Getting There

By Plane

On direct, nonstop flights, China's own international airlines always offer rates slightly lower than those of foreign carriers. Cabin staff try to be helpful but are never quite sure how. Air China only recently suffered its first and only fatal accident and should not be confused with China Airlines from Taiwan, at quite the other end of the scale. Departure tax is now included in the price of your ticket.

From North America -- Among North American airlines, Air Canada (www.aircanada.com), Northwest Airlines (www.nwa.com) (via Tokyo), and United Airlines (www.ual.com) fly to Beijing.

Japan Airlines -- (www.jal.co.jp) flies via Tokyo to Beijing, as does All Nippon Airways (www.ana.co.jp). Korean Air (www.koreanair.com) and Asiana Airlines (us.flyasiana.com) fly via Seoul.

From The United Kingdom -- British Airways (www.britishairways.com) flies to Beijing. Fares with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (www.klm.com) via Amsterdam, Lufthansa (www.lufthansa.com) via Frankfurt, or Finnair (www.finnair.com) via Helsinki, can often be considerably cheaper. Fares with eastern European airlines such as Tarom Romanian Air Transport (www.tarom.ro) via Bucharest, and Aeroflot (www.aeroflot.com) via Moscow, or with Asian airlines such as Pakistan International Airlines (www.piac.com.pk) via Islamabad or Karachi, Malaysia Airlines (www.mas.com.my) via Kuala Lumpur, or Singapore Airlines (www.singaporeair.com) via Singapore, can be cheaper still. There are even more creative routes via Ethiopia or the Gulf States.

From Australia -- Sydney is served by China Eastern, Air China, and Qantas (www.qantas.com.au) to Beijing and Shanghai, and by Air China and China Southern to Guangzhou, where you can catch a connecting flight to Beijing. Air New Zealand (www.airnewzealand.com) flies to Shanghai, and there are possible indirect routes with Philippine Airlines (www.pal.com.ph) via Manila, Malaysian Airlines (www.malaysiaairlines.com.my) via Kuala Lumpur, and Vietnam Airlines (www.vietnamairlines.com) via Ho Chi Minh City. Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific (www.cathaypacific.com) flies directly from six Australian cities and Auckland.

By Road

Foreign visitors are not permitted to drive their own vehicles into China, unless arrangements are made far in advance with a state-recognized travel agency for a specific itinerary. The agency will provide a guide who will travel in your vehicle, or in a second vehicle with a driver, and make sure you stick to the planned route. You will have to cover all the (marked-up) costs of guide, driver, and extra vehicle if needed, and of Chinese plates for your vehicle. The agency will book and overcharge you for all your hotels and for as many excursions as it can. Forget it.

By Train

From Hung Hom station in Kowloon (Hong Kong), expresses run directly to Beijing's West Station on alternate days (go to www.kcrc.com for schedules and fares). From Moscow there are weekly trains via Ulaan Baatar in Mongolia to Beijing, and weekly via a more easterly route directly to Harbin in China's northeast and down to the capital. There's also a separate weekly run from Ulaan Baatar to Beijing. Trains run twice-weekly from Hanoi in Vietnam to Beijing West via Guilin. There's also a service between Beijing and Pyongyang in North Korea, but you'll only be on that if you've joined an organized tour.

By Ship

There are ferry connections from Incheon in South Korea (english.tour2korea.com) and from Shimonoseki and Kobe in Japan (www.celkobe.co.jp) to Tianjin, a couple of hours from Beijing.