Guangzhou Airline Crew Layover Guide
Reviewed by Captain AL
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The CAN crew card
| Fastest into town | From Terminal 3, ride the airport shuttle bus from the T3 transport centre to Gaozeng metro station, about 12 minutes, then Metro Line 3 or Line 9 into the city; the current approved network fare table prices Gaozeng to Tiyu Xilu in the Tianhe business district at CNY 7. Last shuttle from T3 is 22:40, and from Gaozeng back to T3 is 23:15. |
|---|---|
| Night option | The airport’s own express coach covers the night: the Guangzhou Tianhe Line (Downtown Line 2) leaves Baiyun Airport between 23:00 and 05:00, roughly every 20 to 60 minutes, for CNY 35, and the Haizhu Line (Downtown Line 3) leaves at 00:05 and 00:40 for CNY 30. Taxis run 24 hours |
| Payments | Everything is priced in CNY. The airport to Gaozeng shuttle takes the Yangchengtong transit card and the municipal portal prices it at CNY 2; metro fares are distance banded and fixed in the approved network fare table, so Airport North to Tiyu Xilu is CNY 8 and Gaozeng to Tiyu Xilu is CNY 7; taxis run on a government guided meter |
| Tap water | Boil first: the Water Authority’s June 2026 bulletin reports a 100 percent overall compliance rate against national standard GB 5749-2022, but no official guidance endorses drinking it unboiled |
| Emergency | 110 (Mainland China numbers) |
| Solo & at night | Licensed taxis run 24 hours from the Terminal 3 arrivals level at Gate 75. The airport tells arriving passengers not to accept service from anyone without official airport staff identification, and not to board vehicles that tout for passengers without an operating licence |
| Crew knows | Land at Terminal 3 after 22:40 and the shuttle to the metro has finished for the night, so it is the airport coach or a taxi. Do not plan on refilling the crew bottle from a tap either: Guangzhou water is boil or bottled |
| Crew deals | Verified car rental and hotel rates for airline staff: on this page, right below this guide. |
airlinecrewdiscount.net · CAN crew card · Checked Aug 2026 · Next check Nov 2026 · Screenshot this card for offline
Every number on this page comes from an official source. Where no official source gives a number, we say so instead of guessing.
Flying into CAN again? Add this page to your home screen (or Ctrl+D / Cmd+D), and skip working this out at 23:40 next time.
Getting from Baiyun Airport into central Guangzhou: which ride makes sense from your terminal?
Baiyun changed shape in May 2026. Terminal 1 closed to passengers, its airlines moved to the new Terminal 3, and the metro station that served Terminal 1 went out of service with it. What is left is a split airport: Terminal 2 sits on Metro Line 3 at Airport North, and Terminal 3 is reached by an intercity train station under the terminal or by a short shuttle bus to Gaozeng metro station. Check which terminal you are in before you plan anything.
👉 Swipe sideways to see the full table
| Mode | Time | Cost | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shuttle bus plus metro (Terminal 3) | about 12 minutes from Terminal 3 to Gaozeng metro station, about 15 minutes in the other direction every 5 minutes 06:15 to 09:00, 13:00 to 15:30 and 18:00 to 22:00, every 10 minutes otherwise |
CNY 2 on the shuttle per the municipal portal; then CNY 7 from Gaozeng to Tiyu Xilu, Zhujiang New Town, Gongyuanqian, or Guangzhou East railway station, and CNY 6 to Guangzhou railway station, on the approved metro network fare table | Board at the tourist bus hub on level 1 of the T3 transport centre, the east bus station; inbound the shuttle leaves from exit B of Gaozeng metro station, which is served by Metro Line 3 and Line 9. The shuttle takes the Yangchengtong transit card. The airport’s own timetable for this branch line marks it free rather than CNY 2, so the two official readings differ and the conservative figure is published here. It stops running: last departure from T3 is 22:40 and from Gaozeng 23:15; first is 06:35 from T3 and 06:15 from Gaozeng. Land at T3 after 22:40 and this shuttle is not an option. |
| Metro Line 3 from Airport North station | CNY 8 to Tiyu Xilu, Zhujiang New Town, Canton Tower, and Beijing Lu; CNY 7 to Gongyuanqian, Guangzhou railway station, Guangzhou East railway station, and Tianhe coach terminal; CNY 10 to Guangzhou South railway station; CNY 2 to Gaozeng | Airport North (机场北) is the Line 3 station in the airport fare band and every fare above is read from the current approved network fare table. Airport South (机场南), the station that served Terminal 1, went out of service when Terminal 1 closed to passengers on 2026-05-07, and so did the intercity Baiyun Airport South station. No reachable official page publishes the Line 3 journey time or the first and last trains, so none is stated here. | |
| Taxi | 24 hours | metered: CNY 12 for the first 3 km, then CNY 2.6 per kilometre, plus CNY 44 an hour of waiting time whenever the taxi is moving slower than 10 km/h. Trips over 25 km add 50 percent to the per kilometre rate as an empty return fee, and 15 to 25 km adds 20 percent. Between 23:00 and 05:00 the per kilometre rate carries a further 30 percent night service fee. Spring Festival adds CNY 10 per trip | Guangzhou taxi fares are a government guided price, so the base fare, the per kilometre rate AND the waiting fee may all float by 0 or 10 percent in the peaks (07:00 to 10:00 and 16:00 to 21:00) and by 0, minus 10, minus 20, or minus 30 percent off peak (10:00 to 16:00). Pick up at Terminal 3 is outside Gate 72 on the level 1 arrivals hall for domestic and outside Gate 75 for international; at Terminal 2 it is outside door 53 on the east side of the transport centre and outside door 50 on the west side. |
| Airport express coach (Kong Gang Kuai Xian) | Tianhe Line leaves the airport 23:00 to 05:00, roughly every 20 to 60 minutes; Haizhu Line leaves at 00:05 and 00:40; Baiyun Station Line leaves the airport 09:00 to 16:30, every 120 minutes; Xintang Line leaves the airport 09:50 to 19:50, roughly every 60 to 130 minutes | Guangzhou Tianhe Line (Downtown Line 2) CNY 35; Guangzhou Haizhu Line (Downtown Line 3) CNY 30; Guangzhou Baiyun Station Line CNY 0; Guangzhou Xintang Line CNY 39.8, half fare CNY 19.9 | Only two of the six coach lines are night-only. The Panyu line runs 09:20 to 00:45 (CNY 29.8 day, 14.9 half; CNY 39.8 night, 19.9 night half) and its 23:40 run calls at Garden Hotel and Tianhe Sports Centre, so it is a further night route into Tianhe. The Nansha line runs 09:40 to 01:20 (CNY 59.8, 30 half). The Tianhe Line calls at Sanyuanli, the Garden Hotel, Tiyu Zhongxin (Teemall), and the Shida Jinan bus stop; the Haizhu Line runs to the Rosedale Hotel by way of Jiefang Lu and Shi’ergong. The Baiyun Station Line is a free daytime run to Guangzhou Baiyun railway station. Ticket counters and boarding are at the west bus stations of the T2 and T3 transport centres, and the 24 hour coach hotline is 020-36063156. Departure times are subject to what is posted on the day. |
| Intercity train and ride hailing | 3 to 5 minutes on foot from the Baiyun Airport East platform to Terminal 3 intercity trains average one every 14 minutes |
CNY 4 between Baiyun Airport North and Baiyun Airport East, a uniform airport-to-airport fare. No fare into the city centre is published. A live discount runs over the price list: from 22 June 2026 the Guangzhou East Ring line is at 75 percent Monday to Thursday and 90 percent at other times, on top of a network-wide 90 percent. | The Guangzhou East Ring intercity line runs into level B2 of the T3 transport centre at Baiyun Airport East station. Baiyun Airport East serves Terminal 3 and Baiyun Airport North station is on Metro Line 3, and the line meets the metro network at Guangzhou South, Pazhou, Keyunlu, Longdong, Zhuliao, and Airport North. Ride hailing pick up is on levels 2F and 1M of the P12 parking building at Terminal 3, and on levels 2 and 3 of the P8 parking building (west side) at Terminal 2; order through a licensed platform and wait in the marked area. |
Best Areas for Crew Stays in Guangzhou, from the towers of Tianhe to the hotel belt out by the airport
Tianhe: The modern business core around Tiyu Xilu and Zhujiang New Town: towers, malls, and the widest choice of food after a late arrival.
Yuexiu: The old city. Beijing Lu, the memorial halls, and the tea houses, walkable and dense, on the metro lines that reach the airport corridor.
Haizhu: Across the river from the centre, with Canton Tower on the north bank and the Pazhou exhibition district further east.
Liwan: Old Xiguan Guangzhou: Shamian Island, arcade streets, and the classic Cantonese breakfast, the slow half day rather than the quick one.
Huadu and the airport belt: The district the airport actually sits in, built around hotels and early report times rather than sightseeing.
What to Do on a Layover in Guangzhou, from a sit in the terminal to a full day across the city
Under 5 hours: Stay airside or landside at the terminal. Getting into central Guangzhou means a shuttle plus a metro ride each way, and the return has to absorb Chinese airport security and, on international flights, immigration.
5 to 9 hours: One district, one plan. Ride into Tianhe or Yuexiu, eat, walk one neighbourhood, and set your return train in your head before you leave the platform. Remember that the metro leg is the part with no published closing time, so build in slack.
9 hours plus: A real city day works: the old city in Yuexiu or Liwan, the river, and one modern district, with the airport coach network behind you if the evening runs past the metro.
Crew Tips for Guangzhou and Baiyun Airport
Check your terminal before anything else: From 02:00 on 2026-05-07 all eleven domestic airlines that used Terminal 1 moved to Terminal 3, and Terminal 1 closed to passengers for rebuilding. Metro Airport South station and the intercity Baiyun Airport South station closed with it. If you go to the wrong terminal, the airport’s advice is to ask the nearest staff member or call the service hotline 020-96158, and to go straight to a service counter if departure is close. That hop costs CNY 4 between the two airport stations.
Getting between Terminal 2 and Terminal 3: A shuttle bus runs 24 hours between the east bus station of the T2 transport centre (bay 30) and the east bus station of the T3 transport centre (bay 60). The municipal portal puts the ride at about 25 minutes and states it is for transfer passengers only, with departures every 8 minutes from 09:00 to 23:00, every 15 minutes from 23:00 to 03:00 and 05:00 to 09:00, and every 20 minutes from 03:00 to 05:00. The airport’s own between terminals page describes the same service without any passenger restriction, so expect to be asked for a connecting boarding pass and keep the intercity train, a taxi, or ride hailing as the fallback.
What a taxi to town really costs: The meter is only the start. Guangzhou’s published tariff is CNY 12 for the first 3 km and CNY 2.6 per kilometre after that, but any trip over 25 km adds 50 percent to the per kilometre rate as an empty return fee, and between 23:00 and 05:00 a night service fee adds another 30 percent to that rate. The airport sits well outside the centre, so a late night run into town carries both. Peak hours may also float the base fare up by 10 percent. Ask for the fare basis before you load the bags.
Free overnight rest areas in the terminals: Baiyun runs free landside rest areas with recliners and massage chairs, first come first served on whatever seats are free. Terminal 2 has one about 40 metres to the left of the domestic arrivals exit. Access is limited to passengers holding a departure document valid within the next 7 calendar days, or a same day arrival document where the arrival was less than 24 hours ago.
Airport Wi-Fi and staying connected: The free network is AIRPORT-FREE-WIFI. Connect and the authentication page opens by itself, then log in either with a mobile number (choose your own country code, enter the code you are sent) or by photographing a travel document. The interface switches between English and Chinese. Terminal 2 also has dedicated Wi-Fi code machines in the international departure and arrival areas. The airport states the service is free for passengers and staff alike.
Leaving the airport visa free on a long layover: Guangzhou Baiyun is port 39 on the National Immigration Administration’s list of 65 ports operating the 240 hour visa free transit policy. Nationals of the 57 listed countries who are transiting to a third country may enter without a visa and stay up to 10 days, with Guangdong Province as the permitted area, provided they hold valid travel documents and onward tickets with confirmed seats and dates. A separate 24 hour visa free transit applies at every open port. Work, study, and news reporting still need the proper visa.
Emergency Numbers for Guangzhou, Baiyun Airport, and mainland China
👉 Swipe sideways if the numbers do not fit
| Police | 110 |
| Fire | 119 |
| Medical emergency (ambulance) | 120 |
| Emergency hotline 122. Two Guangzhou municipal pages list it among the city’s emergency hotlines; the TRAFFIC ACCIDENT label rests on the national health commission page alone | 122 |
| Guangzhou multilingual public service hotline. Every official source for it dates from 2019 to 2023, so it is unconfirmed for 2026; nothing says it stopped. Re-verify before relying on it. Service hours per language are NOT published on any source read, so none are stated here | 960169 |
| Baiyun Airport service hotline, 24 hours | 020-96158 |
| China country code (calling from abroad) | +86 |
Save these before you fly; numbers work from any phone.
How do I get from Guangzhou Baiyun Airport to the city centre?
From Terminal 3, take the airport shuttle bus from the tourist bus hub on level 1 of the T3 transport centre to Gaozeng metro station, about 12 minutes, then Metro Line 3 or Line 9 into the city. The municipal portal prices the shuttle at CNY 2 and says it takes the Yangchengtong card, running every 5 to 10 minutes. From Gaozeng, the approved network fare table charges CNY 7 to Tiyu Xilu, Zhujiang New Town, Gongyuanqian, or Guangzhou East railway station and CNY 6 to Guangzhou railway station. From Terminal 2, Metro Line 3 runs from Airport North station and the same fare table charges CNY 8 to Tiyu Xilu.
Is Terminal 1 at Guangzhou Baiyun Airport still open?
No. From 02:00 on 2026-05-07 the eleven domestic airlines based at Terminal 1 moved to Terminal 3 and Terminal 1 closed to passengers for rebuilding. Metro Airport South station and the intercity Baiyun Airport South station closed with it. Check the terminal printed on your ticket before you plan your ride, and call the airport hotline 020-96158 if you are unsure.
How much is a taxi from Guangzhou Baiyun Airport?
The published tariff is CNY 12 for the first 3 km and CNY 2.6 per kilometre after that, with CNY 44 an hour of waiting time below 10 km/h. Any trip over 25 km adds 50 percent to the per kilometre rate as an empty return fee, and between 23:00 and 05:00 a night service fee adds a further 30 percent to that rate. The tariff is a government guided price, so the base fare may float up by 10 percent in the peaks and down by up to 30 percent off peak. No flat airport to city rate is published.
How do I get into Guangzhou at night when the metro has stopped?
Use the airport’s own express coach. The Guangzhou Tianhe Line (Downtown Line 2) leaves Baiyun Airport between 23:00 and 05:00, roughly every 20 to 60 minutes, for CNY 35, and the Haizhu Line (Downtown Line 3) leaves at 00:05 and 00:40 for CNY 30. Tickets and boarding are at the west bus stations of the T2 and T3 transport centres, and the coach hotline 020-36063156 is staffed 24 hours. Licensed taxis also run 24 hours from the Terminal 3 arrivals level at Gate 75, with the night surcharge above.
Can I drink the tap water in Guangzhou?
Boil it or buy bottled. The Guangzhou Water Authority applies national standard GB 5749-2022 and reports a 100 percent overall compliance rate for June 2026, with testing by the Guangzhou Water Quality Monitoring Centre, but no official guidance endorses drinking it straight from the tap.
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Crew Discounts in Guangzhou: verified car rental and hotel rates for airline staff sit right below this guide. Bookmark this page before you head down to the transport centre. Next Guangzhou rotation you start on the rates instead of from scratch.
