🛫 T2 — The Main Terminal

Operations: all scheduled domestic + international flights. China Southern, Hainan Airlines, Air China, plus the broader Chinese domestic carrier set.

Walk time: 5-10 minutes check-in to gate.

⭐ T1 — Seasonal & Charter

Operations: seasonal and charter flights. Connected to T2 via free shuttle bus.

Priority Pass: 2 lounges in T1 — No.2 First & Business Class VIP Lounge (08:30-22:00) and No.3 First & Business Class VIP Lounge (07:30-22:00).

240-Hour TWOV — Hunan Since 17 Dec 2024

55 eligible nationalities: US, UK, Canada, EU member states, Australia, NZ, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Indonesia (added June 2025), and others. Stay max 10 days from 00:00 the day after entry. Third-country onward ticket required. Apply at the airport desk on arrival.

L-Visa for Non-TWOV Travellers

For non-eligible nationalities, longer stays, or round-trip itineraries: apply for a Chinese L-visa at the nearest embassy or Chinese Visa Application Service Center (CVASC). USD 30-80; processing 4-10 working days.

CNY — Mobile Payment Dominant

Currency is the Chinese yuan (CNY / RMB / 人民币). $1 ≈ CNY 7.2 (May 2026). WeChat Pay and Alipay dominate. Cash works; international cards work at upmarket hotels and chain shops. ATMs at the airport accept foreign Visa/Mastercard.

⭐ Maglev Express — Just Over 10 Minutes

• Direct from CSX (T2 underground level) to Changsha South Railway Station.
• Fare: CNY 20 (~$2.80) for the airport-to-station journey.
• Speed: 120 km/h top speed; journey time just over 10 minutes for the 18.5 km route — possibly the fastest airport-to-city rail in China outside Shanghai.
• Frequency: trains run regularly through the day from approximately 07:00 to 22:30. Verify current schedule on arrival.
• From Changsha South, transfer to Metro Line 2 for downtown (Wuyi Square), or take high-speed rail elsewhere in China.

🚇 Metro Line 2 — From Changsha South to City Centre

• After the Maglev to Changsha South, take Metro Line 2 for the final connection to central Changsha.
• Wuyi Square Station on Line 2 is the central commercial hub; ~25 minutes from Changsha South.
• Fare: CNY 4-5 — total airport-to-Wuyi Square (Maglev + Metro) ~CNY 25 and ~45 minutes.

📱 Didi (滴滴) — Chinese Ride-Hail

• Didi pickup zones at T2 outside arrivals.
• Fare to central Changsha (Wuyi Square): CNY 100-140 (~$14-19), journey ~40 minutes.
• Payment via WeChat Pay or Alipay; install before arrival.

🚌 Airport Express Buses

• Multiple express bus routes to central Changsha. Fare: CNY 16-25.
• Routes serve Wuyi Square, the Changsha Railway Station, and selected downtown stops.
• Useful for travellers continuing to high-speed rail at Changsha South or Changsha Railway Station.

🚕 Metered Taxi

• Yellow metered taxis at the rank. Fare to central Changsha: CNY 110-150.
• Mandarin only; have your hotel address written in Chinese characters.
• Pre-install Amap (高德) or Baidu Maps — Google Maps doesn’t work in China.

🛋️ T2 — Five Priority Pass Lounges

China Southern Lounges (×2): Gold/Silver/Elite Plus Lounge + First/Business Class Lounge — for the airline’s premium-cabin and Star Alliance Gold passengers + Priority Pass.

No.15 First Class Lounge 07:00-22:00.

No.18 First & Business Class VIP Lounge.

No.7 First Class VIP Lounge 07:30-22:00.

🛋️ T1 — Two Priority Pass Lounges

No.2 First & Business Class VIP Lounge 08:30-22:00.

No.3 First & Business Class VIP Lounge 07:30-22:00.

Mao’s braised pork (Máo shì hóngshāo ròu) — slow-braised pork belly in soy, sugar and chilli — is Changsha’s most-exported dish, named for Mao Zedong (born in Shaoshan, ~120 km from Changsha) who is said to have loved it. The Changsha version uses dried chillies and Shaoxing wine for the braise. CNY 60-120 (~$8-17) at a Hunan restaurant.

Chopped-chili fish head (Duò jiāo yú tóu) — fresh fish head steamed under a thick blanket of bright-red chopped chilli, garlic and fermented black-bean paste — is the iconic Hunan dish, the one most Hunanese will tell you defines the cuisine. The aggressively-spicy chilli paste is the local invention. CNY 80-180 (~$11-25).

Spicy crayfish (麻辣小龙虾) — bright-orange crawfish in a chilli-garlic-Sichuan-pepper sauce, eaten by the bowl in summer — is the Changsha night-food experience, particularly along Pozi Street and Wuyi Square. Stinky tofu (Changsha-style — 长沙臭豆腐) is deep-fried fermented tofu, black or grey-brown, served with chilli oil and sweet sauce; the Huogongdian (火宫殿) stall is the historic address. The smell is challenging, the texture and flavour are excellent.

Hunan’s smoked-meat tradition is among the country’s strongest — la rou (smoked pork belly), la chang (smoked sausage), preserved duck, smoked fish. Served at restaurants stir-fried with bamboo shoots, leeks, and chilli. CNY 50-120 per dish. Travellers who don’t tolerate heat well can ask for “wei la” (slightly spicy) instead of “ji la” (extremely spicy).

🌶️ Chopped-Chili Paste & Smoked Meats

Hunan chopped-chili paste (duò jiāo) in 250-500 g jars — the foundation of every Hunan kitchen — CNY 20-50. Vacuum-packed smoked sausage (la chang) and smoked pork belly (la rou) — CNY 80-200 per pack. Check destination meat-import rules before flying.

🍵 Hunan Tea — Junshan Yinzhen Yellow Tea

Junshan Yinzhen (君山银针) — one of China’s ten famous teas, a yellow tea from Junshan Island in Hunan’s Dongting Lake — among the rarer Chinese tea categories. CNY 200-1000+ per 250 g for premium grades. The most distinctive Hunan tea souvenir.

🎴 Hunan Embroidery (Xiang Embroidery)

Xiang embroidery (湘绣) — one of China’s four famous embroidery traditions — distinguished by realistic shading techniques producing photographic-quality finished pieces. Small framed works from CNY 200-1500. Better selection at the city Xiang Embroidery shops than at the airport.

📚 Mao-Era Memorabilia & Books

Reproduction Cultural Revolution posters, Mao Little Red Book editions, Shaoshan tourism prints — the Mao biographical connection makes Changsha the centre for this souvenir category. CNY 30-200; Shaoshan visitors get a wider selection than the airport range.

Orange Isle (Juzizhou), a 5 km-long sandbank island in the middle of the Xiang river running through central Changsha, is the country’s largest inland river island and Changsha’s defining attraction. The southern end holds the 32-metre giant granite sculpture of Mao Zedong as a young man (unveiled 2009), the most-photographed monument in Changsha. The island itself is a park; reach it by Metro Line 2 (Juzizhou Station) or by the river cruise from the city bank. Free to walk; CNY 20 for the sightseeing tram. Evening river cruises showcase the illuminated Changsha skyline.

Yuelu Mountain, on the west bank of the Xiang river opposite the city centre, is the city’s principal urban-mountain park — temples, pavilions, autumn-foliage paths, and the famous Aiwan Pavilion (爱晚亭) from which Mao Zedong as a young Hunan First Normal School student watched the autumn maples (a moment that he later described in his “Changsha — to the tune of Qinyuanchun” poem, China’s most-anthologised modern poem). Free entry to the park; small fees for selected pavilions and the cable car.

The Yuelu Academy, founded in 976 CE during the Northern Song dynasty, is one of China’s “Four Great Academies” — a working centre of Confucian scholarship for over 1,000 years (with periodic rebuildings; current architecture from Qing-dynasty restoration). Now integrated into Hunan University. Cypress courtyards, calligraphy halls, scholar quarters; entry CNY 50. The single most distinctive cultural visit in Changsha — the building has a continuous educational role spanning a millennium.

Huogongdian, the “Fire Temple Palace”, originally a 9th-century fire-god temple, has become Changsha’s defining historic snack-street institution. The Pozi Street branch is the iconic Mao-visited Huogongdian — stinky tofu, sticky-rice cakes, fried dumplings, and 50+ traditional Changsha snacks under one roof. CNY 50-100 covers a meaningful sampling. The single best layover food destination in Changsha.

Central Changsha: Wanda Vista Changsha, Sheraton Changsha, Crowne Plaza Changsha River View — all near Wuyi Square at CNY 500-1200 per night. Yuelu / Orange Isle side: Holiday Inn Changsha Tianjiao Mall, Crowne Plaza Riverside — closer to the cultural attractions. Airport-area: business hotels at CNY 250-500 — useful for very early flights. For any layover over 5 hours, the Maglev + Metro to central Changsha is trivial.

China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom at the airport landside; CNY 100-300 SIM with passport registration. 5G is widespread in Changsha; 4G universal. The Great Firewall blocks Google, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, WhatsApp, YouTube, Telegram and many VPN services. Install a working VPN before flying. Install WeChat + Alipay before arrival.

4-hour layover: stay airside; round-trip transit (Maglev + Metro) alone is ~90 min before any city time. Use the Priority Pass lounge.
8-hour layover: Maglev to Changsha South → Metro Line 2 → Orange Isle (Juzizhou) + Mao statue + a Hunan-cuisine lunch at Wuyi Square. Workable; ~5h round trip with city time.
12+ hour layover: add Yuelu Mountain + Yuelu Academy on the west bank, or do the full Changsha sampler — Huogongdian snacks at Pozi Street, Orange Isle, Yuelu. Allow 90 min return-buffer.