What you need to know about maps

It is not always reliable to just rely on your Beijing guidebook or map bought from your home country as the city always changes, making your map or guidebook outdated by the time they are printed. Hotels, stores, shops, streets, and even subways, always change their looks, names or addresses. Whole areas and even an entire subway station can disappear! Hence, the chances that you might get lost even if you have a map are high.

Therefore, when you get to Beijing, make sure to buy the latest version of a bilingual tourist map, which is for sale in most subway stations and tourist shops. It’s also wise to buy two to four latest version maps from different shops and compare them. The most maps that tell you which one is the location of your destination probably tell you the right location.