broadwayboy

Yup, I guess it wasn't bad after all. Last year in May, around the same time of day, from PVG to Park Hyatt took me close to 80 minutes. We were stuck near the hotel and traffic was standing still. That was painful.

indo79

You were lucky on that 58 min cab ride to Le Meridien. I arrived on a Saturday once and my friend's driver picked me up from PVG at 5.30pm. Got to Le Meridien at 8.15pm!!!

I am also a little surprised by your cab fare since my cab back to PVG cost me $170 rmb but I guess $25 rmb isn't all that much.

mosburger

This year all of my overseas flights to and from Shanghai have been at Honqgiao, finally left that remote coastal airport behind. Amazing improvement getting anywhere in Puxi and also quite practical for many Pudong areas.

And now that I figured out the configuration of the SHA domestic and international terminals and the adjacent train station better, trips from the airport to the Yangtze delta are finally almost hassle free on comfy CRH trains.

mnredfox

Really? Impressive. I was under the impression that flights out of SHA to international locations were only a few. What destinations and on what airline?

To be honest, while getting to SHA from my place in Jing-An is easier than Pudong, I'm more afraid of hitting random traffic to prevent me getting to the airport on time.

moondog

HKG, HND, TPE, TSA, SEL; a mishmash of Chinese and foreign airlines for each destination. His use of the term "overseas", while technically correct, is a bit misleading. That having been said, if you have miles to play with, routes like SHA-HND-LAX are viable (though, since there are soon to be THREE PVG-LAX nonstops, maybe not worth the effort).

mosburger

Of these HKG and SEL/GMP are in frequent use and the latter also offers an interesting additional (mileage) connection in ITM - GMP - SHA for ex-downtown Osaka passengers. So my longhauls now go to ICN or HKG instead of PVG as I always have something to do in either city.

But the best part from my perspective is really the CRH connection. More often than not my journey back from China does not begin in Shanghai but Suzhou, Wuxi or Nanjing. It's a huge improvement to get to the airport in a comfy 1st class train carriage compared to several hours in a car or bus.

If and when WUX gets more international flights I'm probably going to use that airport frequently for entering the country. Still my favourite in all of China although SHA is not bad at all.

mnredfox

Good point, didn't know about WUX. I thought SHA was one of the few places where train station and airport are near each other.

broadwayboy

Do Shanghai cabs have surcharge for late night/early morning hours? We left Xintiandi area at 4:45AM and fare on meter was RMB251. The trip was fast, since there was obviously no traffic, but I am wondering why it's more expensive than the trip from the airport.

moondog

Yes; night surcharges are common in most Chinese cities I've visited. In the case of Shanghai, I believe day rates kick in at 5a; if so, the rate on the meter probably dropped during the second half of your trip.

mnredfox

Night rates start at 10pm I think. Can't remember the surcharge, maybe 30% or so.

moondog

They kick in at 11p in BJ and I'm almost positive the same is the case in SH.

earny

Be careful as some of the original posters have said about the cabs in front of longyang station. I was going to take a cab to the Hilton but after I got into the cab, the driver says it's gonna cost 200 rmb. I tell him no and get out of the cab and this guy asks how much do I want to pay lol. I say forget it and end up taking the subway. While I walk to the subway station the other cab drivers around there tell me they'll use the meter which is probably rigged somehow.

anacapamalibu

Shanghai Taxi Rates

In the daytime, the price is CNY12 for the first three kilometers (1.9 miles), an additional charge of CNY2.4 for every succeeding kilometer within 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) and CNY3.2 for every succeeding kilometer after 10 kilometers.
At night from 23:00 to 5:00 the next morning, the taxi fare is CNY16 for the first three kilometers, an additional charge of CNY3.1 for every succeeding kilometer within 10 kilometers and CNY4.1 for every succeeding kilometer after 10 kilometers.

Approximately 25% more cost at night.

Day 10KM 12 RMB + 16.8 = 28.8

Night 10 KM 16 RMB + 21.7= 37.7

mnredfox

I've never had a problem with cabs in Shanghai, though I have heard stories with smaller cab companies. Speaking Chinese probably helps. If you can help it, stick to the big companies:

Baby blue - Da zhong 大众
Light green color - Ba Shi 巴士
Ocean blue color - Hai Bo 海博
White - Jin Jiang 锦江
Yellow - Qiang Sheng 强生

Any of the Expo cabs are ok as well, as they will belong to one of the above cabs.

Avoid dark red and dark blue.

maltasr

When a cabdriver spots an American tourist or businessman at Lonyang Station, it's like hitting the jackpot. Be sure to get the receipt when the driver drops you off and verify with the concierge that you weren't cheated. I was sure I had overpaid immensely on the Longyang to Marriott Courtyard Route. I kept the receipt and had the concierge investigate. When the company found out what was going on with this driver, the VP of said company wanted to come to the hotel to personally apologize. The driver was given a two week unpaid vacation and a two year probation. I got a full refund back from the company. These dishonest drivers keep a stash on fake receipts next to them and pulls one out when he thinkd he can get away with it. My driver wasn't quite so lucky!!! Hotel concierges seem to take a special delight in nailing these dishonest drivers.