How to Get to & around Mount Tai (Taishan) 2024

As a World Cultural and Natural Heritage site and the greatest of five sacred China Mountains, Mount Tai has been visited by over ten Chinese emperors and considered as a holy site connecting Heavens by the ancient Chinese people. How to get to Mount Tai fast and convenient? Is it easy to get around in Tai'an city to Mount Tai to hike or take a cable car on Mount Tai? Below is useful transportation info to help you better plan a Mount Tai tour.

Where is Mount Tai Located?

Mount Tai is located in Tai'an, western Shandong Province, about 72 km from Jinan, the capital city of Shandong, 85 km from Qufu, the hometown of Confucius, 455 km from Beijing and 800 km from Shanghai.

Usually, Mount Tai is also called Taishan, Mount Taishan, Mt. Tai or Taishan Mountain. Currently, there is no flight to Mount Tai, and tourists can get to Mount Tai via three main transportations: by high-speed bullet train, normal train and bus. If you take a bus/train, you can go directly to Tai'an city, and there are four entrances of Mount Tai scenic area, namely Hongmen Gate, Tianwaicun, Taihuayu in the west, and Tianzhufeng in the east. Tourists can easily grab a taxi or take a bus to any one of the starting point according to their hiking plan. If you want to take a flight, the nearest airport to Mount Tai is Jinan Yaoqiang Airport (IATA: TNA). After landing at Jinan, you can take a bus from Jinan to Mount Tai. Check the following transportation ways and choose the most suitable way to go.

Mount Tai Location Map

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Get to Mount Tai by Train

Well-connected with railway networks, most tourists will choose to get to Mount Tai by train, and there are two railway stations in Tai'an, the city Mt. Tai located, namely Tai'an Railway Station (high speed train station) and Taishan Railway Station (normal train station).

High Speed Bullet Train to Mount Tai

Tai'an Railway Station 泰安站 - High Speed Train Station

Location: Taohuayuan Road, Daiyue district, Tai'an City, Shandong Province 山东省泰安市岱岳区桃花源路

Distance: about 13 km (40 minutes’ driving) from Hongmen Gate, 11 km (30 minutes’ driving) from Tianwaicun, 14 km (25 minutes’ driving) from Taohuayu; about 23 km (50 minutes’ driving) from Tianzhufeng.

Transportation: High Speed Bullet Train + Taxi/Bus/Private Transfer

About 6.5 km away from downtown, Tai’an Railway Station is a new station mainly for high-speed trains. It’s also the one of stations in Beijing-Shanghai Bullet trains, which takes 4.5 hours from Beijing and 6.5 hours from Shanghai. Besides, high-speed trains between Tai’an and Jinan, Qingdao are quite fast, with 50 minutes and 3.5 hours respectively.

Taian Railway Station

Major Mount Tai (Tai'an) High Speed Train Schedules:

• Recommended Tour: 2 Days Taishan & Qufu Tour from Beijing by Bullet Train

Get from Tai'an Railway Station to Mount Tai: After getting off from high-speed trains to Tai'an, most people choose to get to the Hongmen Gate (红门) of Mount Tai from Tai'an Railway Station, and the distance is about 13km, and taxies are easily to grab with the duration about 40min and the bus no. 17 and tourist no. 1 are running toward the gate, taking about 1 hour. Besides Hongmen Gate, visitors heading for the gate at Tianwaicun (天外村) can take a taxi (11km, about 30min), or bus (tourist no.1, 2, and city bus 68) reaching there in about 55min.

Normal Train to Mount Tai

Taishan Railway Station 泰山站 - Normal Train Station

Location: Longtan Road, Taishan District, Tai'an City, Shandong Province 山东省泰安市泰山区龙潭路

Distance: about 4 km (15 minutes’ driving) from Hongmen Gate, 2 km (10 minutes’ driving) from Tianwaicun, 15 km (30 minutes’ driving) from Taohuayu; about 15 km (30 minutes’ driving) from Tianzhufeng.

Transportation: Normal Train + Taxi/Bus/Private Transfer

Located in downtown, Taishan Railway Station now is a stopover station for ordinary trains like K and T trains. Each day, there are 94 trains passing by within 2-15 minutes to get on/off, which are running through Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xi’an, Chongqing and etc. It takes 11 hours for Shanghai and 8 hours for Beijing.

Taishan Railway Station

Mount Tai Normal Train Schedules:

• Recommended Tour: 5 Days Qingdao, Qufu & Mount Tai Essence Tour

Get from Taishan Railway Station to Mount Tai: About 4km from Taishan Railway Station, the most popular entrance of Mt. Tai at Hongmen Gate (红门) can be easily reached by taxi (about 20min) and bus (bus No. 2 and 3, 40min), while the nearest entrance to Taishan Railway Station is at Tianwaicun (天外村) of Mt. Tai with the distance of only 2.5km. Besides taking a taxi, you can get on bus 39 north, no. 68, and no. 3 to Tianwaicun Square stop in about 30min. Also, Tianwaicun is the Mt. Tai tourist bus center where you can save the energy to hike and take a bus to Zhongmen (中天门) of Mount Tai.

Get to Mount Tai by Bus

Tai'an City is well-connected with highways networks. Both Beijing Shanghai Expressway and Taian Zibo Expressway pass through the region of Tai'an, which allowes the connections between Taian and cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Fuzhou outside Shandong province. Within the province, Jinan, Qingdao, Yantai, Weihai, Rizhao and Zibo can be connected. There are four bus stations in Tai'an City, namely, Tai'an Bus Station (泰安汽车站), Taishan Bus Station (泰山汽车站), Tai'an Transportation Hotel Bus Station (泰安交通宾馆汽车站) and Taian New Bus Station (泰安新汽车站). Taian Bus Station, which is the oldest bus station among them, is the most frequently used one.

Tai'an Bus Station 泰安汽车站

Location: 125 Longtan Road, Taishan District, Tai'an City, Shandong Province 山东省泰安市泰山区龙潭路125号

Taian Bus

Tai'an bus station is divided into south staion and north station. The south station is located at No.1 Longtan Road, which is station mainly for arrival, while the north station in the west end of Dongyue street. Generally, there are many buses departing from Tai'an, to most of the important counties and cities in Shandong Province, including Jinan, Qinghai, Zibo, Yantai, Rizhao, Penglai, Weihai, etc. There are also provincial buses to Beijing, Tianjin, Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou, Baoding, Xuzhou, Kaifeng, etc.

Main Mount Tai Bus Schedules:

Get from Jinan to Mount Tai

About 350 km (5 hours’ drive) from Qingdao, Mount Tai, or Taishan Mountain, is a world cultural and natural heritage site, and popular tourist destination in Shandong province, and some travelers would go to Mount Tai from city Qingdao. There are 6 high speed trains (3.5 hours) a day from Qingdao to Taian Railway Station (18 km, 50 minutes’ drive to Mount Tai) and about 10 normal trains (5.5 hours) to Taishan Railway Station (5 km, 20 minutes’ drive to Mount Tai). So you need to make sure which train station you are arriving at.

• Useful Links: Qingdao to Taishan Trains | Taishan to Qingdao Trains

• Recommended Tour: 4 Days Cultural Discovery in Jinan, Taishan & Qufu

Jinan to Taishan Transfer Map (click to enlarge)

Get from Qingdao to Mount Tai

About 72 km (1.5 hours’ drive) from the capital and the "city of springs" of Shandong - Jinan, Mount Tai is easy to reach by both train and car, most travelers would go to both Mount Tai and Jinan. There are over 40 high speed trains (20min) a day from Jinan to Taian Railway Station and over 20 normal trains (50min) to Taishan Railway Station (4 km, 20 minutes’ drive to Mount Tai). Besides, nearly 20 buses leave for Mount Tai from different bus stations of Jinan, even including the bus center from Jinan Airport.>>Learn More about Jinan to Mount Tai

• Useful Links: Jinan to Taishan Trains | Taishan to Jinan Trains

• Recommended Tour: 5 Days Qingdao, Qufu & Mount Tai Essence Tour

Qingdao to Taishan Transfer Map (click to enlarge)

Get from Qufu to Mount Tai

About 85 km (2 hours’ drive) from Mount Tai, Qufu is known for temple of Confucius, as the hometown of him. It is popular tourist destination. For the short distance between Mount Tai and Qufu, travelers would go both of them. There are nearly 20 high speed trains (20min) a day from Qufu to Taian Railway Station (18 km, 50 minutes’ drive to Mount Tai) and about 2 normal trains (2 hours) to Taishan Railway Station (5 km, 20 minutes’ drive to Mount Tai).

• Recommended Tour: 3 Days Confucius Culture Exploration with Sidetrip to Mount Tai

Qufu to Taishan Transfer Map (click to enlarge)

How to Get Around Mount Tai

Since most of tourists come to Tai’an for Mount Taishan, the main traffic inquiry is all about how to get to Mount Tai. There are 4 entrances of Mount Tai, located from west to east: Taihuayu (Peach Blossom Valley), Tianwaicun (Tianwai Village), Hongmen Gate (Red Gate) and Tianzhufeng Peak (Heavenly Candle Peak). Among the four entrances, Hongmen Gate and Taiwaicun are the most popular ones to start Mount Tai hiking. No matter which entrance you decided to go, besides taking a taxi, there are always buses to get there:

♦ To Hongmen Gate: Bus No.2, 3, 45, 49, 67, 游1, 游3, 游5 (about 13km from Taian Railway Station, 40min by car; about 4km from Taishan Railway Station, 15min by car)

♦ To Tianwaicun: Bus 3, 19, 37, 39, 68, 游7 (about 11km from Taian Railway Station, 30min by car; about 2km from Taishan Railway Station, 10min by car)

♦ To Taohuayu: Bus 16, 49, 游3 (about 14km from Taian Railway Station, 25min by car; about 15km from Taishan Railway Station, 30min by car)

♦ To Tianzhufeng : Bus 19 (about 23km from Taian Railway Station, 50min by car; about 15km from Taishan Railway Station, 30min by car)

• Useful Link: Mount Tai Cable Cars

• Recommended Tour: 2 Days Most Classic Mount Tai Hiking Tour

Map of Mount Tai Cableways

Cable Car of Mount Tai

Transportation of Mount Tai Scenic Area

Four Hiking Routes to Visit Mount Tai

1. the “Imperial Road” & the most classic Mount Tai Hiking: Hongmen – Zhongtianmen - Nantianmen - Heaven Street - Bixia Temple - Jade Emperor Peak

Distance: 9.5km (about 4 ~ 6h on foot)

2. The essential Hike: Tianwaicun - Sightseeing Bus - Zhongtianmen - Cable Car - Nantianmen - Heaven Street - Bixia Temple - Jade Emperor Peak

Distance: 4.5km (about 2 ~ 3.5h on foot)

3. The adventurous Mount Tai hiking: Taohuayuan - Sightseeing Bus - Taohuayu - Heaven Street - Jade Emperor Peak

Distance: 13km (about 4 ~ 5h on foot)

4. The tranquil hiking path of Mount Tai: Tianzhufeng - Houshiwu - Cable Car (or not) - BeiTianmen - Jade Emperor Peak

Distance: 5.4km (about 3 ~ 4h on foot)

How to Plan Your Mount Tai Tour

Located in Tai'an City, Shandong, Mount Tai (aka Taishan Mountain), is regarded as the greatest of the Five Sacred Mountains in China, and listed as a UNESCO World Natural & Cultural Heritage Site in 1987. The highest Jade Emperor Peak is recorded about 1545 meters above sea level. Hiking uphill you can trek along the worshiping spots path the ancient Chinese emperors had come for; Reaching the top, you can have a panoramic view of the whole Taian city and enjoying the stunning sunrise and sunset, and it is recommended to spend 2 full days exploring the best highlights of Mount Tai including the Daimiao Temple (Museum of Taian City) at the foot of Mount Tai. You can also visit Mount Tai in a single day by taking sightseeing bus to Zhongtianmen, then hiking to the summit and descending by cable car.

✔ 2 Days Most Classic Mount Tai Hiking Tour
✔ 2 Days Enjoyable Mount Tai Hiking Tour

Taking a high-speed train and spending 2 more days, you can extend your trip to the nearby “City of Spring”, Jinan which nourishes a number of famous springs and lakes of China, such as Baotu Spring Park, Daming Lake, Black Tiger Spring, etc. Also, about 85 km to Mount Tai is Qufu, the hometown of the greatest sage of China, Confucius, and you may understand the deep-rooted Chinese culture as you stepping into the Confucius Temple, Kong Forest, and Kong Mansion.

✔ 2 Days Taishan & Qufu Tour from Beijing by Bullet Train
✔ 3 Days Confucius Culture Exploration with Sidetrip to Mount Tai
✔ 4 Days Cultural Discovery in Jinan, Taishan & Qufu

Besides these cities near Mount Tai, Shandong greets you with not only the splendid culture but also the beautiful coastlines. The refreshing ocean air from Qingdao blows the fragrance from the old Beer factories; the colorful kites fly over the city Weifang and swans in pairs nestle in the havens of Weihai by the shimmering sea...all of these highlights of Shandong can be covered in about 8 days. Beyond Shandong, travelers often extend trip further to Beijing, Xian, Datong & Pingyao (in Shanxi), Luoyang & Shaolin Temple & Kaifeng (in Henan) and more stunning heritages and nature sights in China.

✔ 6 Days Jinan, Qufu, Mount Tai & Qingdao Tour
✔ 9 Days Beijing Shanghai Speed Train Tour with Confucianism Exploration
✔ 9 Days Shandong Panorama Tour
✔ 11 Days China World Heritage Tour in North China

Travel with China Discovery

China Discovery is an experienced, professional, and reliable travel companion devoted to offering high-quality and the best tour services for all travelers to China. In order to have a hassle-free journey and focus on the trip itself, it’s highly recommended traveling with China Discovery. So, you can enjoy convenient airport pick-up and drop-off service and transportation to all scenic spots in a safe, clean, comfortable, air-conditioned, and non-smoking vehicle. Also, we will arrange a knowledgeable local tour guide, excellent accommodation, and dining arrangements to ensure you rest well and get a better understanding of springs culture in Jinan, Confucianism in Qufu, and Mount Tai culture in Shandong. You may select a favorite from our most popular Mount Tai tours or contact us to design a unique itinerary according to your personal time and preference.

Beautiful Sunset seen from Mount Tai China Discovery Customized Mount Tai Tour China Discovery Customized Shandong Tour to Qingdao (Xiaoyushan Park & Bathing Beach)