Typical fender bender in fourth tier city.
Traffic can get congested, most of the cars aren't made for city driving.

Plane tickets are now really cheap between nng and can/szx. Plus, it appears that the new airport terminal is actually open. I'll be able to confirm this myself within 24 hours.

The new terminal at the airport is actually pretty nice, in large part because of the SUBSTANTIAL gap between it and what it replaces, but it also somehow feels a bit more welcoming than its counterparts in Beijing, Shanghai (both airports), Shenzhen, Guangzhou... The lack of long walks is also a plus. On the (predictable) downside, the tenanting strategy seems to have been geared towards stores that normal people wouldn't frequent in an airport (i.e. fancy buying an engagement ring on your way out of town?).

These pics are all from the Guangxi University area. We didn't bother to head over to Langdong or even the City Center this week, but are planning on doing so later this month (more pics then):

Wow! The airport looks impressive for 3rd tier city.

Where do you draw the line between 3rd and 2nd tier? How many 2nd tier cities are in China?

http://chinamarketingtips.com/chinas-city-tier-system/

It gives the number of 2nd tier cities - 24 - but not full list.

This stuff isn't a science. There are many different lists with different criteria.

And apparently is not administrative regulation either.
Nanning certainly is the capital of an autonomous region, and not of a minor one either (like Lhasa, Xining, Yinchuan or Haikou). So is Nanning better regarded as third or second tier city?

-Of course it's not an administrative regulation! The tiered city concept is only of relevance to marketers/consultancies, real estate speculators, and --to a much lesser extent-- financial institutions

-Autonomous regions are all "minor" (suggesting that one is less minor than the rest doesn't matter in the grand scheme)

-Placing cities into tier groups in a meaningful manner requires a certain amount of common sense
*a lot of the small mining cities have per capita GDPs that blow Beijing out of the water, but nobody in their right mind would describe them as "tier 1"
*reported income and population figures are often WAY off base (e.g. it's pretty hard to buy a Bentley on a $6,000/year salary)
*if you think Nanning might be tier 2, visit it along with Nanjing, Qingdao, Dalian, Xiamen, Xi'an, Chengdu, etc.

I was in Nanning a week ago. My second visit (first was in 2012). Was also impressed by the new terminal (better than PVG?), and to a larger extent, the overall improvement of the city - better highways, new subways, nicer business district and downtown. Nanning is hardly a 3 tier city in my view so I was a little surprised. Was there only for the weekend though, maybe biased..

This WSJ article says count the Starbucks

In terms of the regional population, Guangxi certainly stands out.
Population of regions, 2010 census residents of autonomous regions, provinces, municipalities and special administrative regions, millions:
Macau SAR 0,6
Tibet AR 3,0
Qinghai P 5,6
Ningxia AR 6,2
Hong Kong SAR 7,0
Hainan P 8,7
Tianjin M 12,9
Beijing M 19,2
Xinjiang AR 21,8
Shanghai M 23,0
Inner Mongolia AR 24,7
Gansu P 25,6
Jilin P 27,5
Chongqing M 28,8
Guizhou P 34,7
Shanxi P 35,7
Fujian P 36,9
Shaanxi P 37,3
Heilongjiang P 38,3
Liaoning P 43,7
Jiangxi P 44,6
Yunnan P 45,97
Guangxi AR 46,03
I suggest that Guangxi as a region is not less important because it is an autonomous region which Yunnan and Guizhou are not.
Nanjing, Qingdao, Dalian, Xiamen are all cities of rich coastal provinces. True, the problem with the classification "coastal" or "inland" is that Guangxi is "coastal" (Beihai, Fangchenggang...) but not particularly rich compared to inland provinces.
For context, the provincial GDP per capita, in 2013:
Jiangsu - 12 047
Liaoning - 9961
Fujian - 9342
Shandong - 9094
And now compare West:
Shaanxi - 6893
Sichuan - 5240
Guangxi - 4939
Yunnan - 4050
Guizhou - 3701
So... in the context of other Western regional capitals, like Guiyang, Kunming, Chengdu, Xian, but also Nanchang and Changsha, how does Nanning compare in wealth and sophistication?
Note that Central China is already quite poor. The GDP per capita is Anhui 5116, Jiangxi 5130, Henan 5518, Hunan 5936.

The train trip Nanning-Shanghai goes through Changsha South and Nanchang West, so if Nanning is 3rd tier rather than 2nd, are Changsha and Nanchang also 3rd tier?

Regarding that coastal region: there are now 4 daily trains Guangzhou South - Beihai via Nanning East, trip time 5:50 to 6:07, price second class 226 yuan 5 jiao, first class 272 yuan. Nothing to Fangchenggang, though - just 2 daily trains originating at Nanning East.

Good to learn that new terminal is open. Are all airlines move over there now?