Getting around Guangzhou: metro, taxis, Didi and the trains out

Getting around Guangzhou for a buyer: the metro to Pazhou, Xiaobei and the airport, tapping a foreign card at the gate, taxi rates, Didi and the fast trains out.

Guangzhou is much easier to move around than it looks on the map.

For a Nigerian buyer, you really need to understand only three things:

Use the metro for anything near a station.

Use Didi when the market or factory is not.

Use the train when the supplier is outside Guangzhou.

The metro starts at ¥2, signs are in English, and since October 2025 you can tap a foreign contactless Visa, Mastercard, American Express or JCB card directly at the gate. No Chinese bank account or transport card is required.

That makes Guangzhou one of the easier Chinese cities for a first-time buyer.

The metro lines a buyer actually needs #

You do not need to memorise the entire Guangzhou network.

Learn the stations connected to where you are buying.

Canton Fair: Line 8 or Line 11 #

For Canton Fair, the important stations are:

Pazhou 琶洲

and

Xingangdong 新港东

Line 8 serves both.

Line 11 also serves Pazhou directly. Guangzhou's official 2026 Canton Fair guide recommends Line 8 to Pazhou/Xingangdong or Line 11 to Pazhou.

During Canton Fair, use the metro unless you have a good reason not to.

Road traffic around the complex can become heavy, especially at opening and closing times.

The train does not care.

Xiaobei: Line 5 #

If you stay around Xiaobei, where many African traders, restaurants and trading businesses are concentrated, Xiaobei Station is on Line 5.

This makes Xiaobei convenient if you want somewhere familiar while still being connected to the rest of Guangzhou.

Guangzhou South Railway Station: Line 2 #

You will use Guangzhou South when taking many high-speed trains out of the city.

From the Canton Fair area, Guangzhou's official transport guidance recommends Line 8 to Changgang and then Line 2 to Guangzhou South.

If you have an early train, leave more time than the map suggests.

Guangzhou South is enormous.

Reaching the building is not the same thing as standing beside your train.

Airport transport changed in 2026 #

This is where old Guangzhou guides will mislead you.

Terminal 1 is closed.

Since May 7, 2026, passenger operations have been moved away from T1, and Airport South metro station no longer stops for passengers.

So forget old advice saying:

“Take Line 3 to Airport South for Terminal 1.”

That information is outdated.

If your flight uses Terminal 2 #

Use Airport North on Metro Line 3.

For Canton Fair, the official route is:

Line 3 → Kecun → Line 8 → Pazhou/Xingangdong.

If your flight uses Terminal 3 #

T3 does not currently have a Guangzhou Metro station directly under the terminal.

You have two useful rail options.

The fastest public-transport option is often Baiyun Airport East intercity station, which is connected directly to Terminal 3.

If you specifically want the Guangzhou Metro, take the airport shuttle from T3 to Gaozeng Station, where you can join Line 3 or Line 9.

The shuttle takes about 15 minutes and currently costs ¥2.

Our Guangzhou airport arrival guide covers this in detail.

How much does the Guangzhou Metro cost? #

The fare is based on distance.

The official pricing starts at:

¥2 for the first 4 km.

Then:

4–12 km: add ¥1 for every additional 4 km.

12–24 km: add ¥1 for every additional 6 km.

Above 24 km: add ¥1 for every additional 8 km.

Most normal journeys around central Guangzhou are therefore inexpensive.

There is also a one-day unlimited metro pass priced at ¥20 and a three-day pass at ¥50, although whether it saves money depends on how much you actually travel.

For most business travellers, simply tapping per journey is easier.

The easiest way to pay for the metro #

Since October 2025, Guangzhou Metro accepts contactless international cards throughout the network.

You can tap:

• Visa
• Mastercard
• American Express
• JCB
• UnionPay

directly at supported gates.

Tap the same card when entering and leaving.

Do not enter with your Mastercard and try to exit with your phone's Apple Pay version of the same card.

The system may treat them as two different payment methods.

If your Nigerian-issued card does not work, use Alipay, WeChat transport code, a ticket machine or station staff.

China's official foreign-traveller guide also confirms that foreigners can use Alipay transport codes and purchase metro tickets with cash or supported bank cards.

Keep a little RMB cash anyway.

Your card failing once should not become a transport emergency.

Use Didi when the metro stops being convenient #

For factories and wholesale markets away from metro stations, use Didi.

China's government guide confirms that foreign travellers can register the Didi Greater China app using a foreign phone number and international credit card.

You can also call a ride from inside:

Alipay → Transport/Taxi

or

WeChat → Services → Mobility/Ride Hailing.

That is often easier than downloading another app.

Didi is particularly useful when:

• visiting a factory
• carrying samples
• travelling with two or three people
• returning from a market with bags
• moving late at night
• the destination is far from a metro station

Always use the Chinese address #

This will save you time.

Do not show a Guangzhou taxi driver:

“No. 18 Xintang Road, Baiyun District.”

Show them:

the Chinese address copied from your supplier, hotel or map app.

Even better, put the address directly into Didi.

Before leaving your hotel for a supplier meeting, ask the supplier:

“Please send me your location pin and Chinese address.”

Save both.

Our maps in China guide explains which navigation apps work properly.

Taxis still work — just use the official ones #

You do not need Didi for every trip.

Guangzhou has ordinary metered taxis throughout the city.

The current base tariff is:

¥12 for the first 3 km

then a base rate of:

¥2.60 per additional kilometre.

There is also a waiting charge when traffic is moving below 10 km/h, long-distance supplements, and a 30% night surcharge on the distance portion from 11pm to 5am.

Guangzhou has also introduced a regulated floating-fare system, so actual starting/per-kilometre charges can vary within permitted limits at different times.

Use the official taxi queue.

If somebody approaches you inside an airport or railway station saying:

“Taxi? Cheap price.”

keep walking.

The legitimate taxi rank is clearly signed.

Metro or Didi: which should you use? #

Use this rule.

Canton Fair: Metro.

Hotel to metro-connected market: Metro.

Factory in an industrial district: Didi.

Three people travelling together: Compare Didi with three metro fares.

Heavy samples: Didi.

Rush-hour trip to Pazhou: Metro.

Late at night after the metro closes: Didi/taxi.

Do not sit in Guangzhou traffic for 90 minutes simply because somebody told you taxis are cheap.

Your time is part of the cost of the buying trip.

Guangzhou South: arrive early for trains #

China's railway system is easy once your passport is registered.

Foreign travellers can create a 12306 account using a valid foreign passport, complete identity verification online and buy tickets directly through the official 12306 English website or app.

Foreign bank cards are supported for railway ticket purchases, and you use the original passport used to book the ticket when entering and boarding.

There is normally no need to print a paper ticket.

For Guangzhou South, arrive around 40–60 minutes before departure if you do not know the station.

You need time for:

security,

finding the correct waiting hall,

passport checks,

and finding your gate.

The train will not wait because Guangzhou South was bigger than you expected.

Shenzhen is an easy business trip #

Shenzhen is close enough for a same-day supplier visit.

That matters if you are sourcing:

• phones
• electronics
• components
• LED products
• accessories
• hardware
• tech products

For Huaqiangbei specifically, see our Shenzhen electronics market guide.

There is also now another useful connection.

Since July 2026, Guangdong's intercity network can take passengers directly from Pazhou to Shenzhen Airport in about one hour, with the fastest service currently priced at ¥54.

That may be useful if your supplier is on the Bao'an side of Shenzhen.

For central Shenzhen or Huaqiangbei, check 12306 for the station that makes the most sense for your actual destination rather than automatically selecting Shenzhen Airport.

Foshan really is a day trip #

For Nigerian buyers sourcing:

furniture, tiles, ceramics, sanitary ware or building materials,

Foshan is effectively part of the wider Guangzhou buying area.

The Guangfo Metro Line connects Guangzhou and Foshan, and the two cities' metro systems operate as a connected network.

That means you do not need to treat Foshan like a separate travel expedition.

You can stay in Guangzhou, spend the day visiting suppliers in Foshan and return in the evening.

Our Foshan furniture and ceramics guide explains where to go once you arrive.

Dongguan is also close enough for supplier visits #

Dongguan sits between Guangzhou and Shenzhen and is full of manufacturing.

If your supplier says their factory is in Dongguan, do not automatically reject the visit because it sounds like another city.

Rail and intercity connections make it practical from Guangzhou.

The correct station depends on where the factory actually is.

Dongguan is a large manufacturing city, so ask the supplier:

Which railway station should I use?

Not simply:

“How do I get to Dongguan?”

A supplier who genuinely expects visitors should be able to tell you the correct station and arrange pickup from there.

Yiwu is not a Guangzhou day trip #

This is worth saying clearly.

Yiwu is important for Nigerian buyers.

It is not a sensible quick day trip from Guangzhou.

They are in different parts of China.

If Yiwu is central to your sourcing plan, give it its own days and hotel rather than trying to squeeze it between Guangzhou supplier meetings.

Read our Yiwu market guide for Nigerian buyers before planning that part of the trip.

Hong Kong is different #

High-speed trains connect Guangzhou and Hong Kong, but immigration rules change the moment you cross the border.

A mainland China visa is not a Hong Kong visa.

For a Nigerian passport holder, check the Hong Kong entry requirements before buying a train ticket.

Do not assume:

“I am already in China, so I can just enter Hong Kong.”

Our Nigeria-to-Guangzhou flights guide explains the Hong Kong visa issue.

The transport setup to do before leaving Nigeria #

You do not need ten transport apps.

Set up:

WeChat

Alipay

Amap

Didi, if you want the standalone app

12306

And make sure you have a working foreign card or payment method.

Then save the Chinese addresses for:

your hotel

Canton Fair

your main markets

your supplier meetings

A screenshot works even when your mobile data does not.

The three rules that save buyers the most time #

Metro first.

If the destination is beside a metro station, take the metro.

Didi for the last mile.

If the factory is 5 km from the station, do not spend 40 minutes trying to understand a local bus. Call a car.

Ask the supplier which station.

For Foshan, Dongguan or Shenzhen factory visits, do not guess the nearest railway station from Google.

Send the supplier:

“Which station should I book to? Please send the Chinese station name.”

That one message prevents a surprising amount of wasted time.

The short version #

For a Nigerian buyer in Guangzhou:

Pazhou/Canton Fair: Line 8 or Line 11.

Xiaobei: Line 5.

Guangzhou South: Line 2.

Baiyun Airport T2: Airport North on Line 3.

Baiyun Airport T3: intercity railway or shuttle to Gaozeng.

Factories and awkward markets: Didi.

Foshan: metro/intercity day trip.

Shenzhen: easy train/intercity trip.

Yiwu: plan a separate trip.

And for payment, the simplest improvement Guangzhou has made for foreign visitors is this:

tap your international contactless bank card at the metro gate and go.

You do not need to understand the entire transport network.

You just need to know where today's supplier is.

Before you travel, read maps and navigation in China.

If you are attending the fair, continue with how to attend Canton Fair as a first timer.

And if you have not landed yet, use our Guangzhou airport arrival guide.

First published 20 Sep 2026. Last checked 22 Sep 2026 by The ChinaBridge desk. Something here out of date? Tell us in the comments and we will fix it.