to 10km (6 miles). Beyond that, add 50% per kilometer.