In China, in order to be allowed to drive a car you will need a local driving license. Indeed, your home driving license is not enough as you will be required to obtain a Chinese license as well. Below you will find all the information you need to obtain this license in Chengdu and you can download it in pdf format.

For getting the driving license in Chengdu the Traffic Management Bureau has the following regulations:

Preconditions:

Foreigners should bring the driving license from their home country; if the driving license is not already in Chinese, the applicant should also provide the Chinese translation. For translations, please call local translation agency: 028-86283116.
Have your original driver’s license scanned(both sides) or photographed, send the pictures to

ClC lnterglobal:
E-mail: clc@clc-interglobal.com or quote@clc-interglobal.com

The Vehicle Management Bureau will execute the Vehicle License Protocols Signed with other countries and other related Agreements.

For the foreign driving license holders:

You need to have:

-physical test form filled and verified by hospital staff

-residence verification form by local police station 境外人员住宿登记表

- a visa which is more than 6 months from expiration

-your passport and one copy,

-four 1-inch photos;

-your driving license, one copy of the driving license and the translated version of the driving license from the Notary office, foreign affairs office or local translation agencies

-application form

Note: You can only apply to local driving licenses for the same kinds of vehicles, providing that you meet the application requirements. This means if you drive a car in your home country you will only be able to apply for a car license here, not one for large trucks or motorcycles. If you want to get a license for trucks/motorcycles you will need to attend driving school and complete all of the steps listed in the next section.

For those who do not have driving license:

You need to register in a local Driving School and get the training from the School before passing the examination.

Note: A Translator can be provided for those languages that are not available in the data bank;

Available foreign languages: English and Japanese

Getting the local driving license:

At the Vehicles Management Office, ask for the Driving License Application Form and Vehicles Driver Physical condition Form and fill them.

After that, you will take the physical examination. Hand in the two forms from the exam, and the required documents mentionned above before paying the related fees at the counter.

Hand in the bill in the hall and reserve the date for the examination;

Then, obviously, pass the examination to get your Chinese driving license.

Examination Fee:

Applying Car Driving License: 280 RMB / Person (Can take written test two times before having to pay again)

Applying Motorcycle Driving License: 140 RMB / Person / Times

Retake Examination Fee for Car Driving License: 140 RMB / Person

Retake Examination Fee for Motorcycle License: 70 RMB / Person

Driving License Issue Fee: 10RMB

Note: A translator can be provided for those languages that are not available in the data bank;

Available foreign languages: English and Japanese

Contacts:

Vehicle Management Dept, Traffic Management Bureau, Chengdu

Tele: 028-87850133/134

Information on how to obtain a Chengdu Drivers license –

Si vous souhaitez visiter différentes régions de Chine, vous constaterez rapidement que le train est le moyen le plus économique pour circuler dans le pays, c’est aussi un excellent moyen de rencontrer et d’échanger avec des chinois.

Pour acheter son billet, il faut s’y prendre a l’avance, surtout si c’est durant les périodes de fête chinoise. Si vous ne parlez pas chinois, vous pouvez le faire par le biais de votre hôtel, d’une agence touristique ou d’un bureau d’information touristique (en échange d’une petite commission mais rien d’excessif). On peut réserver un billet jusqu’à cinq à dix jours à l’avance (selon les lignes). Pour les trajets courts, vous pouvez par contre acheter votre billet juste avant le départ.

Pour connaitre les horaires de train, vous pouvez consulter les sites suivants :

http://www.travelchinaguide.com  (en Anglais)

http://www.echinatravel.net (en Anglais et Français)

Il existe 4 classes dans les trains à longues distances:

1/La plus prisée, les couchettes souples (ruanwo). On compte normalement 4 couchettes par compartiment, qui est fermé par une porte. Elles sont plus confortables et certains compartiments ont même la télé et un petit salon. Ce sont aussi les plus chères.

2/Les couchettes dures (yingwo), c’est ce que la plupart des chinois prennent pour les longs trajets, donc ce sont celles qui sont le moins disponible à la vente. On compte 6 couchettes par compartiment, il n’y a pas de porte et sont moins confortables que les couchettes souples.

3/Les sièges mous (ruanzuo) sont des banquettes à deux places confortables et numérôtés. Les prix sont quasiment équivalents aux couchettes dures mais on peut y dormir assis à peu prêt confortablement.

4/ La classe la moins chère, ce sont les sièges durs (yingzuo) qui comprend une série de banquettes de trois places légèrement rembourrées. Pour un trajet de quelque heure cette catégorie est envisageable. En revanche s’il s’agit de traverser le pays, au bout de quelque heures cela deviens rapidement insupportable.

Here are 11 things you’ll want to know for train travel in China.

1) There are four classes when traveling by train in China. Most expensiveto least is as follows: soft sleeper 软卧 ruǎnwò, hard sleeper 硬卧 yìngwò, soft seat 软座 ruǎn zuò, hard 硬座 yìngzuò. Sometimes there is only one seat class on a train. Occasionally there are standing class tickets as well. For overnight train trips, be sure to purchase a soft or hard sleeper. The soft sleeper shares bunks with 4 people, while the hard sleeper shares with 6. The soft sleeper also has more room to sleep in. Getting a bottom bunk 下铺 xià pù (slightly more expensive) is much easier to get out at night if you have to go the bathroom. You also have much more headroom for when you want to read or use your computer. The other alternatives are middle or upper bunks, or just upper for a soft sleeper. Be sure to have your passport handy. If you are in asoft-sleeper bunk, a train employee will ask for your passport number.

2) You can purchase food on the train, but it is best to bring your own. Food on the dinner cart is small-portioned, overpriced, and not all that good. Make sure to bring drinks, snacks, a sandwich, and a few beers if you’d like.

3) Traveling around certain holidays, namely National Holiday (October 1st-8th) or Spring Festival (early February), can be a complete mess. You should prepare to book your tickets as early as possible, which is usually about 2 weeks. You may want to have a backup plan in mind because it is possible that all the tickets will have been booked out by students who are allowed to book even earlier than regular passengers.

4) Trains leave on time. I have never taken a train that didn’t leave within a couple minutes of its scheduled departure time. You will be allowed to board up to 5 minutes before departure time.

5) You can buy your tickets at the train station, or at kiosks around Chinese cities. The kiosks only charge a 5 kuai commission that is well worth it to avoid the sometimes horrendously long lines at stations. Tickets, as of now, cannot be purchased online. In non-peak travel times, 2-3 days before travel should be ample time to buy your ticket.

6) Bring some magazines, e-readers, iPod, ect. Traveling by train is not the most exciting thing. And because you will mostly travel at night, you will not even have a chance to see the country side. Make sure your batteries are charged for the trip!

7) If you cannot speak Chinese, there will often times be a ticket seller at train stations who can sell you a ticket in English. Don’t expect too much, though. It’s likely they speak just enough English to sell you that said ticket.

Don’t freak out! Chinese trains are mostly full of Chinese people, doing Chinese things. It’s likely you will see people spitting on the train floor.

9) Be very wary of your belongings. Theft is commonplace on Chinese trains
Always sleep with your valuable under your pillow or close to your head. You have less to worry about in a soft sleeper bunk, but still take precautions.

10) Don’t plan anything too important for the next morning. Even though you skip out on having to pay for a hotel for one night, you don’t often get the best night of sleep on a train.

11) When deciding to travel by train or airplane, consider that train stations are often much closer to city centers, and hence, closer to your hotelor guest house. Security for traveling by train is also very minimal, making it easier to get in and out of the station.

All aboard!

软卧下: Soft-sleeper bottom bunk ( most comfortable)
硬卧下: Hard-sleeper bottom bunk (second most comfortable)

Taxi-Book is your handy guide to key locations in Chongqing and a way to communicate with locals.

Good news! We can offer 5 free downloads of the Chongqing Taxi-Book iPhone App to the first people who react. Claim your free app by commenting on this post, move quickly to get one before we run out!!!!

The app is made to help you navigate through a city by listing its key locations and allowing you to get there comfortably. You just choose a location and show its name and address, along with an instructional phrase to a local taxi driver.
Taxi-Book – The App:

• Knows hundreds of key locations in the city

• Knows your position + helps you find your destination

• Speaks Chinese for you

• Available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

• “Nearest Venue” picker wheel

http://www.yocoy.com/yocoy/en/taxi-book_index.php

The app also features dialogue options for communicating with locals in their language: All phrases are written in Chinese and can be pronounced via Text-To-Speech Synthesis. Some phrases also feature likely answer options that the dialogue partners may choose as a reply. An English-Chinese dictionary containing more than 12,000 words can be used to fill gaps in some phrases.

The Taxi-Book app is a joint development by Taxi-Book and Yocoy who have combined their respective expertises in key areas to bring users this handy tool. This installment features Xiamen, also known as Amoy, which is a coastal city in southeastern China. It is administered as a sub-provincial city under Fujian province. It became one of China’s earliest Special Economic Zones in the 1980s. More Chinese cities are soon to follow.

• Locations: Hundreds of locations divided into 10 categories are featured.

• Locations come with detailed information like English and Chinese name, address, phone number, and GPS coordinates.

• View locations on Maps and find nearby places easily (requires online connectivity). You can also add your own locations, enter and save their data if you have discovered a new place that is not covered in the app.

• Once you’ve chosen a location, press the Taxi-Card button to bring up a simple yet effective page that allows you to tell a taxi driver clearly where you want to go. Show the page to the driver and shake the phone to make it pronounce the phrase with your desired destination.

• Taxi-Card: Choose between different color styles to customize the page to your liking.

• Dialogues: Special dialogues for use in a taxi situation like “Turn on the meter, please” or “How long will the ride take approximately?”

• Basic Phrases: For everyday situations to say things like “Hello”, “Thank you”, tell others your name or ask where the restrooms are.

• Favorites: Pick your favourite locations out of all the locations and add them to your favourites list for quick and easy access.

Link to the iTunes Store: http://itunes.apple.com/be/app/chongqing/id426122297?mt=8
(Or easier: Type “Chongqing” in the iTunes Store)

http://maxxelli-blog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Taxi-Book-Chongqing2.png

Maxxelli -blog: When was the Jiuzhai Valley National Park created and why?
Kieran: Established in 1984 to strengthen the works of conservation of Giant Panda habitats in the Jiuzhai Valley Nature Reserve.

Maxxelli blog: What kind of visitors do you receive?
Kieran: Vistors are nature lovers from all over China and the world. These range from young hikers from home and abroad, adventure travellers and older Chinese people who have been dreaming of coming here all their lives.

Maxxelli-blog:What can we do there?
Kieran: Many things:
• Nature holidays
• Site seeing
• Hiking and camping
• Learning about Tibetan culture
• Weekend getaways

Maxxelli-blog: When can we go there and how much does that cost?
Kieran: Jiuzhai Valley National Park is open 365 days a year and each season offers something different. Opening hours and entrance prices for the park differ according to the season. During the summer the park is a celebration of everything blue and green. The autumn colours have inspired many Chinese poets and during the winter, the park’s driest season the mountains can be a barron brown colour or a “winter fairyland” when covered in snow. Because of the destruction that fire could cause the region (most villagers still live in wooden homes) some trails and parts of the park are closed during the winter.

Official Park Opening hours:

May 1 – November 15 – 7:00am to 6:30pm
November 16 – April 30 – 7:00am to 6:00pm

Peak Season – April 1 – November 15
Off peak – November 16 – March 31

Ticket Price:

Full price adult
Peak – 220 RMB
Off-Peak – 80 RMB

Student* / OAP*
Peak – 170 RMB
Off Peak – 70 RMB

One Day Bus ticket:
Peak – 90 RMB
Off Peak – 80 RMB
Children under 1.3m travel on park busses free of charge

Student* / OAP*
Peak – 90 RMB
Off Peak – 80 RMB

Second day ticket:
From November 16th to April 30th the cost of a second days ticket is 20 RMB. The park staff will take your picture on entry to the park on your first day to validate your ticket for the second day
* Must have valid international identification.

Jiuzhai Valley National Park for Maxxelli-blog –

Contact

*Name en – Jiuzhai Valley National Park
*Name ch – 九寨沟
*Address en – Jiuzhai Valley National Park, Aba Prefecture, Sichuan, China.
*Adress ch – 中国 四川 阿坝藏族羌族自治州九寨沟管理局
*Phone number –  0873-7739753
*Website - http://www.jiuzhai.com/language/english/index.html

Flights: Want to know when will be the cheapest time to fly in China to your favorite destination? Check the best flights deals: – From – Beijing Baotou Chengdu Chongqing Changsha Changchun Dali Dalian Fuzhou Guangzhou Guilin Guiyang Hangzhou Harbin Hefei Haikou Hohhot Jiuzhai Huanglong Huangshan Jinan Jilin Jingdezhen Jinzhou Jiujiang Jingzhou Kunming Lhasa Lanzhou Lijiang Macau Nanjing Nanchang Ningbo Nanning Panzhihua Qingdao Quanzhou Qiqihar Shanghai Shenzhen Shenyang Sanya Shijiazhuang Suzhou Shangri-La Shantou Tianjin Taiyuan Wuhan Urumqi Wenzhou Wuxi Xian Xiamen Xuzhou Xining Xishuangbanna Xiangfan Xichang Yantai Yinchuan Yanji Zhengzhou Zhuhai Zhangjiajie – To – Beijing Baotou Chengdu Chongqing Changsha Changchun Dali Dalian Fuzhou Guangzhou Guilin Guiyang Hangzhou Harbin Hefei Haikou Hohhot Jiuzhai Huanglong Huangshan Jinan Jilin Jingdezhen Jinzhou Jiujiang Jingzhou Kunming Lhasa Lanzhou Lijiang Macau Nanjing Nanchang Ningbo Nanning Panzhihua Qingdao Quanzhou Qiqihar Shanghai Shenzhen Shenyang Sanya Shijiazhuang Suzhou Shangri-La Shantou Tianjin Taiyuan Wuhan Urumqi Wenzhou Wuxi Xian Xiamen Xuzhou Xining Xishuangbanna Xiangfan Xichang Yantai Yinchuan Yanji Zhengzhou Zhuhai Zhangjiajie Find for me ! See Also: International Flights

Trains: Check here all info about train schedule and price all over China! – From – Beijing Baotou Chengdu Chongqing Changsha Changchun Dali Dalian Fuzhou Guangzhou Guilin Guiyang Hangzhou Harbin Hefei Haikou Hohhot Jiuzhai Huanglong Huangshan Jinan Jilin Jingdezhen Jinzhou Jiujiang Jingzhou Kunming Lhasa Lanzhou Lijiang Macau Nanjing Nanchang Ningbo Nanning Panzhihua Qingdao Quanzhou Qiqihar Shanghai Shenzhen Shenyang Sanya Shijiazhuang Suzhou Shantou Tianjin Taiyuan Wuhan Wuchang Wuhan Urumqi Wenzhou Wuxi Xian Xiamen Xuzhou Xining Xishuangbanna Xiangfan Xichang Yantai Yinchuan Yanji Zhengzhou Zhuhai Zhangjiajie – To – Beijing Baotou Chengdu Chongqing Changsha Changchun Dali Dalian Fuzhou Guangzhou Guilin Guiyang Hangzhou Harbin Hefei Haikou Hohhot Jiuzhai Huanglong Huangshan Jinan Jilin Jingdezhen Jinzhou Jiujiang Jingzhou Kunming Lhasa Lanzhou Lijiang Macau Nanjing Nanchang Ningbo Nanning Panzhihua Qingdao Quanzhou Qiqihar Shanghai Shenzhen Shenyang Sanya Shijiazhuang Suzhou Shantou Tianjin Taiyuan Wuhan Wuchang Wuhan Urumqi Wenzhou Wuxi Xian Xiamen Xuzhou Xining Xishuangbanna Xiangfan Xichang Yantai Yinchuan Yanji Zhengzhou Zhuhai Zhangjiajie Find for me ! See Also: How to understand your train ticket, the seat options and travel classes in Chinese trains

Contact:

Step through our doors and be whisked into a world where time has stopped and service is unlike any other. Old Chengdu Club embodies prestige, status and class, we believe in providing the very best for our guests. We are welcoming everyone to use our four restaurants, banqueting, spa and bedrooms facilities.

On top of distinguished restaurants and state-of-the-art facilities, we pride ourselves as the professional team that will cater to your ever need. Every guest, whether young or old, receives the highest standard of service. Attentive staff dedicated to meeting the demands of each and every guest in the best possible way makes every trip to the Club a truly enjoyable experience.

Here at Old Chengdu Club, we believe you deserve only the very finest. Not because you are a member but because you are family.

Welcome to Old Chengdu Club, Chengdu’s unique boutique style hotel.

Also have a look a the Old Chengdu October specials in the flyers below.

What is Taxi-Book?

Our venues are clearly displayed, only with relevant information for both the user and the driver. The venues will be easy to look up for any user by using the coloured tabs representing a category. Each page will clarify its purpose by repeating the sentence “please bring me to” both for the user and the driver.

Furthermore the Taxi-Book contains a small map that will allow the user to quickly indicate his position and the venues of his choice.
Our universal icons will bring the user to the nearest venue of that well-known instance.
We also included some useful expressions to allow basic communication with the driver when necessary.
Concluding with some facts about the city and emergency information we are confident to provide essential information to foreigners in this Taxi-Book.

Who are your customers?
The Taxi-Book is a marketing tool for companies focusing on a foreign market. The current growth of Chinese new tier cities, brought a great demand of information. The cultural and linguistic barrier is present anywhere in China and therefore creates a demand for the useful information in the Taxi-Book. The emergence of a foreign market in these cities makes the Taxi-Book a valuable marketing tool. We supply the Taxi-Book to companies for them to customize. This will allow you to present a personal product with a lot of useful information. The appearance in or on such a long lasting and quality product can be very valuable. Therefore we offer multiple ways to cooperate with us, supplying not only the customized booklet but also opportunities to appear and advertise in it.

What are the Benefits for your organization?
- A product based on simplicity and efficiency
- A professional, quality and durable product to distribute or resell
- Customizable branding opportunities
- The opportunity to get a large quantity of long lasting brand-exposure
- A high-end corporate gift and/or reselling product
- A product applicable in multiple cities mentioned below

What are the benefits for the end customer?
- Getting around the city efficiently
- A user-friendly tool
- All necessary addresses covered
- A reliable product with many practical features
- A must have for visitors unknown to the language and city

Where is it dealt?
We aim to provide this product all over China. Our target will always be to supply quality on every aspect; this to stay a reliable standard for visitors in China. Your destination is our drive.

Current cities:

Beijing, Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Foshan, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Guilin/ Yangshuo, Haikou, Hangzhou, Harbin, Jinan, Kunming, Lhasa, Lijiang, Nanchang, Nanjing, Nanning, Ningbo, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai, Shenyang, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Taiyuan, Tianjin, Wenzhou, Wuhan, Wuxi, Xi’an, Xiamen, Zhengzhou

Contact
sales@taxi-book.com

Mobile: 13730871837Tel: +86 28 62938638-203Fax: +86 28 6293 8040

Please visit www.taxi-book.com for more information

Hangzhou will be the 6th city in China serviced by KLM and partners with direct flights to Amsterdam, after Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. From Amsterdam, the KLM and partners network offer convenient connections to over 100 cities in Europe. KLM will be the first and only European carrier in Hangzhou offering non-stop direct flights to Europe. Visiting Europe from Hangzhou and the Zhejiang region is now more convenient than ever before!

The new Hangzhou – Amsterdam route will be serviced 3 times a week on Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, which can carry 318 passengers – 35 in World Business Class and 283 in Economy Class, all equipped with personal video entertainment system.