Situated in northwestern China, Lanzhou is the geographic center of the country. Though there are not many world famous scenic spots, most tourists choose the city as a stopover for its convenient transportation to the renowned tourist cities in western China.

By Air
Lanzhou Zhongchuan Airport (ZGC) is located about 70 kilometers (43.5miles) from the downtown area. More than 30 airlines connect Lanzhou to the outside world, with daily flights to and from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Xi'an. Flights to major cities like Tianjin,Chengdu, Chongqing, Nanjing, Kunming, Hangzhou, Taiyuan, Jinan, Changsha, Haikou, Wuhan, Wenzhou, Xiamen, Zhuhai, Shenyang and international and regional flights to Okinawa, Singapore, and Hong Kong are also available from Lanzhou Zhongchuan Airport.
It takes roughly an hour for the airport shuttle bus (at about 30 Yuan per person) to arrive at Lanzhou Eastern Hotel (No. 555, Tianshui Lu) at downtown. A taxi will cost about 140 Yuan.
Zhongchuan Airport Inquiring: 0931-8968160
Ticket Center Inquiry: 0931-8821964 (domestic) 0931-8828174 (international)
CAAC Ticket Center: No.258 Donggang Xi Lu, Lanzhou

By Train
Lanzhou Railway Station is located in the south downtown. There are altogether 45 daily rail departures from Lanzhou, connecting Lanzhou to other cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Qingdao, Jinan, Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou, Guangzhou, Changsha, Wuhan, Chengdu, Xian, Xining, Urumqi and Hohhot. Express trains also run to Xining, Yumen, Zhangye, Pingliang and Golmud.
There are many ticket offices in the city but we recommend you buy your tickets from the ticket center at the railway station or from the ticket offices in the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China to avoid forged tickets.
Lanzhou Railway Station Inquiry: 0931-4922222

By Bus
Lanzhou is the hub of the road transportation system in Gansu Province with Lanzhou East Bus Station and Lanzhou West Bus Station being the two largest. There are 750 buses to different places daily and the destinations are as far flung as Xinjiang, Baotou, Xining, Zhengzhou, Chengdu and Wenzhou. Generally, buses within the province leave in the morning and arrive in the afternoon. Lanzhou East Bus Station is located at No.170 Pingliang Lu. Buses No.141, 137, 75 and 6 depart from there and the bus stop is Qiche Dong Zhan (East Bus Station).
Lanzhou West Bus Station is located at No.486, Xijin Dong Lu. Buses No.1, 6, 11, 31, 32, 33, 41, 45, 50, 56, 58, 59, 106 and 107 are available and the bus stop is Xiao Xi Hu.
However, as Lanzhou is located in the east of Gansu Province, far from the tourist cities in the Hexi Corridor, like Jiayuguan and Dunhuang, so rail as apposed to road travel is often preferable. For the south of Gansu Province, like Sangke Prairie where no rail link is available, the bus is the only option.

Taxi
Lanzhou offers more than 6,000 taxis. It costs 7 Yuan for the initial 3 kilometers (1.84miles) and 1.4 Yuan per km (0.62miles) thereafter. At night, it will cost passengers 1.6 Yuan per km. Negotiating a fixed fare is acceptable.

Bus
The public transport system in Lanzhou is well developed, with 110 bus routes covering every corner of the city. There are buses and mini-buses at prices lower than other cities. The prices range from 0.5 Yuan to 2.5 Yuan. Usually, it will cost passengers 0.5 Yuan every five or fewer stops. The further you go the more you pay. Generally, the fare costs not more than 1.5 Yuan within downtown while it costs 2 Yuan to 2.5 Yuan to Xigu District. Usually, the minibus fare is 1 Yuan without regard for the number of stops.

By Water
As Lanzhou is the only provincial capital through which the Yellow River flows, rafts of both wood and sheepskin have been in use for a long time. The primitive sheepskin raft will give you a novel feeling of the Yellow River.