Beijing Daxing International Airport: Airport for the Future

Located 46 kilometers (29 miles) south of Tian'anmen Square and 67 kilometers (42 miles) south of Beijing Capital International Airport, Beijing's second international airport - Beijing Daxing International Airport - was put into use on September 30th, 2019. It is set to become the biggest airport in the world!

Beijing Daxing Airport

• Location: Daxing District (the southern suburbs of Beijing)
• IATA code: PKX
• ICAO code: ZBAD
• Runways: four (with the prospect of becoming seven in the future)
• Total construction area: 1.03 million square meters
• Cost: about US$11 billion

Facts about Beijing Daxing Airport

Quick Facts about Beijing Daxing International Airport

• The area of the terminal building is 700,000 square meters. It is planned to be built into a superlarge international aviation transportation hub.
• Beijing's new airport is designed to handle 300 takeoffs and landings per hour. It will be capable of handling 45 million passengers annually by 2021, 72 million by 2025, and 100 million by 2040. It is expected to become the busiest airport in the world.
• Beijing's new airport is in the middle of Beijing, Tianjin, and Xiong'an New Area - a presidentially-backed investment zone in Hebei Province dubbed "President Xi's Dream City".
• Daxing Airport is 46 km (29 miles) from Tian'anmen Square (downtown Beijing).
• From construction to operation, work on Beijing Daxing International Airport took 5 years.
• There are 82 departure gates but it takes passengers no more than 8 minutes to get to any of them after passing through the security check.
• The name of the airport "Daxing" means 'big rise'; (大兴 dà xīng), not 'big star' (大星 pronounced the same), which is what it looks like from above.

Why It Was Built

A major reason is to relieve the aviation pressure on Beijing Capital International Airport. Beijing Capital International Airport is always facing two problems: tight airspace resources and saturated flight schedules.

About 300 more flights per day cannot be accommodated at Beijing Capital International Airport, nor can the potential demand of nearly 10 million more passengers per year. After the opening of Beijing Daxing International Airport, these two airports, with opposing north-south patterns, can achieve airspace optimization.

Moreover, "one city with two or more airports" is the inevitable trend for the world's large aviation markets. China has the largest population in the world. According to a forecast last year by the International Air Transport Association, by the mid-2020s, China will be the world's largest aviation market, overtaking the United States. This is also the biggest driving force for the development of a new airport in Beijing.

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Design and Layout of Beijing Daxing International Airport

Beijing Daxing International Airport consists of a central hub with six curved spokes, with the appearance of a giant six-armed alien starfish squatting over the landscape.

Its terminal building was designed by the late Iraqi-born British architect Zaha Hadid and French planners ADP Ingénierie, and executed by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design (BIAD).

Layout (Seven Floors)

Daxing Airport

• 5F: dining area
• 4F (domestic and international departures): domestic check-in, international check-in, joint inspection for international flights (customs inspection, quarantine, immigration, and security check)
• 3F (domestic and international departures): domestic check-in (VIP), self-check-in service, security check for domestic flights, duty-free shops, international waiting hall
• 2F (domestic departures, domestic arrivals): domestic waiting hall, baggage claim
• 1F (international arrivals): joint inspection (customs inspection, quarantine, and immigration), baggage claim
• -1F (transportation): parking lot, rail transportation, domestic flight express check-in/security channel
• -2F (transportation): rail transportation, underground rail transit

Facilities and Services

Self-check-in machines: There are more than 400 check-in points and the total process shouldn't take more than 10 minutes of your time.

Facial recognition: Passengers will be "scanned" and all of the relevant details will automatically be on hand (such as the flight number, gate, and time of the flight). There will be no more need for passports, papers, and time-consuming checks.

Advanced customs clearance system: There are more than 30 pieces of first-class intelligent quarantine inspection equipment, which integrate infrared temperature measurement, radioactive material location detection, facial recognition, personal information collection, and other functions. It only takes a few seconds to collect a passenger's shell temperature, determine the carrying situation of radioactive materials, and collect other information without contact, which greatly saves the customs clearance time.

Check-in counters in Beijing Daxing Airport

Smart luggage systems: Your luggage will be delivered to you within 13 minutes. Additionally, passengers can track their luggage on a smartphone application to prevent luggage loss.

5G base station: It offers the airport passengers the best high-speed Internet services possible.

Shopping: More than 300 shops will be open in the airport, making it a top shopping mall, including Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Bottega Veneta, the Palace Museum souvenir shop, a BingoBox unmanned supermarket, and nail salons.

Comprehensive service building: Located in the north side of the terminal building, connecting to the terminal by a covered bridge, it integrates the office area, business area, and hotel.

Other services:

• Childcare
• Nursery
• Pet hotel
• Company showroom
• Extensive luggage storage points
• Special facilities for disabled people

Airlines Moving to Beijing Daxing International Airport

The following airlines have moved to or will soon move to Beijing Daxing International Airport:

• Air China
• Beijing Capital Airlines
• British Airways
• China Eastern Airlines
• China Southern Airlines
• China United Airlines
• Finnair
• Hebei Airlines
• Himalaya Airlines
• Juneyao Airlines
• LOT Polish Airlines
• Malaysia Airlines
• Royal Air Maroc
• Royal Brunei Airlines

Flights to and from USA currently use Beijing Capital Internatinal Airport.

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Transportation to Beijing City, the Great Wall and Tianjin Cruise Port

Beijing Daxing International Airport has a ground transportation center providing the airport with public transportation links to high-speed rail, metro lines, and expressways.

Getting to Beijing City

Tian'anmen Square - the center of Beijing city

• By high-speed train: The Beijing–Xiong'an intercity railway will link Beijing Daxing International Airport to Beijing West Railway Station. It will take 20 minutes to travel between the two.
• By metro: Daxing Airport Express serves the transfer needs of passengers. You can take the airport express line to Caoqiao Station and transfer to Line 10 to reach the downtown area.
• By taxi: It will take 1 hour to reach the city center if the traffic conditions are normal.

Daxing Airport to Tian'anmen Square

Click to enlarge Beijing Subway Line Map!

• By high-speed train: Take a high-speed train to Beijing West Railway Station, then take Line 9 to Military Museum and transfer Line 1 to Tian'anmen Square.
• By metro: Take the Airport Express Line to Caoqiao Station, transfer to Line 10 to Jiaomenxi. At Jiaomenxi Station, take Line 4 to Xidan and finally transfer to Line 1 to Tian'anmen Square.
• By taxi: It will take 1 hour to reach Tian'anmen Square.

Check out more details on How to Get to Beijing City from Beijing Daxing International Airport.

Getting to the Great Wall - You Need to Think Twice

Beijing Daxing International Airport is located south of the city while the Great Wall is to the north. It will take at least 3 hours to get there by car.

The Great Wall

The journey will be a little tiring and you therefore may not have such a good experience at the Great Wall after such a long trip. We recommend touring the Great Wall the day after your arrival.

Booking a private tour is the best choice, which will be flexible. We can tailor-make your Great Wall tour according to your arrival time and other requirements, and can arrange private transportation for you.

Getting to Tianjin Cruise Port

Tianjin Cruise Port is 174 kilometers away from Beijing Daxing Airport.

Passengers can first take an inter-city bullet train from Beijing South Railway Station to Tanggu Railway Station in Tianjin, then take a bus or taxi to the port.

The best and most convenient way is to book pick up and transfer service, which dispenses with any hassle. You can tell us your needs in our Create My Trip service and book our pick up and transfer service between Beijing and the Port. We can also combine tours with transfer services.

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Layover at Daxing Airport

Daxing airport provides high-quality service and rich activities for layovers.

Many airlines have VIP lounges in Daxing airport such as China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines. VIP lounges are equipped with buffets, bars, shower rooms and other facilities.

5 outdoors traditional Chinese gardens at the end of each departure lounge offer passengers an elegant and relaxing experience.

Coffee bars, various food-options and luxury shops can make you enjoy the waiting at the airport.

Passengers from the 53 chosen countries, can travel to Beijing without visa required for 144 hours. You can tell us your requirements and interests, we can tailor-make a suitable layover tour for you.

Nearby Attractions

There are a few attractions near the airport. Beijing Wildlife Park is the nearest attraction, taking about 30 minutes to reach by car. Here, we have listed some famous attractions in Beijing and the time needed to reach them from the airport by car.

Create a Hassle-Free Tour with Us

Our private transportation service

Just tell us your needs and interests - we are happy to tailor-make a tour for you. Transportation could be a problem if you are a first-time visitor to Beijing or you cannot read and speak Chinese. We are here to help you solve any problems and would like to create a wonderful tour for you.

Your personal English-speaking guide will wait for you at the airport. The driver can help you handle any heavy luggage and you will be driven in a private car, which will be efficient and hassle-free.

Take a look at our most recommended Beijing tours:

• 1 Day Beijing Forbidden City and Great Wall Highlights Tour: Specially designed to be flexible, you will explore the Great Wall, Tian'anmen Square, and the Forbidden City.
• Alternatively, check out more Beijing tours for inspiration.