This page gives information about the transport options availiable within Hainan Island for travellers, backpackers and tourists. The main way to travel around Hainan is bus and the high speed Haikou-Sanya train.

Within cities/towns/villages you can get around by bus, taxi, motorbike, motorised tricycle, and pedal tricycle. There are good roads linking the major towns, but these turn into bumpy dirt roads in less traveled areas (some of these roads are the most beautiful, surrounded by tropical scenery and small traditional villages, leading you into the unknown).

For information on getting to/from Hainan see the 'Getting To Hainan' page.

Map of Hainan Roads and High Speed Rail Line

Haikou to Sanya High Speed Train

The high speed rail connection between Haikou and Sanya opened at the beginning of 2011. It connects Haikou and Sanya along the east of Hainan. It is the quickest way to travel across the island. Trains run from Haikou to Sanya from about 07:00 in the morning to 20:00 in the evening. There is a train about every hour. Some trains run direct between Haikou and Sanya, taking about 1.5 hours. But most trains stop at a few places along the way on the east coast of Hainan, taking about 2-2.5 hours.

A second class ticket from Haikou to Sanya costs about 90 RMB. The exact times of the trains change through the year. There is a small travel agent on the opposite side of the road from Haikou Banana Hostel where you can book train tickets in advance. The main station in Haikou is the Haikou East stop (海口东). It is in the south east of the city on Fengxiang Road (凤翔路). Haikou East stop is the easiest stop to get to if you are staying in Haikou City.

The table below shows the times of trains from Haikou East station (海口东) to Sanya (三亚). Exact times are subject to change, but this gives you an indication.

Here is a list of all the stops and their prices in RMB.

Major roads in Hainan

There is a western expressway linking Haikou to the towns along the western coast and to Sanya in the south. The eastern expressway heads south from Haikou and along the south-east coast, all the way to the southern most tip, Sanya. There is also the Haiwen expressway that links Haikou and Wencheng on the north east coast. Through the mountainous middle of Hainan island runs the Haiyu middle Highway. This passes Qiongzhong town and the Five Finger mountain (Wu Zhi Shan) area and on to Sanya. This highway is slower, but more scenic than the east and west expressways.

Haikou long distance buses (within Hainan)

There are buses from Haikou to most areas of Hainan island. Haikou has 3 main bus stations; the south, east, and west bus stations (there is also the bus station at XinGang passenger port for buses to the Chinese mainland). The south station opened in 2005 and is the new main station. Below are the timetables for the stations. We cannot guarntee these are still exactly correct, but they will atleast give you an indication of destinations and frequencies. Unfortunatley we don't have a full timetable for the south station yet.

Haikou to Sanya:

Frequent buses run from Haikou to Sanya from both the south and east stations. The journey takes 3 hours and costs around 78 RMB for an express deluxe bus, 64 RMB for air-con, or 48 RMB for an economy bus.

Taxis:

Taxis are plentiful in Haikou and Sanya and are an easy way to get around, but not as cheap as the mainland. Don't expect drivers to speak English. The metered fare is 10 RMB for the first 3km and 2 RMB per additional km. It is common, particularly in Sanya, to haggle the price with taxi drivers. Doing this should enable you to get a fare below the metered price, but you need some idea of what the price should be. For shorter distances it is cheaper (and more fun) to take a motorbike/trike or pedaltrike. Expect to pay 2 RMB per km.

Haikou local Buses:

Haikou has a well developed network of air-conditioned local buses. There is a flat fee of 1 RMB for all local journeys. This makes the local buses a very cheap and easy way to get around.

Info on bus routes (chinese): http://haikou.8684.cn/