Jun 19 – 28, 2024
Hefei, China
Asia/Shanghai timezone

Travel Instructions

About Hefei

Hefei (/həˈfeɪ/; Chinese: 合肥) is the capital and largest city of Anhui Province, People's Republic of China. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, and cultural center of Anhui. Its population was 9,369,881 as of 2020. A natural hub of communications, Hefei is situated to the north of Chao Lake and stands on a low saddle crossing the northeastern extension of the Dabie Mountains, which forms the divide between the Huai and Yangtze rivers.

Hefei is a world leading city for scientific research, with its ranking placed at 13th globally, 8th in the Asia-Pacific and 6th in China (behind Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Guangzhou and Wuhan), as tracked by the Nature Index in 2023. The city is represented by several major universities, including the University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei University of Technology, Anhui University, Anhui Agricultural University and Anhui Medical University. Notably, the University of Science and Technology of China is one of the top 100th comprehensive public research universities in the world.

 

Getting to Hefei by high-speed train Beijing or Shanghai:

If you need to take a high-speed train to Hefei after arriving in Beijing or Shanghai, the subway, taxi, and bus services are easily accessible and affordable in both cities. The typical transition time to the high-speed train stations from the airports is aournd an hour. Example Routes can be found at:

 

● Beijing Capital Airport (PEK) to Beijing South Station (rome-2rio trip suggestion

● Shanghai Pudong Airport (PVG) to Shanghai Hongqiao Station (rome-2rio trip suggestion

 

Guidance of purchasing and using train tickets in China:

● Tutorial of purchasing train tickets online (provided by trip.com): https://www.trip.com/guide/train/12306.html

● Detailed guidance of riding a train in China using an E-tickets (provided by trip.com): https://www.trip.com/guide/train/china-train-ticket.html

 

Getting to the hotel from Hefei airport / train station:

Airport to hotel (40 mins)

(image download)

Hefei south railway station to hotel (25 mins)

(image download)

Upon your arrival at the airport or Hefei South Railway Station, the ISOTDAQ LOC will provide a pick-up service. You will be guided by our volunteers to use one of the following methods to get to the hotel (free of charge):

  • Two free shuttle buses at the airport on June 18th for the following flights: 
    • June 18th 15:25  Flight CA1843
    • June 18th 22:10  Flight CA1845 
  • For other participants arriving at the airport or Hefei South Railway Station at different times, volunteers will be available to help you take a taxi to the hotel.
  • Volunteers will be waiting for you with a pickup sign as shown below.

 

Only for your information (in case you will travel by yourself to the hotel):

  • Taxi
    • Fare: 70-100 CNY (from airport), 30-50 CNY (from Heifei south railway station), cash / Alipay / Wechat Pay, no credit card
    • Bring a print-out taxi instruction with you just in case:
      • 请带我去贝斯特韦斯特酒店(黄山路598号)Please take me to the Best Western Hotel

  • Airport Express Line 4
    • Fare: 25 CNY, cash / Alipay / Wechat Pay
    • Route: Hefei Xinqiao Airport --> Shi Li Miao --> Hefei Crowne Plaza Hotel --> Swan Lake Hotel / Fengda International Hotel
    • Instruction: Purchase an express bus ticket at the ticket office located outside the airport exit. Take Airport Express Line 4 and get off at Hefei Crowne Plaza Hotel. The Best Western Hotel is just a 3-minute walk behind the Hefei Crowne Plaza Hotel.

Transportation in Hefei

  • Map App
    • Google Maps: Requires a VPN. It is advisable to download offline maps of Hefei in advance, although the map data may be slightly outdated
    • Apple Maps: Works in China
    • Bing Maps: Available on the web athttps://cn.bing.com/maps, but there is no app
    • MAPS.ME: Offers offline maps, which can be useful in China
    • Other Popular Map Apps in China (without English versions): Baidu Maps, Amap Maps (aka Gaode Maps), and Tencent Maps.

 

  • Hefei metro map
    (image download)

    • Closest metro station to the Best Western Hotel (24 mins by walk):
      [Line 3] 国防科技大学 Guofang Keji Daxue (Line 3)

      (image download)

 

    • Closest metro stations to the USTC east campus:
      [Line 5] 中国科大东区 Zhongguo Keda Dongqu (University of Science and Technology of China East Campus)
    • metro card
      The minimum number of trips for a pass is 30. If you do not use up the trips, the card cannot be refunded. Please consider carefully before purchasing.

      You can apply for a stored-value card, with a minimum initial recharge of 90 yuan, which will give you a total of 100 yuan on the card. If you no longer need the card, you can apply for a refund (except at Hefei Railway Station, Hefei South Railway Station, and Dadongmen Station, where refund services are not available; refunds can be processed at any other station).

      Here is some Chinese text that you can show to the subway staff:
      你好,请给这位来中国科学技术大学参加国际暑期学校的学生办理一张储值地铁卡。充值90元,卡内余额100元的即可。谢谢。

Transportation between the hotel and the venue

The hotel is about 7 km away to the East campus of University of Science and Technology of China. The local organizers will provide shuttle buses between hotel and school venue.

Campus map

(image download)

VISA information

Please check the following official website for VISA requirements: https://www.visaforchina.cn/globle/

Please note that China decided to offer visa-free entry to travelers holding ordinary passports from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia from December 1, 2023, to November 30, 2024. Citizens from those countries are able to enter China without a visa and stay for no more than 15 days for business, tourism, family visits and transit purposes.

The local organizers will provide invitation letters to all participants. For the cases in which a VISA is needed, one can use the letter for VISA application. For those who don't need a VISA, the letter can be carried in case of a need to prove the purpose of travelling.

Contact information