Transportation · common
Why did the taxi driver refuse my destination?
Last updated:
Quick Answer
Symptom: You tell a street taxi your destination in English and the driver waves you off, locks the doors, or drives away.
Cause: Drivers often refuse short-distance fares, fares to traffic-restricted zones, or foreigners they cannot route-communicate with; during shift-change hours they only take fares along their route home.
Solution: Use DiDi (in-app destination avoids refusals, fare is pre-agreed), show the address in Chinese characters, or walk to a hotel doorman to hail a willing driver.
What you see
You tell a street taxi your destination in English and the driver waves you off, locks the doors, or drives away.
Why it happens
Drivers often refuse short-distance fares, fares to traffic-restricted zones, or foreigners they cannot route-communicate with; during shift-change hours they only take fares along their route home.
How to fix
Use DiDi (in-app destination avoids refusals, fare is pre-agreed), show the address in Chinese characters, or walk to a hotel doorman to hail a willing driver.
Read next
These guides cover the related functionality in full.
Taxis
Airport taxis are metered but require cash or a working Alipay transport code; hail from designated taxi stands, not the street.
DiDi (Ride-hailing)
DiDi is China's Uber; link a foreign Visa or Mastercard in the app to ride in 400+ cities with English-speaking drivers available on request.
Translation Apps
Pleco (offline dictionary) plus Apple Translate or Google Translate covers 95% of in-person translation needs; download Chinese offline pack before flying.
Other Transportation problems
Why can't I book on 12306 with my foreign card?
You tried to book a high-speed rail ticket on 12306.cn and your foreign Visa/Mastercard is rejected at checkout.
Why is DiDi not accepting my foreign card?
You linked a Visa/Mastercard in DiDi but ride payments fail or the app asks for re-verification every ride.
Why did the high-speed rail ticket machine reject my passport?
At a 12306 self-service kiosk you scan your passport and the screen shows "document not recognized" or no ticket prints.
Why is the DiDi app only in Chinese for me?
You downloaded DiDi in China and the entire interface is in Simplified Chinese with no English toggle visible in settings.