Traveling to China in 2025: How to Take a Taxi?

Complete Guide to Didi Chuxing (DiDi) & Amap!

Arrived in China but Google Maps won't open?
It's okay 🙆♀️ Knowing a local map app in China makes navigating and taking taxis much easier!

🗺️1. Amap is a must-have in China!

Amap is one of the essential apps for traveling in China.
Similar to Korea's Naver Map, it provides real-time route guidance, traffic conditions, and public transportation information at a glance.

- Multilingual support (Settings → General → Select Language)
- Real-time traffic information and save destinations
- You can also use the taxi-calling (打车) feature directly from the app!

👉 Note that the taxi-calling feature requires you to sign up with your phone number, and payments are processed via WeChat Pay or Alipay.

🚖 2. Didi Chuxing (DiDi) — China's Uber!

Didi Chuxing (滴滴出行 / DiDi Rider) is China's version of Uber, and it has an English version, making it easy for foreigners to use.

The app offers a variety of vehicle types, including 快车 (regular taxi), 专车 (luxury taxi), and 出租车 (regular taxi).

- Payment Methods: WeChat, Alipay, Visa/Mastercard, and UnionPay are all accepted.
- App Navigation: "Wallet" → "Payment Method" → Settings
- Note: The driver may request confirmation by entering the last 4 digits of your phone number. Simply show them the app's call screen.

🚕 3. Using a Street Taxi

If you want to hail a taxi without using the app, simply raise your hand on the side of the road and stop the vehicle with the "空车" (empty) sign.

Most taxis these days support QR code payments (Alipay, WeChat Pay), but just in case, keep small amounts of cash (10, 20, 50, 100 yuan) on hand.

Some drivers may not have change or may not support QR payments.

🗣️ 4. Overcome the language barrier!
Most Chinese taxi drivers rarely speak English. Therefore, it's important to prepare your destination in advance.

✅ Tip:
- Mark hotel and tourist attraction addresses as "⭐ Favorites" on Godeok Map.
- If English search doesn't work, search for the Chinese name.
- If Chinese doesn't appear, go to "Settings → Language → 中文 (Chinese)" and restart the app.

When taking a taxi, simply show the driver the destination screen on the app.

🧭 5. Summary at a glance!

✔️ Use Amap (Godek Map/高德出行) instead of Google Maps
✔️ Call a taxi with the Didi Chuxing app
✔️ Payments accepted with Alipay, WeChat Pay, and international cards
✔️ Bring a small amount of cash
✔️ Save your destination in Chinese

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