Chinista

Practical planning hub

China travel for first‑time visitors

Before you leave, set up your phone and payments, check that bookings match your passport and work out how to reach your accommodation. Save the details you will need if you lose access to an app or mobile data.

The short answer

Start with internet access, then payments and passport details, then your arrival arrangements. Test the backups for these essentials before filling the itinerary with sightseeing.

A calmer planning order

Get the essentials ready before planning each day.

The steps below link to source-checked instructions and backup options. Open the guides that apply to your trip.

Step 01

Set up your phone before arrival

Choose how to get online, install the apps you need and save arrival details you can open if an account or network fails.

Open this step

Step 02

Set up payments and check passport details

Prepare more than one way to pay. Use the same passport details for bookings that staff will check in person.

Open this step

Step 03

Prepare a backup for your first day

Carry the hotel address in Chinese, know the airport-to-city route and keep a fallback that does not depend on one app.

Open this step

Planning a Guizhou trip

See which Guizhou stops fit your time.

The Guizhou guide compares 17 places and cultural experiences by location, access, season and time. Its 3 to 10 day routes include the local transfers you need to allow for alongside train journeys.

Plan a Guizhou route

Browse by decision

Find the part of China travel you need now.

Each topic groups related guides. Before relying on a rule that can change, check when and how the guide was verified.

Payments in ChinaSet up a resilient way to pay, then prepare recovery options before a transaction becomes urgent.Transport & TicketsBook rail and attraction tickets with the correct identity details and offline backups.Hotels & Check-inReduce check-in surprises with written confirmation, passport-ready arrival details and fallbacks.Apps & ConnectivitySet up internet access, choose a map app for your phone and keep an offline recovery path that does not depend on one account or provider.Entry & PreparationEntry rules, customs and what to prepare before you travel, checked against official immigration and customs sources.Health, Safety & RecoveryPrepare emergency contacts, medical care and document recovery before a problem becomes harder to explain or solve.

Rules change

Check what was verified, and when.

The China travel rules tracker groups visa, payment, hotel, registration, tax-refund and medicine guidance by its last official source check and next review.

Open the rule change tracker

Before your first trip

Six guides for an independent first trip.

These guides cover the preparations you are likely to need first. Read what applies to your trip, then save your choices in a private arrival plan.

Make it personal

Turn the research into your arrival plan.

Choose your city, phone, connection, transport, accommodation and payment setup. Chinista generates a checklist and offline fallback pack locally in your browser.

Build my arrival plan