My daughter and I spent 6 nights in China after our trip to Japan this past summer. Traveling to and within China was definitely more challenging than traveling to Japan. If you are planning a trip to China, make sure you do these three things in advance.
Get Tourist Visa or Prepare Visa-Free Transit Paperwork
U.S. citizens require a visa to visit China. You an apply for a visa yourself and visit one of 5 Chinese embassies/consulates in the U.S., or you can pay a courier service to take your paperwork to the assigned location for you. Total costs for getting a visa using a courier service is around $300+. Ouch! Plus, you have to mail in your passport. But, the visa is good for stays of 90 days or less and valid up to 10 years.
If you are combining a visit to China with another country, you may qualify for the visa-free transit policy. This is what my daughter and I did, since were visiting China on the way home from our visit to Japan. This policy allows you to stay in China up to 10 days in multiple regions without getting a tourist visa. See this article for more details.
Be aware that for this visa-free transit policy, you have to prove you have a flight to the 3rd country and proof of all hotel reservations for your stay in China. When I checked in at the Osaka Kansai Airport for my flight to Beijing, I had to show my ticket number (not just my confirmation code and airline date/time). I didn’t have this handy, so I had to browse through old emails to find the long ticket number.
Download Apps and Connect Credit Cards
Most places in China don’t accept U.S. credit cards, and many don’t accept cash. I downloaded two apps to pay for things:
I preferred to us Alipay app. However, the tour companies used WeChat to communicate.
In addition, I downloaded the Didi app, which is China’s version of Uber. Both WeChat and Alipay have Didi as a part of their apps, but I thought it was easier to use the Didi app on its own.
I also recommend hooking up two credit cards to each app while you are still in the USA. None of my Capital One credit cards allowed me to hook them up to these apps, so I’m glad I discovered that before traveling.
Get eSIM with VPN
Most US apps/websites are blocked in China. So if you’re planning to rely on free WiFi, you’ll have trouble communicating with family back in the U.S. Most eSIMs come with a VPN that allows you to use the apps we’re accustomed to using. I purchased eSIMS from Holafly.
Author: Nancy
Nancy lives near Dallas, Texas, with her husband and three kids. Her favorite vacations include the beach, cruising and everything Disney.
Useful info, thanks. Was it easy overall to make travel plans and book hotels, transport and tickets in China? How the cost compared to other countries?
Looking forward to read your trip reviews from China.
@Aleks Yes, it was pretty easy. I booked hotels online directly through their websites (Hyatt and Marriott) and booked tours and bullet train through Klook. Overall, the cost was much cheaper than Japan, especially the Didi car rides.