Baiyun Airport to the City: Metro, Bus, Taxi, Didi Costs

Which terminal are you in?

Every passenger flight now uses Terminal 2 (T2) or Terminal 3 (T3). T1 closed to passengers on May 7, 2026, and the city’s notice gives no reopening date. Your ticket shows the terminal. If you are unsure, read the Baiyun Airport T2 and T3 guide first, because the routes below depend on it.

Which way into the city is best?

The metro is cheapest and does not depend on traffic. Taxis and Didi are door to door. The table lists each option. Times and prices are the ones we could verify from official or published sources; where we could not, it says so.

Metro

At T2, follow the signs to Metro Line 3 at Airport North station (机场北). At T3 there is no metro station. The official guide tells you to take Line 3 or 9 to Gaozeng, leave by Exit B and board the Airport Line 2 branch bus (空港2线支线). It takes about 15 minutes, costs ¥2, runs every 5 to 10 minutes and takes the Yang Cheng Tong card. Newsgd reported first and last buses of 06:15 and 23:15 from Gaozeng to T3, and 06:35 and 22:40 back.

Metro fares start at ¥2 and rise with distance, according to Trip.com’s guide of September 21, 2026. We could not open the official fare table, so treat the ¥7 to ¥9 figure for central Tianhe as indicative. That guide also says a fare update is scheduled for December 2026.

Foreign contactless cards work at the gates since October 12, 2025. See paying for the metro with a Visa or Mastercard. Line 3 is very crowded at commuting times, so avoid it with a suitcase on weekday mornings and evenings.

We could not confirm the journey time from the airport to central Tianhe by metro. Check it in the Guangzhou Metro app or Amap before you leave.

Intercity train

The Guangzhou East Ring intercity line runs to Baiyun Airport East at T3. On 12306 (timetable for October 21, 2026) the ride takes 29 to 52 minutes from Pazhou (¥17) and 41 to 83 minutes from Panyu (番禺, ¥26). Trains run about every 14 minutes. Fares and times are on 12306 and the Guangdong Intercity site. The city guide says you can change to this line at Guangzhou South, but 12306 lists no stop named 广州南 on it, so check the connection on 12306 before relying on it for a high-speed train.

Airport express bus

The city’s May 2026 T3 guide lists eight airport express routes, from ¥19.9. The airport’s own website lists six city lines, all calling at both T2 and T3 from the transport centre west bus stations (西客运站): Tianhe (leaves the airport only from 23:00 to 05:00, ¥35), Haizhu (00:05 and 00:40, ¥30), Panyu (¥29.8 by day), Nansha (¥59.8), Xintang (¥39.8) and a free Baiyun Station line. ¥19.9 is a half fare. Check schedules in the “白云机场空港快线” WeChat account.

How do I take a taxi without being overcharged?

Take the official taxi queue and make sure the meter is running. The tariff is public. According to the Guangzhou fare notice, which came into force on November 30, 2024:

• Flag-fall is ¥12 for the first 3 km.
• Each further km costs ¥2.60.
• A surcharge applies to long trips: 20% of the per-km rate for km 15 to 25, and 50% beyond km 25.
• Between 23:00 and 05:00 the per-km rate rises by 30%.
• Waiting time below 10 km/h costs ¥44 an hour.
• Taxi companies may add a declared peak-hour float or give an off-peak discount.

From these figures we calculate an estimate for Terminal 2 to Tianhe: about ¥94 at 30 km, ¥113 at 35 km and ¥133 at 40 km. The distances are our assumptions; no official airport-to-Tianhe distance was found. The estimate excludes tolls, night surcharge, waiting time and company fare floats; the peak-hour float alone adds about ¥8 to ¥11. Treat it as a check, not a quote.

What travellers report

Several travellers on Reddit say they were charged far more. One wrote that they “paid 700 yuan from the airport to Tianhe area” (r/guangzhou, January 5, 2026). Another reports being “charged over 570 RMB” at the official rank (March 15, 2026). A third said a regular taxi to Yuexiu cost ¥510, although “there was a sign saying that haggling was prohibited” (r/travelchina, March 2, 2025). A commenter replied to the first post: “150rmb to Tianhe max.” These are traveller reports. We have not confirmed them, and they do not show how common overcharging is.

Steps that help

1. Join the queue at the official point: Gate 75 at T3, Gate 53 or 50 at T2.
2. Show your destination in Chinese on a phone, such as the hotel’s address from its booking page. The Show your driver tool has cards for this.
3. Check the meter is running before the car moves. Flag-fall is ¥12. Under the city’s fare-float notice for July to December 2025 it was about ¥13.20 at peak times and ¥10.80 at midday; we did not find a 2026 notice.
4. Ask the driver to confirm any highway toll in advance. We found no official rule on who pays tolls.
5. Get the printed receipt at the end. It carries the vehicle number and a supervision phone number.

If the fare looks wrong

Call the Guangzhou transport service line 020-12328 and give the receipt number. The Transport Bureau says 12328 is merged with 12345 and that taxi complaints reach the transport department. In March 2024 it reported more than 1,000 detour complaints handled since the start of that year, with the fare difference refunded by the taxi company. We could not confirm that either line has an English service. The 960169 interpreter line is listed by the city’s international portal as English 24 hours; ask it to join the call.

How do I take Didi from the airport?

Didi gives a fare estimate before the ride, and you pay in the app. Choose Express or Premier. Do not choose the Taxi option, and do not agree to pay cash at the end. Travellers report fake tolls and cash demands on airport trips. One poster wrote that they “paid an additional 675¥ for a Didi from CAN to Guangzhou south railway station” (r/guangzhou, June 27, 2026). Didi’s help line is 400-0000-999, but in-app support is the first step.

At the airport, set the pick-up point to the one in the table above and walk there before the car arrives. At T3 the airport lists ride-hailing pick-up outside domestic arrivals Gate 72 and on levels 1F, M and 2F of car park P12. Full setup is in the Didi guide. The taxi guide covers fares and complaints in more detail.

Which route fits my situation?

• Hotel in Tianhe or Pazhou, one suitcase: metro, or intercity train to Pazhou.
• Onward high-speed train: check the route to your station in Amap or 12306 (no East Ring intercity train calls at Guangzhou South), or take a taxi or Didi.
• Late arrival, family or heavy luggage: taxi from the official rank, or Didi Express.
• Long layover: see the T2 and T3 guide for terminal facts. Check your passport in the visa-free checker.