Business Class from Beijing (PEK): deals, routes and trip guide
Business class from Beijing (PEK)
Beijing Capital is Air China's main base: Terminal 3, still one of the largest passenger buildings anywhere, holds the Star Alliance long-haul gates, while Terminal 2 takes Hainan Airlines and the foreign SkyTeam carriers.
Everywhere you can fly from Beijing
Premium carriers from Beijing
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Where business class from Beijing is cheapest
Ranked by how far the best fare we've found sits below each route's usual business-class price. Carriers are the ones actually operating each route. Tap any route to search live fares.
| Destination | Typical | Best seen | Saving | Cheapest | Flight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney PEK–SYD · ~11.2h | $11,474 | $2,344seen 16d ago | −70% | Oct |  Hainan |
| Osaka PEK–KIX · ~2.6h | $2,924 | $685seen 27d ago | −70% | Sep | Hainan |
| Brisbane PEK–BNE · ~10.5h | $12,286 | $3,124seen 22d ago | −70% | Oct |  Philippine Airlines |
| Tokyo PEK–HND · ~3h | $2,988 | $761seen 17d ago | −70% | Oct |  ANA |
| Taipei PEK–TPE · ~2.6h | $2,641 | $815seen 17d ago | −69% | Oct | Hainan |
| Sapporo PEK–CTS · ~3h | $2,369 | $809seen 12d ago | −66% | Oct | ANA |
| Manila PEK–MNL · ~3.9h | $2,265 | $788seen 27d ago | −65% | Sep |  Shenzhen |
| Osaka PEK–ITM · ~2.6h | $3,523 | $1,228seen 12d ago | −65% | Oct | ANA |
| Bangkok PEK–BKK · ~4.4h | $2,492 | $945seen 20d ago | −62% | Sep | Hainan |
| Kuala Lumpur PEK–KUL · ~5.8h | $2,839 | $1,104seen 28d ago | −61% | Sep |  Cathay Pacific |
| Fukuoka PEK–FUK · ~2.2h | $3,148 | $1,266seen 25d ago | −60% | Sep |  Korean Air |
| Melbourne PEK–MEL · ~11.3h · the deal | $5,226 | $2,329seen 29d ago | −55% | Sep | Hainan |
Showing 12 of 199 destinations tracked from Beijing. Rows marked live price show the current lowest business fare we found on that route (searched weekly), not a tracked deal.
About Beijing
Capital is Air China's main base and northern China's Star Alliance gateway. Europe goes nonstop on Air China to London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Paris and Munich, with Air France to Paris, Lufthansa to Munich, KLM to Amsterdam and Turkish Airlines to Istanbul alongside. Across the Pacific, Air China and United both fly San Francisco and Los Angeles; Air China adds New York and Washington, and Air Canada serves Vancouver.
Terminal 3 opened ahead of the 2008 Olympics to a Foster + Partners design and remains one of the largest passenger buildings anywhere. Concourse C takes the domestic feed, concourse E the international departures, with concourse D and an automated people mover between them. Air China's lounges sit airside in Terminal 3. Terminal 2 serves Hainan Airlines and the foreign SkyTeam carriers.
Mainland carriers are held to one Beijing airport each, so Air China and Hainan stayed at Capital while China Eastern and China Southern moved to Daxing; foreign airlines may use either. That leaves Capital as the Star Alliance connecting point, with the domestic network feeding concourse C. China's 240-hour visa-free transit scheme lists Capital as an entry port, so a connection here can become a stay.
Beijing is the imperial capital and the country's political centre. The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square sit on the old north-south axis, with Jingshan behind and the Temple of Heaven to the south. The Great Wall at Mutianyu is around 70 km northeast. Beyond the monuments there are the hutongs around Houhai, the 798 art district and Universal Beijing Resort out in Tongzhou.
Best time to visit
September and October: clear, dry and mild, the most settled stretch of the year. April and May are pleasant but windy and dusty. July and August are hot, humid and the wettest months; December to February are cold and dry with sub-zero nights.
Photo by HsinKai Tai on Unsplash
| Beijing at a glance | |
|---|---|
| Airport | PEK, Beijing Capital International Airport, in Shunyi district northeast of the city, three runways, Air China's main base. It is a different airport from Beijing Daxing (PKX), which lies 46 km south of the centre. |
| Terminals | Terminals 2 and 3 in scheduled use. Terminal 3 carries Air China, the Star Alliance carriers and most long-haul, split into concourses C, D and E. Terminal 2 takes Hainan Airlines and the foreign SkyTeam carriers. The original Terminal 1 reopened on 1 August 2023 as the Westwing satellite, run as part of Terminal 2. |
| Distance to centre | About 32 km northeast of central Beijing, roughly 21-25 minutes on the airport train, 30-60 minutes by road and longer at peak times. |
| Airport rail link | Capital Airport Express from Terminal 3 and Terminal 2 to Dongzhimen in about 21-25 minutes, flat fare ¥25 one-way. It also calls at Sanyuanqiao and ends at Beixinqiao, meeting subway lines 2, 5, 10, 12 and 13. |
| Taxi / rideshare | A metered taxi to the centre is around ¥110-130 plus about ¥10 in expressway tolls, 30-60 minutes and up to about 90 in heavy traffic. Didi rideshare runs roughly ¥120-180 and surges at peak. |
| Timezone | China Standard Time, UTC+8, used across the whole country. China does not observe daylight saving, so the offset holds all year. |
| Currency | Chinese yuan renminbi (CNY). |
| Language | Mandarin Chinese, written in simplified characters, with the Beijing dialect as the local speech. English signage runs through both terminals and the airport train. |
| Best months | September and October: clear, dry and mild, the most settled stretch of the year. April and May are pleasant but windy and dusty. July and August are hot, humid and the wettest months; December to February are cold and dry with sub-zero nights. |
| Entry requirements | China runs several schemes side by side. A unilateral visa-free policy admits ordinary passports from around fifty listed countries for stays of up to 30 days, for business, tourism, family visits, exchanges or transit, and runs through 31 December 2026; mutual visa-exemption agreements cover about thirty further countries. A 240-hour (10-day) visa-free transit scheme covers 55 nationalities at 65 ports, Capital among them, when travelling onward to a third country, and 24-hour direct transit is open to everyone. Anyone outside those schemes applies for a visa in advance. Every foreign arrival also files an arrival card, free, at s.nia.gov.cn. Official information: https://en.nia.gov.cn/ |
| Long-haul network | Nonstop from Capital: Europe in 10-13 hours (Air China to London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Paris and Munich; Air France to Paris, Lufthansa to Munich, KLM to Amsterdam, Turkish Airlines to Istanbul); North America in 11-16 hours (Air China to New York, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver, United to San Francisco and Los Angeles, Air Canada to Vancouver); Oceania in about 11 hours (Air China to Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland); the Gulf in about 9 hours (Emirates to Dubai); East Africa in about 11 and a half hours (Ethiopian Airlines to Addis Ababa). |
| Power | Type A, Type C and Type I plugs, 220 volts, 50 Hz. Many sockets take more than one of the three. |
Beijing Capital International Airport and its operator for terminals and facilities; Beijing Subway and the Capital Airport Express for rail fares and journey times; China's National Immigration Administration and Ministry of Foreign Affairs for entry, transit and arrival-card rules; and the operating carriers' published schedules for the route list.
Plan your trip to Beijing
The bits people ask us about once the flight's booked, vetted and in one place.
Where to stay
Staying with Accor more than once or twice a year? ALL Accor+ Explorer includes two complimentary nights a year plus dining discounts across Asia-Pacific, for an annual fee. Worth the maths before you buy, not after. We may earn a commission.
Things to do
Top-rated Beijing experiences, or browse them all on Klook.
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Forbidden City guided tourBook on Klook →Photo by N509FZ on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).jpg?width=700)
Universal Beijing Resort ticketBook on Klook →Photo by N509FZ on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Sort out the rest
Also useful: Capital private transfer · Airport transfer · Car hire · Visas and entry rules · VPN for public Wi-Fi. Partner links; we may earn a commission.
Worth knowing before you fly
Foreign nationals entering mainland China file an arrival card. It is free on the National Immigration Administration portal at s.nia.gov.cn or the 12367 app, and can be submitted up to 72 hours before landing.
Common questions
How do you get from Beijing Capital Airport into the city?
The Capital Airport Express runs from Terminals 3 and 2 to Dongzhimen in about 21-25 minutes for a flat ¥25, calling at Sanyuanqiao and ending at Beixinqiao, where it meets subway lines 2, 5, 10, 12 and 13. A metered taxi is around ¥110-130 plus about ¥10 in tolls, and 30-60 minutes.
What is the difference between Beijing Capital and Beijing Daxing?
They are two separate airports. Capital (PEK) is the older one, 32 km northeast of the centre and Air China's main base, with the Star Alliance long-haul gates in Terminal 3. Daxing (PKX) opened on 25 September 2019, sits 46 km south, and is the Beijing home of China Eastern and China Southern. Mainland carriers use one or the other; foreign airlines may use either.
Does China require a visa for a short visit?
It depends on the passport. China's unilateral visa-free policy admits ordinary passports from around fifty listed countries for stays of up to 30 days and runs through 31 December 2026; mutual exemption agreements cover about thirty more. A separate 240-hour visa-free transit scheme covers 55 nationalities travelling onward to a third country. Anyone outside those schemes applies for a visa in advance.
Which terminal do international flights use at Beijing Capital?
Most long-haul services use Terminal 3, where concourse E handles international departures, concourse C the domestic feed and concourse D sits between the two. Terminal 2 takes Hainan Airlines and the foreign SkyTeam carriers, including their international flights. Terminal 1 reopened on 1 August 2023 as the Westwing satellite, run as part of Terminal 2.
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Photography via Unsplash: HsinKai Tai, Peter Zhou, Hanson Lu, Victor He, Zheng XUE, Andy Wang, vnwayne fan, Bruce Tang, kimi lee, Asher Pardey, Nilanka Kariyawasam.