This is the boarding pass I received after checking in for a Shanghai Pudong flight at Suzhou City Terminal:

Introduction

Since January 1, 2024, Shanghai Airport Suzhou City Terminal has operated as an important collaboration between Shanghai Airport and Suzhou Industrial Park. After nearly a year of steady upgrades, it had expanded its functions and partnered with 12 airlines. It now covers most domestic routes and some international services, giving Suzhou residents departing from Shanghai Hongqiao and Pudong airports a more convenient way to check in and travel to the airport.

I recently flew Air China from Pudong to Tokyo and had the opportunity to use the terminal. I could check in and drop off my bags for Shanghai Airport right near home. After handing my luggage to the staff, I left the airport transport to Suzhou Automobile Transportation, the terminal’s partner. It saved me the fatigue of driving myself and made the trip easier and faster, so I wanted to share the experience.

Shanghai Airport Suzhou City Terminal

Service experience

When you enter the hall, you will find basic information displays and helpful service-counter staff who patiently answer questions.

Suzhou City Terminal offers:

  • Advance check-in
  • Advance baggage drop-off
  • Direct airport shuttles
  • A 24-hour return-to-Suzhou service
  • Shared rides for the return trip
  • Airport VIP lounge services

Shuttles leave Suzhou City Terminal every 30 minutes from 5:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. According to the service-counter staff, Pudong check-in and baggage drop begin at 5:15 a.m. If you want to use advance baggage drop, the earliest shuttle you can take is the 5:30 a.m. departure.

The domestic airlines in the image below can handle every domestic route departing Shanghai Airport through Suzhou City Terminal. Some international flights can be handled as well. If you are unsure, call ahead and ask.

You need to buy a ticket for transportation from Suzhou City Terminal to Shanghai Airport. It costs ¥90 per person to Hongqiao and ¥120 per person to Pudong.

There was also a ¥199 membership offer that included two free dedicated-shuttle vouchers, each worth ¥120, for an immediate ¥40 saving. Members also received two ¥10 shuttle coupons every month, which is useful if you often take the shuttle. Search WeChat Mini Programs for “Suzhou City Terminal”; the process is straightforward.

⚠️ If several people are travelling together, try to book tickets for the same departure. In my case, the two free vouchers included with membership could only be used one per day. When I booked the second ticket, the departure I needed was already sold out. Fortunately, seats appeared again later that afternoon.

Location

Searching for Suzhou City Terminal on a map produces two choices: one in Suzhou New District and one in Suzhou Industrial Park. I used the Industrial Park location, Shanghai Airport Suzhou City Terminal, at Building 18, Tianmu East Street, Times Square, Suzhou Industrial Park, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province.

Amap pins the location accurately, but the terminal signage at the turn is not obvious. If you approach from Huachi Street, enter through the parking-gate entrance of the Minsheng employee internal passage, marked by the red arrow. During the day, a guard is posted at the entrance. Tell the guard where you are going, as the vehicle gate must be raised manually. After a short walk, you will see Suzhou City Terminal, marked by the blue arrow. The blue dashed line marks the one-way direction; vehicles leaving after dropping passengers off exit through another driveway.

My shuttle was early enough that vehicles could enter directly. The internal employee gate was open in the early morning, so access was smooth. The hall was clean and simple.

There is a small second-floor lounge. I had a look upstairs, and nobody checked tickets. The café outside the lounge is open to the public. I was told it receives a government subsidy, so its prices are low.

Suzhou City Terminal assigns vehicles based on bookings. I travelled early, and there were eight of us, so a business van was assigned. It did not have much luggage space. I was told that additional luggage beyond one piece can be purchased in advance for ¥60 per piece. There were more passengers going to Hongqiao Airport at the same time, so that service used a roughly 20-seat minibus, which also looked comfortable.

At the airport, airport staff waited for the vehicle and took the checked luggage directly. I only needed my boarding pass to clear security.

Summary

My experience with Suzhou City Terminal was smooth overall: check-in was easy, and the trip from Suzhou to Pudong went well. It partly addresses the inconvenience for Suzhou residents of not having an airport right at home.

There were still a few confusing parts. The cooperation between the city terminal and Suzhou Automobile Transportation could be smarter, and there is room to improve.