Hi, I plan to visit china with my girlfriend soon, however she has severe allergy to wheat, milk and soy. Can we obtain any allergen-free food in grocery stores and restaurants? Btw we don’t speak mandarin, so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to explain myself to restaurant stuff etc.

Hi,

I am going to Zhangjiajie in 2 weeks. I already visited 12 years ago but lot of things have changed apparently.

We have 2 days and will have a driver - 10 people. Staying in Zhangjiajie town.

My first question is about Tianmenshan - I didn't visit there - and the glass bridge - that didn't exist when I was there.

Is it possible to do both in one day? I heard Tianmenshan takes about half a day or a bit more.

I am thinking of getting the cable car up around 8 or 8.30 am, walking around, go down to the cave, go down back to town. I am not sure what queues to expect (will go on weekday, Mon or Tue) and how long it all takes.

I can see thr glass bridge can be booked along with the canyon (don't have time for that unfortunately) or alone, and bridge alone is only done at 15.20 in the afternoon. Is it manageable if we have a driver to transfer us quickly? Or should I plan another way?

My second question is about Wulingyuan. I have visited as well, but I cannot remember that clearly and I was a student, so we tried to walk everywhere rather than take cable cars etc. We will have a full day as well (also Mon/Tue) but I have a hard time figuring out the map of the area. I am not sure how distant the places from each other etc. Could please someone suggest an itinerary that's good for a day, if we have the budget to take the cable cars/elevator? We want to do some hiking as well, but there will be some elderly with us so I don't want to do too many stairs.

Thank you very much!

Hello, I'm currently planning a 4 week vacation to China next year with my mother. We will be going in July, which I know isn't the best travel time due to the summer heat, but it is the only time of the year where I can take 4 weeks off work.

One of the experiences that my mother is most excited for is doing a river cruise on the Yangtze. We want to do the classic 4d/3n route from Chongqing to Yichang.

Of course I tried using the search function first, but I didn't find many posts on this topic.

Have some of you done a cruise like this before? I found a few websites on these cruises, but am not really sure, if they are trustworthy or not. Should I book through one of these websites (which one?) or directly with the company that operates the ship? Are there certain ships or companies that we should avoid?

From my impression, the itineraries seem to be very similar from one another, one difference being that for some the excursions on land are included and for others they are not. I'd figure that it would be boring to stay on board and wait for the return of the other passengers, but if an excursion is really pricy and not worth it, then that would be good to know as well.

Should we book now or should we still wait a little big longer?

All tips and suggestions are very welcome.

Hi everyone

Thanks for your interest. I have received several weekly requests to share my notes regarding travelling to China (my OG comment)

For reference - I am half Chinese (from Shanghai) - Used to live there and now travel to visit friends and family once a year. Recently I have started to venture out of my comfortzone and exploring other cities too. My partner and I are in our mid 30's - I have enough Chinese to get around but as my mom says - I read like a kindergartener. My partner and I are from northern Europe - no kids. Just so you know which 'eyes' wrote this document. We have shared it with friends and family prior to uploading it here.

Though our next trip in spring will be with a baby on board (my nephew and his parents) - so come spring 2025 it will be updated with baby-friendly tips too.

Here is the google doc - you are free to download.

It is a working document and is quite cluttered as of now - I am working on it (just as soon as my ADHD kicks into overdrive and hyperfocus on china and planning the next trip again.

For now the guide is for Beijing and Shanghai. In the next week or so I will add Hangzhou and Xi'an. In spring/summer 2025 I will add Chengdu, Suzhou and maybe Huangshan too. Perhaps a few other places near Shanghai.
If you have any questions - I might be able to answer them - who knows :)

Disclaimer - not everyone may find this document helpful - this is purely from our perspective and is therefore subjective to us.

As a last note - I am not affiliated with anyone commercially. Alle places, attractions, restaurants, people referred to in the document are all ones I have tested and tried and trust. I am not being paid by anyone to promote anything. I am just trying to help anyone going to China for the first time ever - or in a long time.

Hope it helps :)

Hi there, we are planning to visit the Great Wall on Mutianyu from Beijing. We bought the tickets in advance but because the internet articles may be outdated I have a question: How to get from Beijing to Mutianyu?

Hi everyone!

I’m travelling to Dandong tomorrow and was wondering if the mobile coverage (especially for an eSIM) is good in Dandong? I’m using Airalo - China Unicom which I believe is based out of Singapore so if anyone has experience with eSIM mobile data coverage in Dandong, please let me know.

I want to go to china with my partner who is from Arunachal Pradesh in India but I’m Not sure if she will be able to get a visa since China considers Arunachal Pradesh to be their territory.

So me and my mother are travelling to China in 2 weeks, going to Guangzhou and Hong Kong specifically. May also visit Shenzhen and Macau. We've booked flights and hotels but nothing else. We are overseas Chinese so we can speak Mandarin (however our vocabulary is probably outdated) so asking for directions shouldn't be a problem. But I don't know anything about the apps or anything else I need to prepare since everything is different now.

How do I buy a SIM card over there? Do they even sell SIM cards to foreigners? Last time we had a relative buy a SIM card for us using her Chinese ID but we won't be visiting any relatives this time so we're on our own.

Do we need to get travel vaccines before I go? I've been to China before (last time was 5 years ago) and I can't remember when I was last vaccinated or if there's enough time to get vaccines now.

We will be mainly getting around using public transport and walking. Should I download the Didi app just in case we need to call a taxi? Do I need a VPN or can we get around using Baidu maps or whatever? I can't read Chinese but my mother can.

Please let me know what I need to do to make sure the trip goes as smoothly as possible. I know I'm woefully unprepared. This is the first time we are travelling alone without a tour guide or relatives so I'm starting to panic.

There was a recent announcement that Finnish passport-holders don't need a visa for China. Can anyone confirm?

Hey Everyone!

I'm travelling to Guangzhou, China again, and this time I want to buy some chinese makeup. Does anyone know the best places to get some Chinese makeup and what brands do you enjoy using (I've tried Judydoll so far, I want to try flowerknows - any other brands I should try)?

Also, should I trust the Watsons pharmacys (theres one close to my grandmas place), but my auntie who's a local said there might be some fake products, any advice on this?

Cheers!

Recently China added a few European countries for visa free (not transit!! A real Chinese visa). Do they put a sticker in the passport?

I'm in Beijing at the moment, what is the best way to make a call to UK? (With a Chinese SIM card) Hopefully it won't cost a fortune

Hey everyone I’m traveling to China for 6 weeks this December-January and was wondering about what kind of boots to wear. Ideally I want a single pair of versatile boots that I can wear for the whole trip alongside a pair of slides for bathrooms etc.. We will mainly be in urban areas but plan to do a short hike of the Great Wall and will probably be walking quite a lot around the cities.

I will be travelling through both southern and northern China along with Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. I am aware that it in areas such as Beijing and Harbin it will be very cold and snowy so the boots would need to be decently waterproof I think?

Any recommendations or tips would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!

I need to decide which local cell company to use for my upcoming trip to China, either China Mobile (中移动) or China Unicom (中联通). I plan to use a physical SIM with my spare Android phone because my iPhone pro Max's two eSIM's are already used by my US number and the number of another Asian country. Wich one works better with LetsVPN?

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China was always on my list and thinking to visit it in December. I like the idea of less tourists at that time, but I'm wondering how cold, rainy and cloudy it is in average and should I rather save it for a spring time? I would like to visit major spots from Beijing, Shanghai/Suzhou, Zhangjiajie, Tianmen Mountain, Yangshuo, Chengdu, and Hong Kong and surrounding area. Would I lose some experiences visiting particularly Zhangjiajie, Tianmen Mountain and Yangshuo area if it's cloudy, foggy and you can't see much, or should it be a great experience as well regardless.

My family was thinking of visiting Putian for holiday in December, but the whole holiday planning falls on me now since I was the one who kept hinting that we go there earlier this year.

I need serious help - where are some places to visit? I am thinking of visiting a few places all over the area, like Meizhou and Chengxiang District but I think my family would prefer staying at one fixed place. I heard from one of my friends that I might be able to get a driver to drive us to attractions, as she did while she was in Yunnan and Dali.

I also am intending on spending some time with my boyfriend while I'm there since he's currently staying there - he said he's fine with either me going to him or him going to where I'm at

I have a few questions: what are some good hotels in Putian? How many days are recommended for me to spend there? Aside from the temples, what other places can I go to where I can experience the culture?

I appreciate any help. Thank you!

Hi everyone, I am going to China next week and I wanted to know if I can use my credit card in my purchases via Alipay. I am getting to the part where I need to submit my information. Does Alipay accept foreigner information to get verified?

Hi everyone! My partner and I are finalizing our Japan trip and need some help deciding on the best way to use our layover. We’ll be in Okinawa with two flight options that either take us to Beijing or Harbin. Here are the options, plus a few extra considerations that have us feeling stuck.

The Options We’re Considering:

1. Fly from Okinawa to Beijing on February 19, 2025: This is the only date we can fly directly to Beijing, so it would mean sticking to our original schedule. It’s a cheaper option, and we’d have a solid 4.5 days to explore Beijing and do things like the Great Wall. But it does mean missing out on the famous Harbin Ice Festival.
2. Fly from Okinawa to Harbin on February 18, 2025: If we go this route, we’d gain an extra day for exploring. We’d experience the Ice Festival in Harbin and then travel to Beijing with around 3.5 days to spare. It costs about €110 more but also saves us the train costs and travel time between Beijing and Harbin, making the logistics a bit simpler.

Why We’re Unsure:

• Harbin Ice Festival: This sounds incredible, but I’ve learned it closed early last year due to warm weather, around mid-February. It’s hard to predict if it’ll be open during our dates, so there’s a risk of arriving to find it already closed.
• Alternative Plan with Flexibility: If we flew to Beijing on the 19th, we could decide later whether to take a train (overnight soft sleeper or high-speed) for a quick trip to Harbin. But I’m not sure about availability for last-minute bookings, especially in February.

Key Points We’re Weighing:

1. Beijing Time vs. Harbin Travel: If we visit Harbin first, we’ll have 3.5 days in Beijing. Is it worth the reduced time in Beijing to experience the Ice Festival, or would a full 4.5 days in Beijing be a better use of time?
2. Cost vs. Experience: Flying to Harbin directly costs roughly the same as flying to Beijing and then taking the train. But factoring in festival tickets and other costs, Harbin could add up quickly for just 1-2 days.
3. Risk of Festival Closure: The Ice Festival closed early last year. If it closes again before our dates, we’d lose time and money on a trip to Harbin, leaving us with less time in Beijing.

Questions for You:

• Has anyone done a Beijing-to-Harbin trip specifically for the Ice Festival? Was it worth the travel time and expenses, or would you recommend focusing on Beijing?
• For those who’ve been to the Ice Festival, was it worth it? Or would Beijing’s attractions offer just as memorable an experience?
• How difficult is it to get last-minute train tickets from Beijing to Harbin in February? Are advanced bookings essential for the high-speed train or soft sleeper?

Thanks so much for any advice or experience you can share!

Hey everyone! just finished a 6 days Beijing trip. This subreddit has helped me a lot with travel preparation and I would like to repay with some informations that might be useful and that I didn’t read here before (I follow this sub from only 6 months though).

1. Public transport - As everyone says the subway is really great. BUT:

Mind that some lines run in circles or square and can take up to 4 different directions marked as A,B,C,D. Based on where you need to go you’ll need to take a different staircase. This is fine if you have taken the subway before and/or have the subway map app installed under your eyes for orientation. It happened to me though to not have this app available and to be on my second ride, I had to ask help from locals;

The subway gets VERY crowded on some lines and peak times like 18.30. Crowded to the point where you have to wait 20 minutes on a queue before having the possibility to hop on a train. This happened to me on Hujalou, taking line 10 to get to Jintai Xizhao.

2. The Great Wall - went to Mutianyu, something was not working correctly this time (31/10) so no Alypay or WeChat payment was possible, there was a sign explaining it.

The options where either to pay cash or with a card;

3. Esim - Virtual esim’s like the one you can make with Airalo before landing here are useful but they are only data and you won’t have a chinese number.

I suggest to wait to be here and make one with a carrier, for example China mobile, because there are cases where a phone number is required and helpful. For example my hotel had washing machines, to use them you had to download an app called Penguin Life (that as many other chinese apps also lets you do 100 other things :D) which required an account made with a chinese phone number;

4. Gym’s situation - like many here I train hard in the gym. I found Beijing still behind on fitness culture, tried 2 of the gym’s I read about here (B - Active and another one) plus one that I found through Amap myself. All of them had somewhat ok equipment but much else was missing (weight bumpers all around, not many dumbbells, etc).

I don’t know, anyone can suggest which are the top tier gym’s (no matter the price) where fit people train in Beijing?

5. Water - Everything is purified here, coming from south Europe (Italy) it was a bit a new concept. In my home city I have a clean water source coming directly into my kitchen faucet that I can drink. The water I drank here had a different taste that I couldn’t get around initially. After trying some of them, the ones I feel closer to what I drank in Europe I would say is Wahaha. Also Ganten is not bad.

I hope this can help someone! Anyway, I loved the city and the culture and I am planning on coming back already for 15 days from the 17th of November. This time I would like to connect with locals and dive deeper into non touristic attraction while possibly making friends and building community. Any suggestion on how to do it? Where would I start? I am 27 and my ideal group age range would be 25 - 30 years old. Thanks everyone!

I'll be traveling to China in about two weeks and I have been trying to create a wechat account but I know nobody who could verify me. If anyone's kind enough to verify me for my trip, that'd be appreciated.

I just got back from a 2-week trip to Beijing and Shanghai, and I found that having a well-prepared phone with essential apps can make a big difference. In China, I relied on my smartphone for almost everything—not only for payments and navigation but also for transportation, finding restaurants, placing orders, and much more. Here are my tips:

Set up WeChat (微信). You’ll use this app for almost everything in China—messaging, social networking, payments, and even ordering food or getting a ride. It’s easy to verify your phone number, and once you do, you can link your bank card (Visa and Mastercard work fine) to use WeChat Pay. Although I had heard mixed opinions about it, setting it up was simple, and it was helpful almost everywhere.

Use Dazhong Dianping (大众点评). This app is excellent for finding top-rated restaurants nearby and discovering the food locals love. You can either install it as an app or use it directly from WeChat as a mini program. I actually found the mini-program version more useful since it can translate everything, while the app has only an English UI. I was able to find many coupons using the translation.

Try Meituan (美团). This lifestyle app covers a range of services, including food deliveries, dining, movie tickets, and other local experiences, often with discounts. While there is a standalone app, the mini-program version in WeChat may be more convenient since it includes translation. Be sure to read the discount conditions carefully, as some can have unexpected restrictions, helping you avoid unnecessary spending.

Use Didi (滴滴). Similar to Uber, Didi works in most major Chinese cities. You can access it as a WeChat mini program or as a standalone app. With location names in English and Didi handling the details, there’s no need to talk to the driver. It’s perfect for quick rides and surprisingly affordable.

Choose a map app. If you read Chinese, Autonavi, Tencent Map, or Baidu Map are reliable and tend to be up-to-date. For those who don’t, Google Maps is an option, though it may be less comprehensive. However, I found I didn’t need navigation apps very often during my trip.

Anything else to add?

Hi all,

I am planning a trip to China next year in April with my partner for 28 days:

|| || |5 days|Shanghai - the bund, Nanjing road, zhujiajiao water town, disneyland| |4 days|Yangshuo - longji rice terraces, peak ruyi, biking, bamboo rafting| |4 days|Zhangjiajie - tianzi mountain, tianmen mountain, national park | |4 days|Chengdu - dujiangyan irrigation system, leshand giant buddha day trip, panda base research centre| |3 days|Xi’an - muslim quarter, old city walls, terracota warriors, day trip to mt huashan| |5 days|Beijing - forbidden city, great wall day trip, universal studios, summer palace|

So if you've been to China, I would love to know:

1. if you think this is a good/doable itinerary for four weeks?
2. if there is anything you would add (e.g. any unmissable destinations)
3. this is a bit more of a random question but - does anyone know if there are flights from Zhangjiajie to Chengdu in April? I can't seem to find any on trip.com but there seem to be flights in other months.

Thank you!

Me and my GF was eating our lunch in Tianfu Square, Chengdu. A friendly Tibetian monk approached us and wanted to take pictures. We are from Europe so it is not unusual that someone wants to take picture with us. I don't speak Chinese so we only briefly talked with a translation app and he offered to exchange WeChat contact. Later he chatted me that we could have dinner and hang out. Could he have some ulterior relegious motive / scam or he really just wants to get to know us? It would be intresting to speak with a monk, but obviously we want to be cautious with strangers approaching us.

I’m a Norwegian citizen and I just landed in Beijing today. I live and work in HK and had a round trip booked to go back on Sunday 3/11. I had misunderstood the visa requirements and thought I could enter China visa free, when it hasn’t been implemented yet. I qualify for the 144 hour visa free transit but had to apply for this upon arrival. However, she wouldn’t let me leave the airport unless I booked a new flight to a different country than HK (transit visa right), so I did. Upon receiving the visa it makes no mention of this new country so what I am wondering is, would I be ok to just board the flight back to HK on Sunday or do I risk getting in a lot of trouble with immigration?

Hi everyone

It says baggage allowance is 23 kg per person for Maglev Shanghai. Are they strict about this? Because my group tour is offering us airport transfer through Maglev and we all have 46 kg baggage allowance and multiple bags.

So I’m a bit confused about how it will work.

I don’t plan on taking the Maglev with my tour operator (because there are other activities throughout the day I’ll have to do with them as part of the tour and I’d rather do my own thing during the day and head to the airport via the Maglev) So I’m a bit afraid that being alone with 2 bags will get me in trouble (since it’ll be over the mentioned baggage allowance)

Any inputs are highly appreciated

Thank you

So I figured out how to set up Alipay to pay for my ride on subway, but how would I pay for my kids? They don’t have their own cell phone, and they’re taller than 1.2m so they need to pay. Do you swipe twice? Thanks in advance?

Hello. I'm traveling to China on an official trip and have been issued a forex card with USD in it. Can Alipay and WeChat be linked to this card? Or I'll have to swipe the card directly or withdraw cash from ATM?

Do the ATMs have instructions in English?

Also, what apps would one recommend to get around easily? Something like google maps, translation apps,

Here for a few days and looking for recommendations of places to eat!

From what I've read

Popular Food to try: Guilin rice noodles, beer battered fish, Li River shrimp, River snails

Hi guys, planning to visit beijing and shanghai, concern about halal food, transportations and ticketing, any recommednation or stories is more than welcome

for shanghai im planning to visit
the bund, oriental pearl tower, ocean aquarium, shanghai circus, (night boat ride, idk where its at)
Hangzou, Phoenix mosque, hangzou mosque, qiantang river
yu yuan garden, zhujiajio

and for beijing im planning to visit
tianmen square, great walls, national museum, temple of heaven

my hotel is close to nanjing road and in wyndham beijing

do you guys have recommendations for places that is much more recommended than my itinerary, halal food around beijing, hangzou, and beijing.
im planning to stay for 7 days
and how to get to great walls of china without tour and travel agents?
Thank you!