How to use the metro in China

Your first trip

1. 1

   Open the transport code

   Alipay has a travel section that produces a QR code for the gate. There is no need to install a separate metro app, and the code works in most large cities.

   Open the code BEFORE the gate: there may be no signal in the passage, and the queue behind you will not wait.

2. 2

   Or buy a single ticket

   The machines in the concourse switch to English. You pick your destination on the map, pay in cash or by QR and get a token or a card.

   The token is tapped on the gate going in and dropped into the slot on the way out — do not throw it away during the journey.

3. 3

   Go through security

   Bags are scanned at the metro entrance — routine, and it takes seconds. You will be asked to open your water and take a sip. At rush hour there can be a queue of several minutes at the belt in large stations.

4. 4

   Find the line by colour and number

   Signs and announcements are duplicated in English. It is easier to navigate by the line’s number and colour than by station names.

5. 5

   Choose your direction

   On the platform the direction is labelled by the TERMINUS, not “inbound” and “outbound”. Check the map for the terminus in your direction and remember it — it is the only reliable guide.

What to know

A transport card pays for itself on a long stay and works on buses too. Sold at the station ticket office and topped up there and at the machines.

The fare depends on distance rather than being flat: a couple of stops is cheaper, right across the city dearer.

A change inside a station can mean a five- to seven-minute walk — at large interchanges it is a separate passage, not the next platform.

In some cities the first carriages are reserved for women at rush hour; it is marked on the platform.