Asia - Car Rental in Beijing

I'm planning to be in Beijing for a week in August and really want to hire a car. I know in Shanghai you can now rent from Hertz/Avis, with driver if you don't have the proper license.

Has anyone rented from Hertz/Avis at one of the Beijing locations? What type of cars do they have? I'll be at the St. Regis, is the traffic very bad getting out/around the town?

Thanks in advance,

Have you been to China before and seen the roads and the driving?

I don't know where you hire a car so I can't help you on that one but there's no way I'd drive there. I'd consider hiring a car plus driver.

The traffic is bad and also in August it could be fairly wet making the driving worse than usual.

I don't know where you hire a car so I can't help you on that one but there's no way I'd drive there. I'd consider hiring a car plus driver.


I haven't been to Beijing, but to some other places around China... I would never ever drive by myself (and I am usually not affraid of big citys and much traffic)... I wouldn't even rent a bike there...

Rent car and driver and enjoy your time in China...

The driving behavior is so bad, making driving radically unsafe, that GM prohibits its ex-pat employees from driving. It should tell you something when a car company restricts driving.

it's all about taxis guys. for the past several months, i've tried to justify to myself the idea of purchasing a sleek x5 (company expense) to bop around town in a bit more style, but the economics just don't pan out, considering the fact that taxis are ubquitous and absurdly cheap. what's more, some of the newer models (hyundais) are pretty comfortable.

for the vast majority of trips, it makes the most sense to simply hail cabs and go by the meter. but, pretty much any cabbie will indenture himself to you for a day for y400-600 (it's also a nice gesture to buy the guy lunch, when convenient). this is a good strategy if you want to go to tianjin, huanghua, etc.

i try to keep contact info for good cab drivers on hand for this purpose so feel free to pm me if you need assistance.

We do not allow our employees to drive in China- period. Hire a car and driver- it is not an unreasonable expense and could possibly save your life!

I think you guys are being a little over the top.

I have never had a problem driving in China (except trying to figure out the map....). Really driving in China is no big deal – I have logged probably 20,000 km there with no problem whatsoever (ok a lot of traffic tickets….). Its easy to get a driver's license and unless you are going somewhere really obscure there are a lot of signs in English, and almost all have pin yin. More to the point I trust my judgment and driving ability far more then some driver I randomly selected by sticking my hand up on the side of the street. I admit its not for the un-adventurous but you can really bust out of that expat circle when you are behind the wheel.

Moondog, I am not sure who you do business with but you may be shooting yourself in the foot showing up in a taxi. The economics may work out a lot better when you factor in the intangibles. In the same way a western business man will subconsciously size someone up by the shoes they wear, your hoop-dee matters in China.

I rented a car (and driver!) in Beijing last summer, so I'll offer my advice. First, as everyone else has mentioned, get a driver too - the cost is pretty reasonable , I'd say at least half as much as it will cost you to rent the car for the day.

I rented at a Chinese company called Shouqi over the foreign companies in Beijing (Hertz & Avis) because they were cheaper and they had more locations.

The price for the economy I rented was 230 per day plus driver (they could provide, however I had my own) I also had to put down a 5,000 RMB deposit, cash or credit. I was given a shiny new VW Polo with about 8,000 KM on it. I ended up renting the car for a month, and was able to get them to lower the price quite a bit.

Their number in Beijing for all locations is 800-810-9090 .

Feel free to PM me if you have any other questions.

it's all about taxis guys. for the past several months, i've tried to justify to myself the idea of purchasing a sleek x5 (company expense) to bop around town in a bit more style, but the economics just don't pan out, considering the fact that taxis are ubquitous and absurdly cheap. what's more, some of the newer models (hyundais) are pretty comfortable.

for the vast majority of trips, it makes the most sense to simply hail cabs and go by the meter. but, pretty much any cabbie will indenture himself to you for a day for y400-600 (it's also a nice gesture to buy the guy lunch, when convenient). this is a good strategy if you want to go to tianjin, huanghua, etc.

i try to keep contact info for good cab drivers on hand for this purpose so feel free to pm me if you need assistance.

dude, take the company car (and driver)! :p

In case if anyone needs the following car rental companies' phone numbers:

1. Hertz - Beijing: 800 810 8883

2. Shouqi Car Rental Co. Ltd - Beijing: 800 810 9090 or 86-(0)10-6232 8701

3. Beijing Contemporary New Concept Auto Club (Chinese Name: Jin Ri Xin Gai Nian) - Beijing: 800 810 9001 or 86-(0)10-6457 5566

Personal Recommendation:

All three companies listed above are very reputable in Beijing, and as noted by earlier fellows that Hertz is obviously western branded while the other two are locally owned and managed. I have tried both Hertz and Shouqi before, my preferrence would possibly be Shouqi as the same type of cars are relatively cheaper than Hertz plus they have some staff who're extremely knowledgable in terms of local attractions and general aspects of Beijing (Not too forget they have way greater number of locations than Hertz in Beijing as mentioned by ryanjudy).

However, Hertz is not bad as well, their cars for rent are normally very well maintenanced, especially everytime I got a brand new car of the last few times I rented from them not long ago. Additionally, many airlines are partnered with Hertz worldwide, so you may possibily earn frequent flyer points as well.

For Beijing Contemporary New Concept Auto Club, I know it is one of the very first car rental companies based in Beijing, but it is unfortunate that I have not had the opportunity to deal with them until now. But, many of my associates have rented from them before, particularly my Chinese clients (PS: Many of them are Air China Companion Club members and I believe they would earn frequent flyer points by renting from this company as it is one of the Air China Companion Club's official partners) and the feedback seems to be rather positive.

Hopefully my two-cent-worth thoughts may help you a bit!

Cheers.

Thanks for all the suggestions and comments! I drove a company car in NYC for a while so I thought I was ready for the challenge. May be I'm a bit too optimistic. I will definitely check out Shouqi, hopefully they have something bigger, like a Passat.

I was told that the cabs in Beijing are even more crappy than in Shanghai. I don't know how this is possible.

You'll always find Americans here who advise you to never drive anywhere outside of America. We had a big thing a while ago about driving in Italian cities. Some would rather slit their wrists, while some of us have no problems driving in these places. After a recent week in Beijing, in lots of taxis and private cars, I think I would have no problem driving myself around in a rental car. It's really no worse than Boston. ;)

But as Moondog said, the taxis are plentiful and cheap and in my experience they give very good service. So if you are just touring around in Beijing, stick to the taxis and the subway. But if you are going elsewhere, maybe a rental would be best.

You need a Chinese driver license to drive in China. A US driver's license with or w/o an International Driver's Permit won't do.

You need a Chinese driver license to drive in China. A US driver's license with or w/o an International Driver's Permit won't do.

True, but a) its easy to get (I understand that Hertz can even issue provisonal ones, but I advise to call ahead and confirm). b) a lot of people get away without them.

a) its easy to get

at least in beijing and shanghai, it's not all that easy -- $300 plus a written test with crazy illogical questions (i wish i could find a link to a sample test to underscore this point).

...crazy illogical...

Isn't that how they drive in China anyways? So, the questions are probably relevant! :D

at least in beijing and shanghai, it's not all that easy -- $300 plus a written test with crazy illogical questions (i wish i could find a link to a sample test to underscore this point).

Took me about half a morning, and the questions were so crazy and illogical you had to pass...I vaugely remember one:

When passing slower traffic on a two way road you must:
a) Honk your horn
B) Flash your lights
c) Honk your horn and Flash your lights
d) Wait for a passing lane with no opposing traffic.

Clearly the answer is C.

The funest part was the "health test" -- more fun then games at a carnival.