Guangzhou Metro

地铁About this metro system

Guangzhou Metro is one of China's four largest metro systems, serving the capital of Guangdong province — a city of over 18 million permanent residents that is the commercial and manufacturing heart of the Pearl River Delta. The first line opened in 1997 and the network has expanded continuously, reaching 16 lines by 2026.

The system is notable for several distinctive features: the automated APM (Automated People Mover) line within the Zhujiang New Town CBD connects key business and cultural buildings; Line 3's two branches provide high-frequency service on the city's busiest corridor; and some Lines extend late into the night at weekends, accommodating Guangzhou's vibrant nocturnal economy.

For visitors, the metro provides access to the Canton Tower (Lines 3 and APM), Shamian Island (the former foreign concession, Line 1), the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees and Chen Clan Academy (Line 1), the Night Market eating streets of the old city, Guangzhou South Railway Station (Line 2 and 7), and the enormous Canton Fair exhibition complex (Line 8). Guangzhou's cuisine — Cantonese cooking in its home region — is best experienced in the old city dim sum restaurants and roast-meat shops accessible by metro from the central lines.