DALIAN, CHINA: Local Currency

FROMMER’S:

Banks, Foreign Exchange and ATMs -- The main Bank of China branch is in a large tower on the corner of Yan'an Lu and Baiyu Jie, behind the Dalian Hotel on Zhongshan Guangchang (open Mon-Fri 8:30am-4:30pm). Traveler's checks and cash can be exchanged at window 32, and credit cards are handled at window 11 (both on the second floor). There are international ATMs next to the old Bank of China on Zhongshan Guangchang and inside the Nikko's shopping arcade.

LONELY PLANET:

Bank of China (Zhōngguó Yínháng; 8280 5711; 9 Zhōngshān Guǎngchǎng; 8.30-11.30am & 1-7pm Mon-Fri) Around the corner on Shanghai Lu is a 24-hour ATM.

China Merchants Bank (Shengli Guǎngchǎng) ATM; opposite the train station, off Jiefang Lu.

HSBC (cnr Renmin Lu & Zhigong Jie) ATM; accepts Cirrus, Plus, MasterCard and Visa cards.

DALIAN, CHINA: Zhongshan Square

 

LONELY PLANET:

Zhongshan Square is Dàlián's hub: grand buildings, most dating to the early 1900s, encircling a huge roundabout. Dàlián Bīnguǎn, a dignified hotel on the square's south side, appeared in the movie The Last Emperor . The square (actually, a circle) is busiest at night, when young people hang out or play hacky sack. An even larger crowd comes to watch the Dàlián Shide football stars on the square's giant TV screen

FROMMER’S:

Dalian's most impressive buildings surround Zhongshan Guangchang. Highlights are the late Renaissance-style white-brick and green-domed Bank of China (built in 1909) on the north side of the square, and the Dalian Hotel directly opposite.