Mar 19, 2017, 7:46 pm
Beijing taxis and car services
Feb 27, 2012, 10:41 pm
#151
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: HKG
Posts: 1,314
I completely struck out last night... walked all the way from SLT to Yonganli before finally resorting to the subway (dreaded Line 1 to Line 10 transfer); not a single open taxi in site the entire way, and intense competition throughout. One 黑车 did stop to offer his services early on, but I couldn't get him to go below y50 for a ride that would have otherwise cost y16. If the weather had been bad, I would have taken him up on his extortionate offer.
Feb 28, 2012, 1:24 am
#152
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Southeast USA
Programs: various
Posts: 6,710
I completely struck out last night... walked all the way from SLT to Yonganli before finally resorting to the subway (dreaded Line 1 to Line 10 transfer); not a single open taxi in site the entire way, and intense competition throughout. One 黑车 did stop to offer his services early on, but I couldn't get him to go below y50 for a ride that would have otherwise cost y16. If the weather had been bad, I would have taken him up on his extortionate offer.
This was actually the second time I've been burned by walking south on Gongti East Road (and whatever that same street is called as it passes through the CBD), but in the other case, I did eventually procure a taxi after 10 minutes of walking. Looking on the bright side, I've been saving money, and getting exercise.
This was actually the second time I've been burned by walking south on Gongti East Road (and whatever that same street is called as it passes through the CBD), but in the other case, I did eventually procure a taxi after 10 minutes of walking. Looking on the bright side, I've been saving money, and getting exercise.
In situations like these, the Beijing bus system is your best friend. In the last 6 months I have developed a deep respect for the availability and reliability of the buses--not to mention the 4 mao price! ^
Power failure and right during rush hour. Might have been why the normally awful taxi situation at this time was even more hopeless.
Feb 28, 2012, 3:06 am
#153
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: BRU, SIN, PEK
Programs: SQ TPP, LH SEN
Posts: 3,235
Feb 28, 2012, 8:37 am
#154
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SAN
Programs: AA PP, SPG Plat, Hyatt Diamond, Nat ExecElite, WN CP
Posts: 419
I met the car service guys again yesterday, and am able to offer a few more details (most of which are spelled out on their weibo):
-they are currently a car rental company erjiayi.cn (2+1), and have been operational for 1.5 years
-on February 28, they are switching over to this new model
-100 cars; Camry is best, small Chevy is the worst
-the ONLY way to book a car in the short term is with their iPhone app
-the app displays available cars that are near you; you can touch the car icon to find out what kind of car it is and rate information; then you shake your phone to summon the car
-payment by (Chinese) credit card or cash
-pricing is per minute, and about 20% more than taxis in most cases
-the cars will prowl areas with the highest demand (e.g. CBD, Jianguomen, Sanlitun)
-the service is completely free on March 1
-they are currently a car rental company erjiayi.cn (2+1), and have been operational for 1.5 years
-on February 28, they are switching over to this new model
-100 cars; Camry is best, small Chevy is the worst
-the ONLY way to book a car in the short term is with their iPhone app
-the app displays available cars that are near you; you can touch the car icon to find out what kind of car it is and rate information; then you shake your phone to summon the car
-payment by (Chinese) credit card or cash
-pricing is per minute, and about 20% more than taxis in most cases
-the cars will prowl areas with the highest demand (e.g. CBD, Jianguomen, Sanlitun)
-the service is completely free on March 1
Feb 28, 2012, 12:43 pm
#155
Ambassador: China
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Malibu Inferno Ground Zero
Programs: UA AA CO
Posts: 4,836
I have no idea. Not foreigner friendly.
Feb 28, 2012, 5:07 pm
#156
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Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Shanghai
Posts: 42,033
Since I don't have an iPhone, I haven't had an opportunity to play with the app since it went live (yesterday), but based on the demos I witnessed, a person with almost no knowledge of Chinese could navigate through the booking process (1 touch car icon and 2 shake phone).
Feb 29, 2012, 3:59 am
#157
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Mar 3, 2012, 12:24 am
#158
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Apr 8, 2012, 7:58 am
#160
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: YYZ
Posts: 622
We just returned from Mutianyu today. Mrs. slaman and I decided to hire a private car instead of taking a bus tour because the price wasn't that different, and we wanted to bypass all the customary shopping stops. We took the Cable Car up to Tower 14, hiked up past Tower 23 to the unrestored section, then hiked back down to Tower 6 and took the toboggan down. A lot of fun, but very tiring! Near the top, there were very few people, and in the un-restored section past Tower 23, there wasn't anyone...
We decided to go with Simon, who we found from a review on Trip Adviser. He was excellent - his English was pretty decent, and he was extremely friendly. He picked us up at the Hilton Wangfujing hotel at 8AM, and waited for us in the parking lot of Mutianyu about 4 hrs after dropping us off. After the wall, we asked him to recommend a good local restaurant for lunch. He took us to a wonderful, affordable, locals-only restaurant in Mutianyu village...
The cost was 500Y including all tolls and parking. We ended up giving him an extra 100Y for his great service! Simon has been driving for about 6 months, and has a Volkswagen. I give him my utmost recommendation!
He is associated with http://www.joe-service.com, who apparnently is also excellent and has been driving for 5 years.
If you go with Simon, let him know the Canadian couple from Flyertalk sent you!
Mobile: 8613520315006
Email: [email protected]
To those worried about shopping stops from other drivers/tour operators, simply ask the salesman ahead of time... we turned down a Forbidden City tout because he acknowledged a stop at a silk factory.
We decided to go with Simon, who we found from a review on Trip Adviser. He was excellent - his English was pretty decent, and he was extremely friendly. He picked us up at the Hilton Wangfujing hotel at 8AM, and waited for us in the parking lot of Mutianyu about 4 hrs after dropping us off. After the wall, we asked him to recommend a good local restaurant for lunch. He took us to a wonderful, affordable, locals-only restaurant in Mutianyu village...
The cost was 500Y including all tolls and parking. We ended up giving him an extra 100Y for his great service! Simon has been driving for about 6 months, and has a Volkswagen. I give him my utmost recommendation!
He is associated with http://www.joe-service.com, who apparnently is also excellent and has been driving for 5 years.
If you go with Simon, let him know the Canadian couple from Flyertalk sent you!
Mobile: 8613520315006
Email: [email protected]
To those worried about shopping stops from other drivers/tour operators, simply ask the salesman ahead of time... we turned down a Forbidden City tout because he acknowledged a stop at a silk factory.
Apr 30, 2012, 4:40 am
#161
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: melbourne.au
Posts: 200
How would I go about booking with Gary please, should i have the hotel contact him directly (I don't speak a word of mandarin unfortunately) ??. Wife and I (and mother in law) looking to go to Mutianyu in the next day or so.
Appreciate any help mate, thank you.
Cheers,
Dave
Apr 30, 2012, 8:02 pm
#162
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Denver, CO USA
Programs: UA 1P, F9 Ascent, SPG Lifetime Gold, Marriott Silver
Posts: 816
Actually, I might be able to use Gary as well on May 7th or 8th. Let me kn ow if he has email or if you can call him. Otherwise I'll ring him once I'm in and get a SIM card.
Apr 30, 2012, 9:06 pm
#163
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Location: Shanghai
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This thread should probably be merged into the other one because that's where most chatter about drivers has been taking place.
During recent months, I've been directing pretty much all visitors to my car service friend, Raymond. While his cars are no better than Gary's or Mr. Zhou's, I like the fact that he provides a layer of accountability above the driver (i.e. if the driver no shows, he'll send someone else).
During recent months, I've been directing pretty much all visitors to my car service friend, Raymond. While his cars are no better than Gary's or Mr. Zhou's, I like the fact that he provides a layer of accountability above the driver (i.e. if the driver no shows, he'll send someone else).
May 1, 2012, 3:03 am
#164
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: melbourne.au
Posts: 200
This thread should probably be merged into the other one because that's where most chatter about drivers has been taking place.
During recent months, I've been directing pretty much all visitors to my car service friend, Raymond. While his cars are no better than Gary's or Mr. Zhou's, I like the fact that he provides a layer of accountability above the driver (i.e. if the driver no shows, he'll send someone else).
During recent months, I've been directing pretty much all visitors to my car service friend, Raymond. While his cars are no better than Gary's or Mr. Zhou's, I like the fact that he provides a layer of accountability above the driver (i.e. if the driver no shows, he'll send someone else).
I used a black taxi tout today to get over the summer palace, I was surprised by the good service and decent price - was a new Buick Lacrosse too
May 1, 2012, 3:29 am
#165
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Sorry mate, how can I contact Raymond please? I think I have the worse internet in Wangfujing at the moment, so slow and keeps timing out... I can't even do a search
I used a black taxi tout today to get over the summer palace, I was surprised by the good service and decent price - was a new Buick Lacrosse too
I used a black taxi tout today to get over the summer palace, I was surprised by the good service and decent price - was a new Buick Lacrosse too
He recently recently told me that myself and everyone I've referred to him has been overpaying because we don't use his iPhone app or his 400 number to book. I don't have a link to his iPhone app handy, but if you email him he will send you a link. His 400 number is 4008881661. I've used it a few times when taxis were scarce and the cars really do show up quickly (once I got a Corolla, which is a bit too small for my tastes, but it sure beat walking home). What's more, in spite of the fact that it costs more to book via Raymond, himself, his prices are still quite reasonable (e.g. 600 to Mutianyu, 200 to/from airport in a nice Camry), and he speaks English. I'm sure he would be happy to provide you with his personal cell phone number if you email him and mention that you are a friend of "Eric" (that is me), but just be advised that you are talking to the CEO of a decent sized company (as opposed to a y2,000 per month call center person in Nanning).