Nanning



Nanning (南宁; Nánníng) is the capital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in south-west China. It is a large, modern city and a transport gateway for travellers to and from Vietnam.

Understand
District: Jiangnan District, Xingning District, Qingxiu District, Liangqing District, Xixiangtang District, Wuming District, Yongning District

Talk
Though the older people speak Cantonese (白话 báihuà), the younger generation mainly speak Mandarin (普通话 pǔtōnghuà). Nanning is regarded as one of the most successful cities in China in terms of popularizing Mandarin or 'common language'. So it is a very good place to learn Putonghua. Universities offering Chinese courses are many, including Guangxi University for Nationalities and Guangxi University. However, be aware that Nanning people, like virtually all Chinese in the south, have a non-standard pronunciation for many of the basic sounds of Mandarin (which comes from the northern Han people). The local dialect of Cantonese has a distinctive accent that is noticeably different from standard Cantonese, though it will still be largely comprehensible to fluent speakers of standard Cantonese.

Nanning, as the capital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, embraces the Zhuang ethnic language, and virtually all public building signs in Guangxi display the Zhuang written text alongside Chinese. It is not to be confused with pinyin, the romanized phonetic transliteration of Mandarin.

By plane


There are 4 airport bus lines in operate connecting the airport and the city. Public bus line no. 301 runs between the old terminal T1 and the city center, journey time is approximately 1.5 hours and costs only ¥3. But all airlines now operate from T2; walking from T2 to nearest stop of bus line no. 301 is more than 5 km.
 * Airport Bus Line 1: Run directly to Vienna Hotel Nanning Chaoyang Road (朝阳路维也纳酒店) which is 400 m away from the Nanning Railway station. Operation time: from first arriving flight to last flight of the day, frequency: half an hour, fare: ¥20. The buses run from the Vienna Hotel Nanning Chaoyang Road to airport every 30 min from 05:30 to 22:30. Full journey time is 45-60 min.
 * Airport Bus Line 2: Run to Wharton International Hotel near the South Lake (Nanhu, 南湖) via a downtown stop at Jiangnan Bus Terminal (江南客运站). Operation time: from first arriving flight to 23:00, frequency: half an hour, fare ¥20. The buses run from the Wharton International Hotel to airport every 30 min from 05:30 to 21:00. Full journey time is 50-75 min.
 * Airport Bus Line 3: Run directly to Nanning Zoo (动物园), operation time: 09:30 - 18:30, Frequency: every hour. The buses run from the zoo to airport every hour from 08:00 to 19:00. Fare ¥20. Full journey time is 45-60 min.
 * Airport Bus Line 4: Run directly to Nanning East Railway Station (南宁东站), operation time: 09:00 - 19:30, frequency: every 45 min. The buses run from the south square of Nanning East Railway Station to airport every 45 min from 10:45 to 19:00. Fare ¥20. Full journey time is 60-75 min.

Taxis are also available. Fixed price to downtown is ¥100. A taxi from the airport to Langdong bus terminal will cost ¥120-130, but it is still possible to bargain for ¥100-110. The drivers might refuse to use the meter but the price is not exorbitant as it may even cost more with the meter.

By train

 * All long-distance services use
 * Trains from points east may also stop at

By bus
Nanning has three major bus terminals:


 * Langdong (埌东) bus terminal is on Minzu Dadao (民族大道; Mínzú Dàdào) to the east of the city centre amongst all the new skyscrapers. Yunde (云德; Yúndé) buses from Hanoi arrive at Langdong Bus Station.  Buses for Hanoi are ¥150, which includes drinks, a lunch at Pingxiang and insurance.  It is possible to opt out of insurance, which costs ¥2, if you tell the ticket-seller.  This is a through-service, which will bring you all the way to Hanoi, though it does involve a change of buses and other vehicles in between. Buses leave Langdong at 08:40, 09:00 and 10:00. The journey takes 7 hours.  There are also direct buses to Nanning from Haiphong and Ha Long Bay.
 * Jiangnan bus terminal is on Xingguang Dadao way south of the city center. Buses from the south, Pingxiang near the Vietnam border (arrivals roughly hourly, 2.5 hr, ¥60), and Yangshuo (via Guilin) operate from Jiangnan. metro line 2 connects Jiangnan to Chaoyang Road in the city centre. Catch them from the square in front of the terminal. Alternatively a taxi will take you for ¥15-20.

Get around
Local buses serve the city, and are either ¥1 or ¥2 per trip, depending on whether the buses have A/C or not. Buy a bus map of the city for about ¥5 for the routes around the city, which doubles as a city map.

Taxis are also convenient for getting around the city, and most rides within the city should cost under ¥20. Fares start at ¥9 for the first 2 km and are based on time and distance afterwards.

Nanning Rail Transit Line 1 is a 25-station line that connects Shibu and Nanning East Railway Station, crossing the city from east to west, operates from 06:30 to 23:00 everyday (If encountering important days such as holidays, the operating hours will also be extended). The fare is ¥2-6 based on stops. Line 2 crosses from north to south;Line 3 connects Pingliang Overpass and Keyuan Dadao(Keyuan Ave);Line 4 connects Lengtangcun and Hongyun Lu(Hongyun Rd)，cross from east to west;Line 5 connects Guokai Dadao(Guokai Ave) and Jinqiao Coach Station.(Updated Jan 2024)

Share bikes also operate in the city. Mobike and ofo can be picked up from many areas, if you have an account.

Work
As a regional capital, Nanning has a lot of work opportunities compared to other cities of Guangxi Province. The booming import and export business exchanges between Guangxi and Vietnam means that there is a big demand for people who can speak both Chinese and Vietnamese. Also, if you are a native English speaker, teaching jobs are also abundant. See Working in China for more information.

Eat
Zhongshan Rd (中山路) is Nanning's food street, with a vast assortment of street stalls serving many kinds of Liang Guang (literally, the two Guang provinces, Guangxi and Guangdong) foods, as well as food from neighbouring provinces, such as Hunan and Yunnan. It is diagonally opposite the Incity, home of Wal-Mart. Throughout the city there are many good-value restaurants. Few have English menus. However, Zhongshan Rd has now been closed due to renovation.The newly developed eastern end of the city (around Langdong, and the APEC Exhibition Centre) has lots of up-market restaurants, cafes and coffee lounges.(Updated Jan 2024)

Budget
There are dumpling stalls and small eating houses all over the city. Fresh, tasty and very cheap. Zhongshan Rd food stalls are also worth a try. Try the local rice noodle soup, laoyoufen (老友粉; literally old friend rice noodle). It is traditionally made with pork based broth, pickled bamboo shoots, fermented soy beans, and other typical Chinese spices. It is an acquired tasted due to the pickled bamboo shoots.



Mid-range
About 90% of the restaurants in Nanning would fall into this category.



Splurge
Anything in or around Langdong or the Five Elephant Plaza (financial district); the YongJiang Hotel, by the river, has an excellent buffet, with fresh seafood, and good quality meat BBQs.

Drink
Many popular bars are to be found along Minzu Da Dao, the long avenue that runs from east to west through the city, bisecting South Lake. Many have a cover charge, and offer a variety of international as well as domestic beers, in addition to the standard supply of liquors. The '100' bar area (near the city library) has a cluster of up-market bars and coffee lounges, many featuring live music. A number of more intimate, low key bars and pubs can be found in the university district in the north west of the city, around University Road (Da Xue Lu) and Mingxiu Road.

Sleep
As for every major Chinese city, booking hotels online is more convenient than ever. Chinese website include Tuniu.com, Ctrip.com, and Fliggy.com. Western ones include Hotels.com (run by Expedia).

Budget
Around the square in front of the station are several hotels offering bargains for rooms and dorm beds with dorm beds starting at ¥15.



Mid-range

 * Other mid-range places a short walk from Nanning Main Railway Station are Phoenix Hotel, Vake, and Vienna. You'll see them from the station precinct.
 * Other mid-range places a short walk from Nanning Main Railway Station are Phoenix Hotel, Vake, and Vienna. You'll see them from the station precinct.
 * Other mid-range places a short walk from Nanning Main Railway Station are Phoenix Hotel, Vake, and Vienna. You'll see them from the station precinct.

Stay safe
Chinese cities are generally speaking very safe in terms of violent crimes, and Nanning is no exception. But petty crimes like pickpocketing are quite common. On public transportation, be extra-careful about your mobile phones and wallets.

Pyramid/Ponzi schemes are endemic in Nanning, and similar to other pyramid schemes in China, criminals operating these schemes can resort to violence if their scam is about to be exposed. Simply avoid any dubious investment scheme is sufficient for normal visitors. You should also be careful if strangers are trying to talk to you and sell you something or leading you somewhere.

Consulates

 * 🇰🇭 Cambodia
 * 🇹🇭 Thailand
 * Vietnam

Go next

 * Northern Vietnam &mdash; within striking distance
 * Beihai &mdash; take the fast train (can be booked from a travel agent or Ctrip) for around ¥60 (1.5 hours) or take bus from Langdong or Jiangnan bus station (3 hours)
 * Kunming &mdash; there is a train there, reportedly a sensational ride through isolated mountainous country
 * Guilin and Yangshuo &mdash; famously scenic tourist area, only a short distance from Nanning (about 5 hr by direct bus or 2.5 hr by train)
 * Detian Waterfall &mdash; with a 75 meter drop, on the Chinese-Vietnamese border, It is about 4 hours from Nanning.