Getting There (By Plane)

Chinese carriers serving international destinations include Air China (www.airchina.com), China Eastern Airlines (www.flychinaeastern.com), and China Southern Airlines (www.flychinasouthern.com). On direct nonstop flights, flying with one of the above is often cheaper than flying with your country's airline. Chinese airlines frequently "code share" with foreign airlines as well, which means you may end up flying on a Chinese airline jet even if you've purchased a foreign airline ticket, or vice versa. International flights arrive in Shanghai at Pudong International Airport (airport code: PVG).

From North America

Of the North American airlines, Air Canada (www.aircanada.ca), Northwest Airlines (www.nwa.com), American Airlines (www.aa.com), Delta Airlines (www.delta.com), and United Airlines (www.ual.com) all fly to Shanghai.

Japan Airlines (www.jal.co.jp) and All Nippon Airways (www.ana.co.jp) fly to Shanghai via Tokyo. Korean Air (www.koreanair.com) and Asiana Airlines (us.flyasiana.com) fly via Seoul.

From the United Kingdom and Europe

Shanghai is connected to the U.K. and Europe by Virgin Atlantic (www.virgin-atlantic.com), British Airways (www.britishairways.com), Air France (www.airfrance.com), Austrian Airlines (www.austrianair.com), KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (www.klm.com), Lufthansa (www.lufthansa.com), Aeroflot (www.aeroflot.com), Finnair Airlines (www.finnair.com), Scandinavian Airlines (www.scandinavian.net), and Turkish Airlines (www.turkishair.com).

From Australia

Qantas (www.qantas.com) flies nonstop to Shanghai from Sydney, while Air New Zealand (www.airnewzealand.com) flies nonstop from Auckland. Alternatively, it may be cheaper to fly one of the other Asian carriers via their home country, such as Singapore Airlines (www.singaporeair.com), Malaysian Airlines (www.malaysiaairlines.com.my), Garuda Indonesia (www.garuda-indonesia.com), Philippine Airlines (www.pal.com.ph), or Thai Airways (www.thaiairways.com). Other carriers serving Asia Pacific include Dragonair (www.dragonair.com), which flies from Hong Kong to Shanghai and is partly owned by Cathay Pacific; Air Macau (www.airmacau.com.mo), Royal Brunei Airlines (www.bruneiair.com), Royal Nepal Airlines (www.royalnepal-airlines.com), and Emirates (www.emirates.com). Alternatively, those flying from Hong Kong may find it cheaper, though not necessarily more convenient, to take a ferry to either Shenzhen or Zhuhai in Guangdong Province and connect to Shanghai via a Chinese airline such as China Eastern or Shanghai Airways (www.shanghai-air.com). The Chinese "no-frills" low-cost carrier China Spring Airlines (http://chinaspringtour.com) flies from various Chinese cities such as Zhuhai, Tianjin, Qingdao, and Guilin, to Shanghai (Hongqiao Airport), though the website is in Chinese only.

Tips for Getting the Best Airfare

• Fly with one of China's airlines like Air China, China Eastern, or China Southern, all of which will always charge less than your country's airline. These airlines often "code share" with Western carriers, so you may end up on the same plane anyway, but a little richer for it.
• Fly via an intermediate country rather than directly. From North America, you can save by flying Asian carriers that stop over in Tokyo, Seoul, or Taipei. From Europe, flying with smaller eastern European carriers via their home country often yields even greater savings.
• Keep an eye out in local newspapers for promotional specials, especially by Asian-based airlines during off-peak months (usually Nov-Feb for China destinations).

Arriving

All the international carriers arrive in Shanghai at Pudong International Airport (Pudong Jichang; tel. 021/3848-4500), located about 45km (28 miles) east of downtown Shanghai. Transportation on the highway to hotels in Pudong and downtown Shanghai runs between 45 minutes and 1 1/2 hours depending on traffic. The stunningly high-tech airport, designed by French architect Paul Andreu, recently opened its Terminal Two; both terminals have departure halls (international and domestic) on the upper level and arrivals on the lower level, and are connected by three indoor 500-meter-long corridors and free shuttle buses on the third floor (outside doors 1 and 8 in Terminal One, and doors 23 and 27 in Terminal Two) running at 10-minute intervals between 6am and 9pm. When this guide was published, airlines using Terminal 2 included Shanghai Airlines, British Airways, Garuda International, Northwest Airlines, Qantas Airways, and Virgin Atlantic Airways, though more airlines are scheduled to make the move. Note: Check with your airline which terminal you will be arriving at and departing from. Allow extra time if you are departing from Terminal Two.

Arrival procedures are straightforward at both terminals. Depending on the severity of health issues like SARS or avian flu, visitors may be required to fill out a health declaration form, and/or be subjected to a health check (involving the reading of your temperature) as you approach immigration. Immigration forms are usually distributed in-flight but are also available just before you reach the immigration counters. Depending on your time of arrival, it should take 15 to 30 minutes to clear immigration. Have your passport and completed form(s) ready. Baggage claim is followed by Customs. Foreigners are no longer required to fill in Customs declaration forms and are seldom stopped.

There is a Citibank ATM just after immigration in Terminal One, and several other ATMs outside Customs in the international arrival hall. Also here are hotel counters, bank counters for money exchange (directly across from the baggage area exits), a Tourist Information Center (TIC) counter, as well as a branch of China International Travel Service (CITS). There are ATMs in Terminal Two as well.

For those with a few hours' layover who wish to get some sleep in between flight connections, there is a small hotel (Jishi Binguan, tel. 021/6834-6480) that rents rooms by the hour in Terminal One on the Domestic Arrivals (second) floor opposite Door Seven. Rooms are basic but have showers and cost ¥60 ($8.50/£4.25) an hour up to four hours, and ¥360 ($51/£26) for 5-24 hours.

Shanghai also has an older airport Hongqiao International Airport (Hongqiao Jichang; tel. 021/6268-8899 or 3682), located 19km (12 miles) west of the city center and now largely reserved for flights within China and a few Asiana, Korean Air, ANA, and JAL flights connecting to Gimpo Airport in Seoul, and Haneda Airport in Tokyo. Arrival procedures here are fairly routine, and it usually takes about 20 minutes to retrieve your luggage. There are two arrival halls, A and B, both somewhat chaotic, each with hotel counters, though the majority of the hotels are represented in Arrival Hall B. There is a currency exchange counter in Terminal B, and ATMs that accept foreign cards on the departure level in both halls.

Getting into Town from the Airport

Taxis -- The legitimate taxis are lined up in a long queue just outside the arrival halls of both airports. Never go with taxi touts who approach you in the arrival halls with "Take taxi?" which is about the extent of their English. At Pudong International Airport, taxis using the highways and the Nanpu and Lupu bridges charge ¥160 ($23/£12) and up for the 1-hour (or longer) trip to hotels in downtown Shanghai, and only slightly less for the nearer hotels in Pudong. From Hongqiao Airport, taxis should charge from ¥40 to ¥80 ($5.70-$11/£2.85-£5.50), depending on traffic and the location of your hotel, and take from 20 to 40 minutes to transport you. Taxis between the two airports will cost around ¥240 ($34/£17) and take 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Most Shanghai taxi drivers are honest, but be sure the meter is on; if not, say "Da biao!" If that doesn't work, select another taxi. All legitimate taxi meters are equipped to print out a receipt, which you can ask for by saying, "Fa piao." It's a good idea to always get a receipt, which will have the phone number of the taxi company and numerical identification of the driver, should you ever need to recover any lost items. Flagfall for taxis is ¥11 ($1.55/78p) for the first 3km (2 miles), then ¥2.10 (30¢/15p) for every subsequent kilometer (2/3 mile).

Hotel Shuttles -- Many of Shanghai's hotels maintain service counters situated along the walls in the arrival halls in both airports, though at Pudong Airport, it's a bit of a mystery why, since none of the hotels offer shuttle bus service from there. Instead, the hotel's airport staff will help you find a taxi or arrange for a very expensive private car to take you to the hotel in the city. In the older Hongqiao Airport, many of the hotels do offer free or inexpensive shuttle buses. (When you make advance hotel reservations, be sure to include a request for shuttle service from the airport, if it is offered.)

Airport Buses -- The most economical transfer from Pudong International Airport is via the official Airport Bus (tel. 021/6834-6612). There is a multitude of routes between the airports and other transportation stops. Airport Bus Line no. 1 goes from Pudong to Hongqiao Airport; Airport Bus Line no. 2 (Jichang Erxian) goes from Pudong (every 15-20 min. 7:20am-11pm) to the City Air-Terminal Building (Chengshi Hangzhan Lou) at Nanjing Xi Lu 1600 (just west of the Shanghai Center), with return buses departing for the airport every 15 to 20 minutes from 6am to 9pm; bus no. 5 goes from Pudong to the Shanghai Railway Station (Shanghai Huoche Zhan); and bus no. 7 connects to the Shanghai South Railway Station (Shanghai Nan Zhan). Prices range from ¥18 to ¥30 ($2.55-$4.30/£1.28-£2.15).

From Hongqiao Airport, several buses make the run into town. A CAAC shuttle, Minhang Zhuanxian (Airport Special Line), departs for the Chengshi Hangzhan Lou (City Air-Terminal Building) at Nanjing Xi Lu 1600 every 20 minutes from 6am to 8pm. Tickets cost ¥4 (55¢/28p). Airport Bus Line no. 1 (Jichang Yixian) connects Hongqiao (buses depart every 20 min. 6am-9pm; ¥30/$4.30/£2.15) with Pudong Airport (every 20 min. from 7:20am to last flight). Public bus no. 941 goes to the railway station, while bus no. 925 runs to People's Square (Renmin Guangchang).

Subway -- The good news is that the highly touted magnetic levitation (Maglev) train is running with extended hours. The bad news is that unless you're staying in the eastern reaches of Pudong, it's not much faster or more convenient than a taxi or airport bus in getting you to your destination. Covering some 30km (19 miles) in 8 minutes, this ultra high-speed train (¥50/$7.15/£3.58 regular ticket, ¥80/$11/£5.50 same-day round-trip; ¥100/$14/£7 one-way VIP ticket) connects Pudong International Airport to the Longyang Lu metro stop, the eastern terminus of Shanghai Metro Line 2, where you transfer to the subway. Depending on your hotel's location, you may have to change subways once more at Renmin Guangchang, and possibly even hail a taxi before you arrive at your hotel's door, all of which makes it highly inconvenient for travelers with any kind of luggage. Maglev trains run every 20 minutes between 6:45am and 9:30pm daily. There is currently no subway service to Hongqiao Airport, though plans have been in the works for several years now to connect it to Metro Line 2.

Mass Levitation -- Shanghai's much-hyped mass transit showpiece, the magnetic levitation (Maglev) train, started running in late 2003, with trains connecting the 30km (19 miles) between Pudong International Airport and Pudong's Longyang Lu Station of Metro Line 2 in no more than 8 minutes. "While the wheel-track link -- which is run on mechanical technology -- works like a propeller-driven aircraft, the Maglev line -- motored by electrical technology -- is like a jet," crowed Xu Kuangdi, the former Shanghai mayor who got the project off the ground during his tenure. Traveling at up to 430kmph (267mph), Maglev (a Sino-German joint-venture) has cost Shanghai upwards of ¥8.9 billion ($1.27 billion/£64 million), making this the most expensive subway spur in the world. Unfortunately, Maglev in its current form is not very practical for most travelers, so the government has taken to promoting this as a tourist attraction, Shanghai's latest must-ride (¥50/$7.15/£3.58 one-way; ¥80/$11/£5.50 same-day round-trip). Indeed, on any given day, you'll see more sightseeing tourists and students than airport-bound travelers. In 2008, the Chinese government's plans of building a Shanghai-Hangzhou Maglev line for the 2010 World Expo that would also connect Pudong International and Hongqiao airports met with resistance as Shanghai residents came out in force to protest the effects of potential magnetic radiation and noise pollution in their neighborhoods. When this guide was published, the final status of the project had yet to be decided.