A sense of China
While modernisation has meant that many western amenities are now available within China, there are still a few hurdles that might catch the unprepared traveller. Its a country with rich history and culture, beautiful landscape and delicious food. But many foreigners see China as an exotic destination that’s challenging to travel to mostly because of the language barrier. Some of our observations may help you to surmount some barriers.
Our observations and tips from our trip to China
One of the most important things to know when travelling to China is that they do not offer visas on arrival. So well in advance of travelling to China you must have received your visa. We had to provide a detailed itinerary of our intended trip to the Chinese Embassy in Dublin. This application included our return flights and confirmed reservations for our hotel bookings.
China is a very safe country with relatively low crime, however, get travel insurance, it pays to be prepared.
China is a very big country so research the areas you are visiting for weather and food information, before travelling there.
Larger cities in China have serious problems with air pollution, particularly in Beijing. Many locals wear masks on days with hazardous air pollution. Spring and Autumn are the best times to visit, especially if you are sensitive to air quality.
China is serviced by a fantastic network of buses and trains, including the high-speed trains that can whisk you across the country in a matter of hours. Rates are extremely affordable by western standards.
In most major Chinese cities subways are the main method of transportation. For security reasons, you will have to X ray your bags and luggage every time you go inside a subway station, at least in Beijing and Shanghai.
Make sure your bank knows you’re going to be using your credit or debit card on your trip to China. You don’t want your card being cancelled mid-trip for unusual transactions.
Chinese airports can often be chaotic and overcrowded. It is advisable to get to the airport three hours early for international flights to China and at least two hours early for domestic.
The Chinese love to take photographs, and don’t be surprised if a local tries to snap a sneaky photo of you or even comes up to ask for a picture with you.
Taxis in China are cheap and plentiful. Most drivers will not speak English, so it’s a good idea to get your destination address written in Chinese by somebody at your hotel.
The official currency of China is the ‘yuan’. This the only currency recognised in China.
Doing your banking face to face in China, you may need to bring a local to help translate. Very few bank employees will have sufficient English to help you.
The Chinese do not use handkerchiefs and tissues to clear their noses. They spit instead. As Westerners we may find this revolting, however, they are revolted at the practice the we use a handkerchief and then keep it.
Chinese street food is delicious and it is everywhere. When choosing which vendor to purchase from, check to see where the locals are dining. If you see a queue, it’s likely to be a safe bet.
You’ll need your passport when making any internal travel bookings, and you can only book one ticket per passport. Don’t even think about traveling by train or bus without carrying your passport with you.
China blocks Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. As Google is blocked in China, you will not be able to get directions from Google Maps.
China is a densely populated place, and the locals have become accustomed to a much smaller personal space than we are accustomed to in the west. Don’t be surprised if you’re jostled or shoved when queuing. This is just part of the Chinese culture.
Make use of the facility to post home your larger purchases, because with cheap prices and a huge variety of products, it can be easy to go over your luggage limit while shopping in China.
Also, when shopping be aware that knockoffs of prominent brands can be seized at the airport upon your return home.
In restaurants, be aware that conventional western service is hard to come by.
When shopping anywhere in China outside of boutiques and chain stores, use your haggling skills. Remember to never accept the marked price or first price offered.
For the most part, cash is preferred when you are travelling in China. Generally, you can pay by card in the large cities. International ATMs are available in all major cities but may be harder to find in less tourist friendly areas. Many Chinese banks do not accept foreign credit and debit cards.
Chinese roads can be rather chaotic, so self-driving would really only recommended for the particularly brave. Luckily, as a tourist you are not allowed hire a car anyway.
Most Chinese toilets do not provide toilet paper. Hotels and nicer restaurants will have it available, but it’s always a good idea to carry a roll of toilet paper, hand wipes and a box of tissues with you on your travels.
Hand soap is not standard in many Chinese bathrooms. Carry a small bottle of hand sanitiser with you just to be sure.
Tap water in China is not drinkable. Bottled water can be purchased very cheaply at most restaurants and stores.
Chinese pharmacies offer both western and eastern medicine at very reasonable prices.
Chinese hospitals can be over-crowded and daunting, however, most major cities have specialised hospitals catering to foreigners, just ask at your hotel.
We spent 11 days on a guided tour, visiting the tourist attractions that three Chinese cities has to offer.
Link to still image montage of China visit:-
To view the video select:- https://youtu.be/dUpC4l5mUTA
Review of China 2017
We visited China in March/April 2017 for a 11 day period. The climate was temperate in China at this time of the year and ideal for open air trips and excursions.
In considering a trip to China, the language barrier in general rules out a self directed trip, so instead we choose an Irish travel company called “The Travel Department”, which provided us with a guided group tour based on the three cities of Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai.
The entire trip comprised five nights in Beijing, three in Xi’an followed by an internal flight to Shanghai where we spent our final 2 nights before flying back to Dublin via Dubai.
Sense of China
The official currency in China is the Yuan.
During our trip we drove by coach to all of the excursion venues. There were 27 Irish people in all on our China tour.
If you get any opportunities during your travels there to visit the Beijing zoo, be advised that for an animal lover, the experience is of a far lower standard of animal care than we are use to in the west.
Our general experience of the Chinese people was that they are extremely friendly, hard working and generally like to have westerners, with good white teeth, be part of their family photo shoots.
Recommendations for China
There is an enormous language barrier, if you only speak English. So it lends itself to undertaking guided group tours only.
In each of the three cities, we visited all the local tourist trails and highlights on offer. We also visited a community health centre and primary school as well as a dairy farm which left us with a genuine respect for their Chinese culture.
The street food in China is fantastic to look at and superb to taste, however, if you have a delicate stomach, you should take extreme care when partaking in street food.
Our must see recommendation for a trip to China:-
(1) Our visit to Xi’an and the nearby site of the Terracotta Warriors was the highlight of our entire trip to China - truly spectacular. China’s Xi’an Terracotta Warriors lay hidden for over 2000 years, until 1974.
(2) Our second choice highlight would be the “Great Wall of China”, which we visited from our base in Beijing. Beijing in China has a history stretching back over 3000 years.
Cost of tour circa Euro 2500 per person.
As always, the people we met on the trip and our Travel Department Chinese guide, Jack, enriched the whole experience.
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