Although I have mentioned this previously, travel in China is usually a treat and definitely part of your adventure.
City transport is well-served in most major cities with an underground metro. Taxis are frequent and very affordable, so buses and the additional language challenges for non-Mandarin speakers—such as where to go and where to get off—can be mostly avoided if you wish. Be prepared, though, as you may have to use digital payment, as China is very advanced in digital banking and payment. Research the latest information and prepare ahead of travel.
Car hire is very affordable, and you can often specify how new a car you would like, with corresponding price adjustments. They have everything from budget to SUV. You should consider what journey and road conditions you expect to encounter when choosing the car. In some very remote areas, you might encounter quite challenging road surfaces. On the whole, roads to cities, even in very remote areas, are very good. So, choose your road, then your car, or your car and then decide what road limits you will accept.
However, you will need to pass a theory test in China or have a Chinese citizen drive for you. You can’t drive on an international licence alone. Also, you have to think about navigation and road signs. Yes, you may encounter Western characters in cities, but once you go into a multilingual area, such as Inner Mongolia (Nei Mongol), the Western characters are dropped and replaced by Mongol inscriptions alongside Mandarin characters. My Mongol reading is not so great!
In western China, the Western characters were replaced by Cyrillic Kazakh writing. The extreme is in the former Portuguese colony of Macao, where I have seen road signs in Portuguese.
Surprisingly, but very commonly, there is affordable driver hire. In this way, you book a driver with a car anywhere; he picks you up and drives you for the day, or more. This solves the issues of car hire, navigation, and fatigue! We use this kind of service very often. It’s a great way to create a very personal itinerary to out-of-the-way places that aren’t so conveniently served by public transport.
Buses and coaches, I have only used somewhat, but they can be very reliable and affordable ways to travel and even reach places not so well served by rail. An example is the bus alternative to the metro that runs between Shanghai Pudong Airport for international flights and the huge transport hub and mostly domestic airport at Shanghai Hongqiao. It is almost inevitable that visitors will go through rail or air links at Hongqiao. By the way, if self-constructing your itinerary and you are arriving internationally at Shanghai Pudong, try to get your connecting flight from Pudong, or if there is no onward domestic flight from Pudong, allow plenty of time for the transfer to Hongqiao.
Domestic travel by air: Airports are generally very modern, even smaller regional ones. Naturally, though, in remote regions, flights will be less frequent. Often, on longer or less busy routes, planes may make scheduled interim stops to drop off and collect passengers at other smaller airports. Travel by air is an extremely attractive option, and sometimes due to mountains, direct land-based options are limited and massively slower. There are many domestic airlines, some with additional international routes. This keeps service, choice, and competition to a good level. I was surprised to see how hot meals are still routinely served to economy short-haul passengers, a practice long since stopped in the West. I think I have flown on most, if not all, domestic airlines in China. All were good, with nice cabin crew and often brand-new planes.
Security routines are strong, and maintenance seems strictly supervised. The government takes passenger safety very seriously. Overall, air travel in China is a very good experience.
Lastly, rail—the famous Gaotie (literally ‘iron rail’), China’s equivalent of the Japanese bullet train. Travel by Gaotie is fast and comfortable. Services are frequent, and seating is pre-booked, so you can be sure of a seat. The countryside rushes past. Rail always seems a little more comfortable than flying, and you get to see more of the country as you travel. Also, in bad weather, the train is safer than driving. A good example is winter travel in the Siberian northeast. If not flying, the train is a great alternative. I always look forward to Gaotie trips, and they remain our second travel option after car, as we always try to use surface travel on our previous journeys around China.