Many in our community of readers used to live in China or travel there often and, for a variety of reasons, haven’t returned for several years. Some are considering making a trip and wondering what traveling to and in China is like in the post-COVID era.
Earlier this spring, I had the chance to travel to China. What follows are my observations, gleanings, and tips. They are based on my experiences during a nine-day visit that saw me in two cities: Shanghai and Zhengzhou, Henan. Others who have traveled to China recently may have other observations and tips.
240-hour Transit Visa on Arrival
Since I had recently gotten a new passport and my previous ten-year tourist visa had expired, I decided to avail myself of the new “240-hour Transit Visa on Arrival.” This visa comes with two strict stipulations. The first is the time limit of ten days (240 hours). The second is that you must enter China from one country and depart to another country. In my case, I had a ticket into Shanghai from Incheon/Seoul, ROK, and an outbound ticket from Shanghai to Seattle. Wanting to leave a bit of a cushion, I booked my ticket out of China on day nine instead of day ten.
This visa offers a good option for those intending a short visit and who don’t want or need the added time and expense of applying for a tourist visa. It’s especially convenient if you are travelling to or from another location in Asia and want to stop off in China either coming or going.
In my case, it worked great until my departing flight to Shanghai was cancelled at the last minute (we were all sitting at the gate waiting to board). The only two options Delta gave me were flying to Detroit three days later or flying through Korea the next day. Both options would put me in violation of the visa requirements. I opted for the second violation and prayed that the passport control officials would be understanding. At first he scolded me. I explained that I had done everything correctly and that my predicament was a result of Delta canceling my flight. I showed him my boarding pass for the Seattle flight the night before as proof that I had followed the rules. I also showed him my boarding pass from Incheon/Seoul to Minneapolis-St. Paul to prove that Korea was not my destination. Then I asked him to have pity on me. He finally smiled and said, 我理解你的情况。 “I understand your situation.” He stamped my passport, and I thanked him profusely. The moral of the story: give yourself a one-or-two-day cushion and think through departure options in case your flight is cancelled.
You can read more about the transit visa for Americans here. For those not in the US, check the Chinese embassy websites in your home country.
Arrival
China requires all foreign travelers to complete an arrival form (the old yellow card we used to fill out on the airplane) either before arrival or on arrival. What’s different now is that this form is online. Upon completion, I received a QR code by email. One question is about what visa you have. I selected “transit visa.” When I got to passport control, I was handed off to a different officer who escorted me (and a few others) to a separate counter. There I had to show proof that my onward ticket was not back to Korea and was within ten days. The officer also asked if I planned to travel to any other places in China. When I told her I was thinking about going to Zhengzhou, Henan, she wanted to know why. I told her that I had taught English there in 1984 and I wanted to go back and see it 42 years later! “Have a great time,” she said, then put the visa into my passport. I was in!
Transportation from the Airport
In preparing for the trip, one of the things I was concerned about was getting from the airport to my hotel downtown Shanghai. In the old days I would have had some cash in my wallet and simply gotten in the taxi line at the airport. But this time I wasn’t sure taxi lines still existed, and if so, would a driver even take cash? I also wasn’t 100% sure my WeChat Pay account which I had set up two years before would work. So, for this trip, I poked around online and found a great ground transportation booking site/app called Mozio. I was able to book a car from Shanghai Pudong Airport to my hotel for less than $30.00 USD. As soon as I booked and paid for the service, I started receiving emails and texts with information about my trip. A few days before arrival I even received the name and contact information of the driver. When I exited the baggage claim area, he was there holding a sign with my name on it. And I got my first-ever ride in a Tesla!
Don’t Bother with Cash
China is on the verge of being a cashless society. During my time there, I never changed any money. While foreign credit cards are accepted at Western-branded hotels and restaurants, you will need a Chinese payment app for nearly every transaction—from airline and train tickets to bottled water and even giving money to a beggar. The two main payment apps are WeChat Pay and Alipay. Since I used WeChat Pay, I can only speak to its ease and convenience compared to Alipay.
If you already have a WeChat account, you will need to link it to your home country credit card, not a home country bank account. Detailed instructions for doing that can be found here. It’s a fairly laborious process that involves uploading your passport photo and setting up facial recognition ID and a password. Do all of this before you travel and make sure that your phone is set up to receive international text and calls. (I have an international plan with T-Mobile, and it works great). Once everything is good to go, you are ready to start spending! Remember the password since you will have to enter it each time you make a payment. One nice thing is that WeChat sends a receipt by text after each transaction.
For detailed information on setting up and using Alipay, go here.
Getting Around Town
The days of standing on the corner trying to hail a taxi are gone. Sure, there are still taxis on the streets, but empty ones whiz past you on their way to pick up passengers who have called them through Didi, the major ride-hailing app. If you want to go anywhere, you will need to have access to Didi on your phone. You can use the Didi mini-app within WeChat or download the Didi China app and link it to Alipay. Detailed instructions on how to use Didi with WeChat and Alipay can be found here. I don’t think I ever waited more than 5 minutes for a car!
Traveling Around China
If you enter China on the transit visa, you are allowed to travel to any of the other open cities designated as entry ports. Plane and train tickets now must all be booked online, either through travel mini-apps in WeChat or via stand-alone travel apps or website, the most popular being Trip.com. Like Expedia in the US, Trip.com is a comprehensive travel site that offers air, train, and hotel bookings. Everything is verified via ID cards now, which for a foreign visitor is a passport. You need to carry it with you at all times and be prepared to scan it when asked. You will be asked to show it when you enter airports and train stations. At train station boarding gates, passengers scan their ID cards. The machines are not set up to read foreign passports, so you will need to go to the special line at the side for passengers needing assistance, the elderly, and foreigners. The good news is that it is always a much shorter line!
China’s high-speed rail system is fantastic and is my favorite mode of domestic travel in China, particularly on routes that take less than five hours. The prices are often comparable to flights, and you don’t have to arrive two hours in advance or worry about delays and cancellations. And I love watching the countryside go by. For those who prefer flying, however, China’s domestic air routes are extensive and convenient.
Conclusion
Despite some of the headlines, now is a great time to visit China. The international tourism industry collapsed during the three years that China was closed due to COVID, and they are now trying to revive it. The transit visa is a major tool for that. There is no application form to fill out asking about your profession or previous travel to China.
Also, for Americans, China continues to offer the 10-year tourist visa. Applying for that one is next on my to-do list!
So, if you’ve been thinking about visiting China and wondering if you should go, I say DO IT!
