Canton Fair Halls & Floor Plan — Complete Guide to All 20 Exhibition Halls

The Canton Fair Complex — Areas A, B and C

The complex is divided into three main exhibition areas, each covering a cluster of halls. Area A (Halls 1–8) sits at the north of the island and handles the largest volume of Phase 1 categories: electronics, machinery, vehicles, lighting and building materials. Area B (Halls 9–16) occupies the central section and hosts Phase 2 consumer goods, home decoration, furniture and gifts, as well as some Phase 1 overflow halls. Area C (Halls 17–20) is at the southern end and houses Phase 2 and Phase 3 categories including outdoor products, toys, textiles and health products.

The three areas are connected by air-conditioned corridors, pedestrian bridges and an internal shuttle system, meaning you can move from Hall 1 to Hall 20 without ever stepping outside — important in Guangzhou's humid April or October weather. Each connection point has signage in Chinese and English, and detailed hall maps are posted at every major junction.

The total indoor exhibition area exceeds 1.16 million square metres, making it comparable in scale to more than 160 football pitches. Individual halls range in size from approximately 25,000 to 65,000 square metres depending on their position in the complex.

Which halls are used in each phase?

Phase 1 (Electronics, Technology, Machinery, Vehicles, Building Materials): Halls 1–8 and 13–16. This is the largest phase in terms of floor space and exhibitor count. The heavy-industry and technology sectors dominate, with Hall 1 and Hall 2 traditionally housing consumer electronics and lighting, Halls 3–4 covering vehicles and industrial machinery, and Halls 5–8 spanning hardware, building materials and energy products. Halls 13–16 cover electronic components, computers, security products and communication equipment.

Phase 2 (Consumer Goods, Gifts, Home Decorations, Furniture): Halls 9–12 and 17–20. Phase 2 has a markedly different feel — brighter, more colourful, and stocked with home goods, gifts, ceramics, garden products and outdoor furniture. Halls 9–10 cover household goods and kitchen products, Halls 11–12 host ceramics and decorative arts, and Halls 17–20 cover outdoor products, toys, stationery and health/beauty goods.

Phase 3 (Textiles, Clothing, Footwear, Cases and Bags): Uses the same physical halls as Phase 1 (Halls 1–8 and 13–16) but with entirely different exhibitors. The entire complex is cleared between phases and restocked. Phase 3 is where garment buyers, fabric importers and fashion sourcing agents focus — the halls are reorganised into apparel, textiles, footwear and accessories zones.

Note: Hall assignments can shift slightly between editions of the fair. Always verify which specific hall your target exhibitors are in using the official fair website or this directory before your visit.

Hall sizes and what to expect inside

Halls range from around 25,000 sqm to over 65,000 sqm each. The larger halls (such as Hall 1, Hall 5 and Hall 9) are multi-storey with ground floor, first floor and sometimes a second floor — all housing different exhibitors. Smaller halls may be single-storey.

Inside each hall, booths are arranged in lettered rows (Row A, Row B, Row C…) running perpendicular to the main entrance aisle. Standard small booths are 9 sqm (3×3 metres), medium booths are 18–36 sqm, and large corner booths or custom-built stands can be 50–200+ sqm. Premium positions are near the main entrance or on corner rows.

Each hall has its own registration counter at the entrance where you can collect a stamp on your buyer badge (some halls verify badges). Food courts and kiosk areas are positioned at the end of each hall or in the connecting lobbies between halls.

How to find a specific booth

Every Canton Fair booth has a three-part identifier: Hall → Floor → Booth code. For example, '5.1-A01' means Hall 5, Floor 1, Row A, Booth 01. The hall number comes first, the floor number second (1F = ground floor in Chinese convention), then the row letter and two-digit booth number.

When using this directory, the booth number field shows the code in the format the exhibitor registered with the fair. Cross-reference with the hall and floor fields to pinpoint the exact location. At the venue, look for large overhead signs in each hall displaying the row letters — follow the row letter until you reach the matching booth number.

The official Canton Fair app (available for iOS and Android) includes a digital floor map for each hall. Download it before arriving and save maps offline — WiFi inside the halls can be slow during peak hours. Alternatively, physical printed maps are distributed at each hall entrance and at the main buyer registration area.

Navigation tips — getting between halls efficiently

Plan your route by hall cluster, not by individual booth. If you have meetings in Halls 5, 6, and 8, schedule them on the same half-day and walk the cluster. Jumping from Hall 2 to Hall 15 and back to Hall 4 in the same morning wastes 30–45 minutes of walking.

Wear flat, comfortable shoes. There is no shortcut — expect 15,000 to 25,000 steps per day. Fashionable business shoes that look good but hurt after two hours are a common first-timer mistake.

Arrive before 9:30 am. The complex becomes very crowded between 10 am and 4 pm, with queues at popular halls and congestion in the main corridors. Early arrival means faster movement and better access to exhibitors who are fresh and not yet fatigued from a day of meetings.

The main entrance and registration area is on the north side of the complex, accessible from the Xingang East and Pazhou metro stations (Line 8). Multiple secondary entrances serve individual halls — check the signage or app to find the most direct entrance for your first meeting.

Use the internal shuttle service if available (it varies by edition). Some editions operate a small internal transport service between the far ends of the complex — check on arrival.

Registration points and buyer badge collection

The main overseas buyer registration desk is located near the north main entrance of the complex. This is where you collect your physical buyer badge on your first day — bring your passport and the pre-registration QR code or confirmation email.

Arrive early on the first day of each phase to avoid the registration queue. The queues are longest in the first 90 minutes after opening (usually 9:00–10:30 am on Day 1 of each phase). If arriving after 11 am, queues are typically much shorter.

Sub-registration points exist inside some larger halls for buyers who only need to register for specific halls. These are smaller desks, usually staffed by both Chinese and English-speaking assistants.

Food courts and dining inside the complex

Each major area of the complex (A, B, C) has at least one food court. These typically offer Cantonese dishes, Chinese fast food, noodles and rice boxes, and basic Western options. Prices are reasonable (RMB 20–50 for a full meal) but quality is variable.

The peak lunch rush is 12:00–13:30. Queues at popular counters can be 20–30 minutes long during this window. Strategy: eat at 11:30 or wait until 14:00. Many experienced buyers bring protein bars and snacks to bridge the midday hunger gap without losing time.

Kiosk-style food and drink stands are scattered throughout the halls — coffee carts, juice bars and packaged snacks are available. These are useful for a quick energy boost between meetings without the sit-down queue.

Outdoor exhibition areas

In addition to the indoor halls, the Canton Fair Complex has outdoor exhibition areas used primarily for large items: construction equipment, agricultural machinery, vehicles, garden furniture and oversized industrial products. These areas are accessible from the main complex but are exposed to the weather — bring a compact umbrella (Guangzhou rain can be sudden and heavy in April and October).

The outdoor areas are less crowded than the indoor halls and buyers here often have more time for detailed conversations. If your sourcing includes heavy equipment or large-format products, budget extra time for the outdoor sections.

Using the live halls browser on this site

This directory includes a live halls browser that shows every exhibitor organised by hall, floor and booth number. You can filter by name, booth number, category or country within each hall. Use it before your visit to build a targeted meeting list, and refer back to it from your phone on the ground when you need to find a neighbouring booth you had not planned to visit.

Each exhibitor in the halls browser links directly to their full company profile — including description, product range, contact details and related suppliers. This makes it easy to do pre-visit research on every company in a hall without having to know their individual names in advance.