BlaakLane.com provides chauffeur service in Hangzhou for transfers from Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport (HGH), pickups at Hangzhou East and Hangzhou West stations, and hourly cars for meetings in Qianjiang New City or a day around West Lake. You see a fixed fare before confirming. A vetted Zhejiang affiliate drives each trip and is named on the confirmation.
Book a Hangzhou chauffeur in four steps
- Enter your flight, train or hotel as the pickup in the booking engine or at /book/.
- Add the destination, for example a lakeside hotel, the Hangzhou International Expo Center or an office in Binjiang.
- Choose the vehicle. The fare includes the chauffeur, fuel and the included waiting, with no meter and no surge.
- Confirm. Our Toronto desk, working 24/7, dispatches to a vetted local operator, and you receive the operator's and chauffeur's details.
Conference delegations and multi-vehicle programmes are planned by a coordinator and confirmed in writing.
Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport: terminals and meeting point
HGH lies about 27 km east of West Lake, on the south bank of the Qiantang River. It runs several terminals, including Terminal 4, which opened in 2022 ahead of the Asian Games; your flight number tells the system which terminal to use. Standard pickup is curbside at the designated pre-arranged pickup area, reached from arrivals, and the chauffeur messages the spot after landing. A name-board meet and greet in the arrivals hall is an add-on; add-ons are only available in selected locations. Pickups are flight-tracked, with 60 minutes of waiting on international arrivals and 30 minutes on domestic flights, then 15-minute blocks. The drive to the lake usually takes 40 to 60 minutes. Background is on the Xiaoshan airport page.
Drive times from the airport and the stations
| Route | Distance | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| HGH to West Lake hotels | about 27 km | 40-60 min |
| HGH to Qianjiang New City | about 22 km | 30-45 min |
| HGH to Hangzhou East station | about 20 km | 30-40 min |
| Hangzhou East to West Lake | about 12 km | 25-40 min |
| West Lake to Lingyin Temple | about 5 km | 15-25 min |
| West Lake to Wuzhen water town | about 85 km | 1 h 15 to 1 h 40 |
| West Lake to Moganshan | about 60 km | 1 h to 1 h 20 |
| West Lake to central Shanghai | about 180 km | 2.5-3 h |
West Lake: hotels, temples and tea villages
West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage cultural landscape since 2011, sits at the western edge of the old city, ringed by causeways, pagodas and hills. The Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake and hotels along the northern shore overlook the water, and the Amanfayun occupies a former village near Lingyin Temple. The Longjing tea villages lie in the hills to the southwest. Roads around the lake are narrow and very busy at weekends and holidays, and some sections restrict private traffic at peak times, so chauffeurs plan drop-offs at hotel entrances or permitted lay-bys and hold nearby. A half-day with an hourly chauffeur is the easiest way to link the temple, a tea house and lunch. The UNESCO listing explains the site.
Business districts and venues
Qianjiang New City, on the north bank of the Qiantang River, is the central business district, with the Grand Theatre and the city hall. Across the river, Binjiang holds technology companies, and the Hangzhou International Expo Center in Xiaoshan, built for the G20 summit in 2016, hosts large exhibitions. The Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center, the main venue of the 2023 Asian Games, stands nearby. To the west, Future Sci-Tech City in Yuhang is a growing office district near Hangzhou West station. Travel managers can manage bookers and cost centres through corporate accounts.
Rail: Hangzhou East, Hangzhou West and the city station
Hangzhou East is the main high-speed hub, with frequent trains to Shanghai Hongqiao in about 45 to 60 minutes and to Nanjing in about 1 to 1.5 hours. Hangzhou West opened in 2022 on the western side of the city. The older Hangzhou station is closest to West Lake. Chauffeurs meet trains at each station's designated pickup area. Timetables are on China Railway 12306, and our Shanghai Hongqiao station page covers the other end of the line.
Events and seasons in Hangzhou
- Late March and April: the spring Longjing tea harvest in the hill villages.
- September to October: the Qiantang River tidal bore, strongest around the 18th day of the eighth lunar month, often watched from Yanguan in Haining, about an hour away.
- October to November: the West Lake Expo, a long-running trade and culture fair.
- November: the Hangzhou Marathon, usually held early in the month.
Autumn is also when the sweet osmanthus blooms. National holidays, especially the first week of October, bring extreme crowds to the lake; plan early starts.
Arriving in China at HGH
As of 2026, many European and Asia-Pacific nationalities can enter China visa-free for up to 30 days. Holders of passports from 57 countries, including the United States, Canada and the UK, can use the 240-hour visa-free transit policy when continuing to a third country; HGH is a designated port, and the permitted area covers Zhejiang together with Shanghai and Jiangsu. Others need a visa in advance. The National Immigration Administration publishes the rules.
Driving and traffic rules
China drives on the right, and foreign licences are not accepted without a Chinese licence, so visitors rely on chauffeurs. Hangzhou restricts non-local number plates in central areas at peak hours; local operators hold Zhejiang plates. Expressways to Shanghai, Suzhou and Ningbo are tolled.
Vehicles and onward travel
A Standard Sedan suits one or two travellers, an executive SUV fits a family and luggage, and a Standard Black SUV or Sprinter Van moves a team between the Expo Center and a lakeside dinner. See the fleet and rates. For onward travel, Shanghai is 2.5 to 3 hours by road, and our Shanghai Pudong page covers the long-haul airport. Chauffeur companies in Zhejiang can apply at /drive-with-us/register/.
Water towns and day trips from Hangzhou
The canal towns of northern Zhejiang make good day trips by car. Wuzhen, about 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes away, has stone bridges, dye workshops and an annual theatre festival, usually in October. Xitang, closer to Shanghai, suits a stop on a transfer between the two cities. Moganshan, in the bamboo hills about an hour north, has boutique retreats and cooler summer air. Suzhou, with its classical gardens, is roughly 170 km and 2 to 2.5 hours away, and many travellers continue from there to Shanghai. Book these as city tours and day trips with the car staying with you, or as a one-way intercity transfer if you are moving on.
