waiting for the long distance bus…
From Shanghai, you have a couple easy options for getting to Hangzhou. It serves as a nice hub for other points westward (Tunxi, Huangshan, etc…) and is definitely worth the stop for a day or two of exploring and eating.
Option 1: The high speed train. This option just became available at the beginning of July 2015… and whilst Hangzhou isn’t terribly far from Shanghai, it has made getting to Tunxi and the Yellow Mountains a lot faster. We booked all of our train tickets through China Highlights prior to our trip. I highly recommend using them for all of your ticket needs! Convenient, easy to understand schedules and online booking procedures- and once you are confirmed, you get a great, printable packet of information which includes useful phrases in Chinese that you might need to pick up your tickets once you arrive. Also- all of your tickets (for your entire trip) can be picked up at any train station, all at the same time. Totally amazing. It saves a ton of time and confusion.
Option 2: The long distance shuttle bus from Shanghai’s Pudong Airport. This is the option that we chose, as were were flying into China and immediately making out way westward without stopping in Shanghai for the night. Our plan was to venture out to the Yellow Mountains, then spend some time in Shanghai at the end of our trip. The shuttle bus was a great option for a few reasons: easy access directly from the airport, scheduled departures almost every hour, with ticket fares costing approximately 120RMB.
The long distance bus station is easy to find- once you pick up your luggage there will be plenty of signs… just follow the arrows: after about a 10 minute walk you will arrive. The station is reminiscent of an older era- especially compared to the slick new airport facilities. The ticket booth is located close to the entry, and there is seemingly only 1 option for Hangzhou. You will have to get your luggage scanned before you can take a seat in the waiting room. Get used to this process… all across the country for every bus, train or subway ride you will have to get your bags x-rayed!
Bus departures: 11, 12, 1p, 2p, 4p, 5p…
The ride from Shanghai to Hangzhou took about 3 1/2 hours. We got off the bus at the first stop it made in Hanzhou*- It was about a 15 minute taxi ride to our hotel D House Boutique– lovely and perfectly located just steps away from Qinghefang Ancient Street, about a half hour walk to the West Lake area, as well as a half hour walk to the Hangzhou train station, which made it insanely convenient…
Make sure that you travel with the name of your hotels and their street addresses written out in Chinese… Some hotels (like D House) were listed on Agoda with an English name, but in reality, all signs were only in Chinese…
*(We experienced a bit of uncertainty and confusion when it came time to exit the bus. We knew that we were in Hangzhou, but there were no bus station signs that we could see..according to my notes we were hoping to arrive at the ‘Hangzhou Tourist Hub’- but there was no way to confirm this. Since there had been only 1 option when buying the ticket, we thought that the bus would only be making one stop in Hangzhou- but due to the fact that not everyone got off, it is possible that this was not the case at all. We also never buy SIM cards or international phone plans- choosing instead to travel ‘the old fashioned way’ so we had no way of really figuring anything out at the time!)
Upon arriving home and doing some ‘after-the-fact-research’ we can add that the stop which we got off on comes up on google maps as ‘Home Inn South Bus Station’ on Qiutao Road near the corner of Qingjiang Road.
Traveling to Hangzhou? Feel free to write me with any questions you might have!