The gate of the Celestial Empire - Beijing Capital International Airport - is located 20 kilometers from Beijing. At the moment it is the largest airport in China.
Since 1965, seven major airport expansion and reconstruction projects have been implemented, making it the first airport in Asia and the Pacific to have three terminals, three runways and two simultaneously operating towers.
The main objective in the construction of Beijing Capital was security. The airport passed a rigorous security audit carried out by the ICAO and CAAC organizations. Favorable geographical position and modern technical base make it a convenient aviation hub in the market of Asian, European and American air transportation. All major Chinese airlines have their operational bases here.
In 2008, the Summer Olympic Games were held in Beijing and the airport contributed to their conduct - 446 special aircraft, 1,076 business aircraft, 7,744 flights directly associated with the Olympic Games, with a total of 98,420 passengers. "Zero falls, zero accidents and zero complaints," as staff members commented on their achievements.
The pace of development of the Beijing airport is increasing together with the pace of development of China itself. The Airport has a lot of awards, without excessive modesty, allowing it to be called the best airport in the world.
Infrastructure
At the airport there are about a hundred different restaurants offering dishes from almost all over the world. In the huge shopping area of the airport there are many business centers, banks and other institutions.
How to get here
Beijing Capital Airport is connected to Beijing by bus, a light metro branch and highways (30-60 minutes depending on traffic jams).
A trip on the branch of the light metro Airport Line (Y25, the first / last train to the airport leaves at 6.30 am / 22.30, the first / last from the airport - 6.30 am / 23.05) ply every 15 minutes from the airport to the Line Line subway line.
You can get to the center and by express buses, which depart every 10-15 minutes .The fare at all is approximately Y16 .For example, Line 3 buses (first / last to Capital 7 .30 / last flight, first / last route to f .e .Beijing train station from the airport - 5 .30 mornings / 21 .00) is the most popular route for tourists who follow the Beijing International Hotel or to .e .station .There are also Line 2 buses (to the airport at 7 am / last flight, from the airport 5 .30 mornings / 21 .00) that follow the Aviation Building; and Line 1 buses (7 am / 11 pm to the airport, 5 .30 mornings / 11pm to the airport), following to Fangzhuang, via Dabeiyao, where you can change to Metro Line 1 .
A taxi to the city center (with a counter) will cost around Y85, including a Y15 fee for using the expressway. Before boarding, it is worth to familiarize yourself with all rates for travel (posted on the glass or should be at the driver's) and make sure that the driver turned on the counter. Also, it would not hurt to have a Chinese variant of writing a hotel with you, to show it to the driver: polyglots among them, you know, are few.
- Airport website: bcia.com.cn
- On-line airport scoreboard: bcia.com.cn/flightinfo
Other airports in the city
In addition to it, there are five smaller airports in Beijing - Liangxiang, Nanyuan, Xijiao, Shahe and Badaling. They are much less known, because they are used mainly for military purposes. Beijing's second international airport will be called Beijing Daxing, and its opening is planned by 2017.